Table 4.

Hierarchical regression model of at-risk alcohol consumption (AUDIT score ≥ 8) for Australian Rural Mental Health Study participants: steps 5 and 6 – rural exposure and contextual factors

Step - Predictor variable		AUDIT total score		Univariate OR (99%CI)	Multivariate AOR (99%CI)
		0-7 n=1,694 n (%)	≥ 8 n=287 n (%)
5. Rural Exposure
Standardised service and support accessibility: Mean (SD)		-0.029 (1.006)	-0.065 (0.931)	0.96 (0.82, 1.1)	0.98 (0.79, 1.2)
Drought related concerns	Low	1,346 (86)	224 (14)
	High	348 (85)	63 (15)	1.1 (0.73, 1.6)	1.1 (0.72, 1.8)
Proportion of life lived in a rural district	Whole life	299 (87)	44 (13)
	≥ half	468 (88)	64 (12)	0.93 (0.54, 1.6)	1.2 (0.66, 2.1)
	< half	927 (84)	179 (16)	1.3 (0.82, 2.1)	1.7 (1.03, 2.9)*
6. Contextual factors
District remoteness ASGC Category using ARIA+	Inner regional	602 (85)	106 (15)
	Outer regional	631 (85)	113 (15)	1.02 (0.70, 1.5)	1.2 (0.79, 1.9)
	Remote	329 (86)	52 (14)	0.9 (0.56, 1.4)	1.4 (0.70, 2.8)
	Very remote	132 (89)	16 (11)	0.69 (0.33, 1.4)	0.94 (0.38, 2.3)
District population change 2002-2006 (%): Mean (SD)	0.25 (1.027)	0.39 (0.920)	1.2 (0.97, 1.4)	1.2 (0.89, 1.5)
Standardised SEIFA IRSD: Mean (SD)	-0.004 (1.019)	0.115 (0.995)	1.1 (0.95, 1.3)	1.1 (0.89, 1.3)
At least 6 months out of last 12 in drought	No	1418 (85)	256 (15)
	Yes	276 (90)	31 (10)	0.62 (0.37, 1.05)	0.58 (0.33, 1.03)
District remoteness ASGC Category using ARIA+	Inner regional	602 (85)	106 (15)

AOR: Adjusted Odds Ratio; ARIA+: Accessibility Remoteness Index of Australia Plus; ASGC: Australian Standard Geographic Classification; CI: Confidence Interval; IRSD: Index of Relative Socioeconomic Disadvantage; OR: Odds Ratio; SEIFA: Socio-Economic Indexes for Area. Due to rounding, row percentages may not add up to exactly 100%. * P < .01, ** P < .001.