The contributions of everyday and major experiences of racial discrimination to current alcohol use and regular smoking in Black adults: Considering variation by demographic characteristics and family history

•Everyday and major discrimination experiences predict alcohol use in Black adults.•Both types of racial discrimination also independently predict regular smoking.•Risk for alcohol use conferred by everyday experiences varies by education level.•Major experiences predict regular smoking in adults under age 45 but not 45–65. Background: Racial discrimination has consistently been linked to elevated alcohol use and smoking in Black adults, but the independent contributions of everyday and major experiences of discrimination have rarely been investigated. The present study aimed to identify variation in magnitude of the links between each type of racial discrimination with current frequency of alcohol use and regular smoking by demographic characteristics and family history of problem drinking/regular smoking in Black adults in the U.S. Methods: Data were drawn from 4462 adults (29.40% Afro Caribbean, 70.60% African American; 63.20% female) in a nationally representative sample of Black Americans. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to predict current frequency of alcohol use and regular smoking using the Everyday Discrimination Scale (EDS) and Major Experiences of Discrimination Scale (MEDS), testing for interactions with demographic characteristics and family history. Results: In the alcohol model, an EDS by education level interaction was observed: OR = 1.04 (CI:1.02–1.07) for