Children Of Alcoholics Status Research Articles

Sleep Characteristics and Behavioral Problems Among Children of Alcoholics and Controls.

Past research has indicated that both sleep difficulties and a parental history of alcoholism increase the risk of behavioral problems. But it is not known whether sleep difficulties differentially increase the risk of problem behaviors among children of alcoholics (COAs) and controls. We compared multiple measures of sleep and the relationships between sleep and behavioral problems in these 2 groups of children. One hundred and fifteen children aged 8 to 12 (67% COAs; 56% girls; Mage =10.85, SDage =1.51) participated in this study. Data presented here were taken from Time 1 of a larger prospective study designed to understand the relationship between sleep and alcohol use. All participants were naïve to alcohol and other illicit drugs. Participants were asked to wear an actigraph watch on their nondominant wrist for 1week. Parents completed the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire and the Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist. Parents of COAs were more likely to rate their children as overtired compared with parents of non-COAs. Structural equation modeling analyses focusing on overall internalizing and externalizing problems did not reveal any group differences on the relationships between sleep measures and behavioral problems. Regression analyses focusing on specific behavioral problems showed that longer total sleep time, parental ratings of "sleep more" and "sleep less" than other children interacted with COA status to predict specific behavioral problems. Sleep difficulties and duration appear to be a general risk factor for behavioral problems in both COAs and non-COAs, yet the relationships between specific sleep parameters and behavioral problems appear to be different between the 2 groups.

An Examination of the Leaving Home Transition for Children of Alcoholics and Their Families

Researchers examined whether ethnicity alters the risk for difficulty in the transition out the home among children of alcoholics (COAs). We tested this question in a community based, longitudinal sample of 705 COAs and matched with non-COA controls as well as their parents. Latino COAs were less likely to leave home than were Euro-American COAs. Ethnicity and COA status independently influenced young adult and parental experiences of the transition out of the home. Compared with Euro-American controls, Latino families reported more difficulty and feelings of abandonment in the transition out of the home regardless of COA status. Although COA status increased risk for greater difficulty in the transition among Euro-American young adults, Latinos experienced the transition out of the home similarly regardless of COA status. Future studies examining normative family transitions in at-risk populations should incorporate ethnicity in their models as culture and at-risk status may both influence these transitions.

Problematic parental drinking and health: Investigating differences in adult children of alcoholics status, health locus of control, and health self-efficacy

Growing up in an alcoholic family may be related to other health outcomes beyond one's increased probability for becoming an alcoholic. Adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs) are an understudied population in healthcare communication. This study sought to understand whether there were differences between ACOAs and non-ACOAs in terms of health locus of control, health self-efficacy, and whether demographic variables, ACOA status, and health locus of control would predict health self-efficacy. A cross-sectional survey was administered that measured ACOA status, health locus of control, and health self-efficacy. Chance health locus of control and powerful other locus of control were significantly different between ACOAs and non-ACOAs. Demographics, ACOA designation, and health locus of control predicted health self-efficacy. Internal health locus of control was a positive predictor and chance health locus of control was a negative predictor of health self-efficacy.

Relations of Temperament to Maladjustment and Ego Resiliency in At-Risk Children.

AbstractThe relations of control/regulation‐related temperamentally based dispositions (effortful control (EC), impulsivity, and approach/avoidance) to externalizing problems and personality ego resiliency were examined in a sample of 467 children (M age = 7.46 years), some of whom were children of alcoholics (COAs). In addition, we examined if the relations of temperamental regulation/control to maladjustment/ego resiliency were moderated by COA status or sex of the child. In general, regulated, controlled temperament was negatively related to externalizing problems and EC was positively related to ego resiliency. Relations between a problematic temperament and externalizing problems were stronger and sometimes only found for COAs, especially male COAs. Ego resiliency was positively related to high father‐reported approach for boys who were not sons of alcoholics. In addition, COA status was related to high impulsivity, approach behavior, and externalizing problems and low EC.

Adolescent Children of Alcoholics: Vulnerable or Resilient?

BACKGROUND: Children of alcoholics (COAs) have been described as both vulnerable and resilient. Although identified as at-risk for mental and physical health problems, chemical dependency, and child abuse and neglect, many go on to lead successful lives.OBJECTIVE: The relationship between COA status and various adolescent risk behaviors, such as drug and alcohol abuse and sexual precocity, was assessed by addressing the following research question: Could parental alcoholism be a risk factor for teens engaging in problem behaviors?STUDY DESIGN: A secondary analysis of a Wyoming high-risk youth data set was conducted (N = 1632). Werner’s (1992) core resiliency factors provided the conceptual frame for the study.RESULTS: Adolescent COAs scored significantly (p < .000) lower on all psychosocial factors of family/personal strengths and school bonding and significantly higher on all factors of at-risk temperament, feelings, thoughts, and behaviors than non-COAs.CONCLUSIONS: Adolescent COAs are at risk for depression, suicide, eating disorders, chemical dependency, and teen pregnancy. It has been proposed that mental health professionals teach core resiliency factors to promote healthy behaviors for this vulnerable population.

