Alcohol and Substance Use in the Jewish Community: A Pilot Study

Melanie Baruch,Abraham Benarroch,Gary E Rockman

doi:10.1155/2015/763930

Melanie Baruch, Abraham Benarroch + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/763930

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Abstract

Awareness of addictions in the Jewish community is becoming increasingly prevalent, and yet, a gap exists in the literature regarding addictions in this community. Knowledge about the prevalence of addictions within Jewish communities is limited; some believe that Jews cannot be affected by addictions. To address this gap, a pilot study was conducted to gather preliminary evidence relating to addictions and substance use in the Jewish community. Results indicate that a significant portion of the Jewish community knows someone affected by an addiction and that over 20% have a family history of addiction. Future research needs are discussed.

Highlights

11% of the Canadian population struggles with substance use [1]
When asked if participants or loved ones required help with substance abuse or gambling, 8.8% stated they would contact a rabbi or priest, 11.8% a CFS agency, 8.8% their doctor, 2.9% AA, 2.9% AFM, and 5.9% private counselling, and 2.9% would not seek help. 44.1% of respondents stated they would seek out multiple community resources including Alcohol Anonymous (66.6%), the Addictions Foundation of Manitoba (73.3%), private counselling (53.3%), Child and Family Service Agency (46.6%), Employee Assistance Program (20%), inpatient facilities (20%), and a rabbi or priest (20%). 35.3% of respondents reported knowing that Jewish Child and Family Service (JCFS) offers JACS and 70.6% stated they would consider attending a JACS meeting
Knowing someone currently struggling with an addiction was positively correlated with knowledge that JCFS offers JACS (r = .358, p = .044)

Summary

Introduction

The prevalence of alcohol and substance use in the Jewish community remains uncertain, possibly due to the existence of some denial of addictive behaviours in this community [2]. Israeli evidence documenting the lifetime prevalence of drug use in Israel is 13% (as cited in [2]) To date, it appears that a large portion of the North American Jewish community views alcoholism as an illness, has a strong fear of alcoholics, and blames individuals with addictions for their condition [3, 4]. One possible conclusion is that Jewish people believe that members of the Jewish community do not become alcoholics, so they are convinced that they are not exposed to people with addictions [5].

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