Mental resilience in the context of alcohol use—a qualitative study in a tribal community in South India

Abstract

Consumption of alcohol is a global issue associated with socio-economic and health consequences, while amongst tribal communities it has more complex associations linked to culture. Strengths-based approaches (in which the concept of resilience is prominent) have high potential of application in studies on the risky use of substances. In the current study, a descriptive phenomenology approach was used to capture the lived experience of a tribal community in Southern India. This was followed by thematic analysis of the data through an inductive as well as deductive approach. The study resulted in the identification of ten resilience (to alcohol use) themes, viz., perception & skills, relationship, absence of temptations to drink, social support systems, faith factors, awareness, positive outcomes, biological & psychological responses, financial factors, and alternative substances. One of the key findings is the identification of the tension between the pull forces of increased alcohol access and associated enablers vs. the inner resilience building social forces from NGOs. The resilience in the presence of opposing forces as identified in the community has implications in prioritizing interventions such as risk reduction and resilience promotion in the particular community at a point of time. The value of the study is based on the chosen combination of population segment (specific tribal community), methodology (thematic analysis), and a specific contextual frequency (resilience) within the spectrum of social determinants for alcohol use, that could more effectively inform the design of interventions.