Of the total membership of AA in Finland with at least 1 yr of sobriety, close to 90% continued as sober members for another year.
Of those having reached 1 yr of sobriety, about two-thirds survived to the next year.
The survival rate of members with between 2 and 5 yrs of sobriety was about 85%.
Among members with more than 5 yrs of sobriety, the survival rate was above 90%.
The sober membership of AA represents between one-third and one-fifth of general population survey estimates of the number of abstaining former frequent drinkers with concerns about losing control over their drinking behavior.
Maekelae, Klaus. Rates of attrition among the membership of Alcoholics Anonymous in Finland. Journal of Studies on Alcohol. Vol 55(1), Jan 1994, 91-95
Bloggers comments; This research supports other reports that ’Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic’.
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