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Length of Sobriety Facts |
How long have members of A.A. been sober? That is one of
the questions in the triennial survey among randomly selected groups in the U.S.
and Canada every three years. Surveys are all done during a one to two week
period. Everyone who is at a particular meeting of each of those groups is asked
to participate.
LENGTH OF SOBRIETY IN ALCOHOLICS
ANONYMOUS SURVEY
| Year | Less than 1 Year | 1 to 5 Years | More than 5 Years | Average |
| **77 | 37.3% | 38.0% | 24.7% | 4 Years |
| **80 | 36.4% | 37.2% | 26.4% | 4 Years |
| **83 | 37.7% | 36.9% | 24.9% | 4 Years |
| **86 | 32.8% | 38.4% | 29.0% | 4+ Years |
| 1989 | 34.0% | 37.0% | 29.0% | 4+ Years |
| 1992 | 31.0% | 34.0% | 35.0% | 5+ Years |
| 1896 | 27.0% | 28.0% | 45.0% | 6+ Years |
| 1998 | 27.0% | 26.0% | 47.0% | 7+ Years |
| 2001 | 30.0% | 22.0% | 47.0% | 7+ Years |
| 2004 | 26.0% | 24.0% | 50.0% | 8+ Years |
As of the 2004 Survey, long-term sobriety was so prevalent that "Greater Than
Five Years" was broken into two parts as follows:
5-10 Years = 14%
>10 Years = 36%
------------------ adding
>5 Years = 50%
For those unfamiliar with Alcoholics Anonymous, sobriety in A.A. means
continuous and complete abstinence from alcohol in any form.
This table represents only those who are sober and still attending meetings.
Someone who got sober in A.A. and who is staying sober by some other means would
not appear in the survey.
NOTE: Entries with dates beginning ** here are from a summary. Those with
complete years are from copies of published pamphlets:
"(P-48) Alcoholics Anonymous YYYY Membership Survey"
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