The objective of this study was to understand the representations and meanings elaborated regarding the use of alcohol among women undergoing treatment at the Reference Center for Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs (CRATOD), located in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. For this, semi-structured interviews were conducted with women who were making what was considered abusive use of alcohol. For these women, their representations on the use of alcohol were linked to their family, professional and gender relationships, which defined the conceptual ways of classifying alcohol use, either as socially accepted or as abusive. Through this route, a system of accusations came into action, involving the particular values of the sociocultural scenario to which they belonged, thereby identifying them as "women who abuse alcohol", i.e. women who do not fulfill their social obligations within the spheres of the family and work.
Female alcoholism; Gender; Social representations; Alcohol abuse