This project contributes supplemental funds to aid the dissertation research of a student of cultural anthropology. The project studies the meanings of drinking, drunkenness and sobriety among different groups of urban American Indians in Minneapolis. Through analysis of conversational and narrative discourse the student investigates the role of drinking in urban Indian life, and proposes to examine the differences between situational and cultural factors affecting the meaning of drinking to urban Indians. Methods include sampling different levels of drinkers (binge, moderate, abstinent), tribes (Dakota, Ojibwe) as well as differences between men and women. This research is important because alcohol abuse is a serious problem in urban Indian communities, and increased understanding of how drinking is understood by different segments of the community can help health specialists develop intervention programs.
