Alcoholism in family systems: Difference between revisions

{{Short description|Social and psychological factors that cause alcoholism in families}}

'''Alcoholism in family systems''' refers to the conditions in families that enable [[alcoholism]] and the effects of alcoholic behavior by one or more family members on the rest of the family. Mental health professionals are increasingly considering alcoholism and [[Substance dependence|addiction]] as diseases that flourish in and are enabled by family systems.<ref name="CRNKOVIC1998"/>

 

Family members react to the alcoholic with particular behavioral patterns. They may enable the addiction to continue by shielding the addict from the negative consequences of their actions. Such behaviors are referred to as [[codependence]]. In this way, the alcoholic is said to suffer from the [[disease model of addiction|disease of addiction]], whereas the family members suffer from the disease of codependence.<ref name="OFARRELL2006"/><ref name="CERMAK1989"/> While it is recognized that addiction is a family disease affecting the entire family system, "the family is often ignored and neglected in the treatment of addictive disease."<ref name=":5">{{Cite book|title=Uppers, downers, all arounders: physical and mental effects of psychoactive drugs|first=Darryl|last=Inaba|date=2011|publisher=CNS Publications|others=Cohen, William E., 1941–|isbn=9780926544307|edition=7th|location=Ashland, Or.|oclc=747281783}}</ref> Each member is affected and should receive treatment for their benefit and healing, but in addition to benefitting the individuals themselves, this also helps better to support the addict/alcoholic in their recovery process. "The chances of recovery are greatly reduced unless the co-dependents are willing to accept their role in the addictive process and submit to treatment themselves."<ref>(Gorski, 1993; Liepman, Keller, Botelho, et al., 1998)</ref> "Co-dependents are mutually dependent on the addict to fulfill some need of their own."<ref name=":5" />

 

 

Alcoholism is one of the leading causes of a [[dysfunctional family]].<ref name="BARNETT2003"/> "About one-fourth of the U.S. population is a member of a family that is affected by an addictive disorder in a first-degree relative."<ref name=":5" /><ref>(Liepman, Parran, Farkas, et al., 2009)</ref> As of 2001, there were an estimated 26.8 million children of alcoholics (COAs) in the United States, with as many as 11 million of them under the age of 18.<ref name="MULLIGAN2001"/> Children of addicts have an increased suicide rate and on average have total [[health care costs]] 32 percent greater than children of nonalcoholic families.<ref name="MULLIGAN2001"/><ref name="DRAKE1990"/>

 

== Children ==

=== Prevalence of abuse ===

Over one million children yearly are confirmed as victims of [[child abuse]] and [[neglect]] by state child protective service agencies. Substance abuse is one of the two largest problems affecting families in the United States, being a factor in nearly four-fifths of reported cases. Alcoholism is more prevalent among child-abusing parents. Alcoholism is more strongly correlated to child abuse than [[Depression (mood)|depression]] and other disorders.<ref name="BAVOLEK1990"/><ref name="DARO1990"/>

=== Resilience ===

 

 

Research on alcoholism within families has leaned towards exploring issues that are wrong in the community rather than potential strengths or positives.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Research as Resistance: Revisiting Critical, Indigenous, and Anti-Oppressive Approaches|last=Brown, Strega|first=Leslie, Susan|publisher=Canadian Scholars' Press Inc.|year=2015|isbn=978-1551308821|location=Toronto|pages=5}}</ref> When researchers conduct research that helps communities, it can be easier for community members to identify with the positives and work towards a path of resilience. Flawed research design in adult children of alcoholics (ACOA) research showed ACOAs were psychologically damaged.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last1=Amodeo|first1=Maryann|last2=Griffin|first2=Margaret|last3=Paris|first3=Ruth|title=Women's Reports of Negative, Neutral, and Positive Effects of Growing Up With Alcoholic Parents|journal=Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services|volume=92|issue=1|pages=69–76|doi=10.1606/1044-3894.4062|year=2011|s2cid=143817928}}</ref> Some flawed research designs include using ACOAs as part of the control group and comparing them to other ACOAs within the same study. This may have caused some limitations in the study that were not listed. When comparing ACOAs to other ACOAs, it is difficult to interpret accurate results that show certain behaviors in the group studied. Research that has been conducted more recently has used control groups with non-ACOAs to see whether the behaviors align with prior research. This research has shown that behaviors were similar between non-ACOAs and ACOAs. An 18-year study compared children of alcoholics (COA) to other COAs. In failing to use non-COAs as controls, we miss an opportunity to see if the negative aspects of a person are related to having an alcoholic parent, or are they just simply a fact of life.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Werner|first=E E|date=2015-01-04|title=Resilient offspring of alcoholics: a longitudinal study from birth to age 18|journal=Journal of Studies on Alcohol|language=en|volume=47|issue=1|pages=34–40|doi=10.15288/jsa.1986.47.34|pmid=3959559}}</ref> For example, in Werner's study, he found that 30 percent of COAs were committing serious delinquencies.<ref name=":1" /> This data would have been more usable if they had viewed the percentage of those committing crimes when compared to non-ACOAs. In a study conducted in a [[Midwestern United States|Midwestern]] university, researchers found that there was no significant difference between ACOA and non-ACOA students. One of the main differences was the student's views on how they connect their past experiences with their current social-emotional functioning. Students who were ACOAs did not demonstrate issues with their perspective on their interpersonal issues any more than the non-ACA students. However, this study did show that there were other underlying problems in the family structure that may attribute to the perception of not being well adjusted in life.