Predictors of Alcohol Drinking Among African American Adolescents: Implications for Violence Prevention

This study sought to (a) determine the proportion of children of alcoholics (COAs) among an African American adolescent population aged 12 to 19 (N = 649); and (b) examine the influence of and relationship between COA status, self-esteem, age, and gender on their involvement in alcohol drinking. Although 52% identified themselves as alcohol drinkers, an insignificant number of these (4.4%, or 2.3% of the sample) reported abusing alcohol. One in four were COAs; 27% of alcohol users were COAs. Age, low self-esteem, and COA status were found to be strong predictors of alcohol drinking among these youth. The hypothesis that positive self-esteem places African American youth in a position of strength to counter the adverse consequences of parental alcoholism and other debilitating circumstances was confirmed. INTRODUCTION Alcohol and Other Drug Use and Abuse Among American Youth The relationship between adolescent alcohol use and crime has been made painfully clear by a U.S. Department of Justice (1988) study of a teenage sample in long-term, stateoperated juvenile institutions in 1987. That study revealed that almost a third of the youth in this sample under the age of 18 (31.9%) were under the influence of alcohol at the time of the offense that landed them in jail or detention. More specifically, 27.3% of the murders, 30.7% of the rapes, 17.4% of other sexual assaults, 37.4% of robberies, 33.7% of assaults, and 23.0% of other violent offenses were committed while these youth were drunk. Suicides, homicides, and accidental injuries account for some 80% of U.S. adolescents' deaths, and many of these deaths involve alcohol and other drugs. Motor vehicle accidents are the leading killer of adolescents, and the majority of these accidents involve alcohol (Perry, 1996). In any given group of teenagers, the percentage who regularly drink alcohol increases steadily as they age (Hansen, 1993). Hansen further notes that a sizable proportion of young people first use alcohol during their teenage years, and many have at least tried it by the time they are in the sixth grade. There is also a considerable body of evidence which suggests that alcohol is the first drug used by most youth, and that its use leads to the later use of other drugs (Ellickson, Hays, & Bell, 1992; Graham, Collins, Wugalter, Chung, & Hansen, 1991; Kandel, Yamaguchi, & Chen, 1992). In their study of high school students, Workman and Beer (1989) found that boys had higher mean alcohol-dependency scores than did girls and that these scores generally increased between the freshman and senior years. Although senior boys had the highest mean score and freshman girls had the lowest, Workman and Beer noted that the scores for boys increased steadily with grade level, while the scores for girls rose, fell, and then rose again by the time the girls reached their senior year. DeSimone, Murray, and Lester (1994) examined the association of alcohol use, self-esteem, depression, and suicidal ideation among high school students. Their multiple regression analysis showed that frequent alcohol use was positively associated with depression and low self-esteem, but not significantly associated with age and gender. Alcohol abuse was similarly positively associated with depression and high or low self-esteem. In other words, those adolescents who drank more often and who abused alcohol had higher self-esteem scores. DeSimone et al. interpreted this finding to mean that the students who drank more and abused alcohol were faking good in their responses to self-esteem measures-that is, intentionally falsifying their answers to inflate their scores. Among youth in the United States who have graduated from high school, Perry (1996) reports that 63% have been drunk, 21% smoke marijuana, and 17% have used intoxicating inhalants. A substantial number of these young people go on to develop severe alcoholrelated problems such as liver disease and psychiatric and personality disorders by the time they reach adulthood (Hansen, 1993). …

Children of alcoholics, negative life events, and early experimentation with drugs

Questionnaires were completed by sixth-grade students and their parents in order to assess differences between children of alcoholics (COAs) and their peers, as well as the relations between family environment and children's experimentation with alcohol, drugs, and tobacco. Social competence and problematic behavior were also explored. The best predictors of early experimentation with alcohol, drugs, and tobacco were the experience of negative life events, family conflict, and lack of family cohesion, but not COA status per se. Differences were found between COAs and non-COAs in respect to family structure, parent education levels, and family environment. COAs were found to be significantly more likely than their peers to experiment with tobacco, but not alcohol or drugs. They also had a tendency to engage more frequently in delinquent behavior. Recommendations for future research and implications for preventive activities are discussed.

Is early identification of children of alcoholics necessary for preventive intervention? Reaction to Havey and Dodd

Havey and Dodd (1995, this issue) address the question of how to best identify early adolescents who are at risk for later substance abuse, with a particular focus on children of alcoholics (COAs). They conclude that stressful family events are preferable to COA status as an at-risk indicator. In addition, they question the well-substantiated at-risk status of COAs, claiming support for the null hypothesis regarding individual and family differences between COAs and non-COAs. This article addresses both conceptual and methodological concerns about identification and intervention for COAs in general, and about the Havey and Dodd study in particular. I first discuss a theoretically-empirically based approach to identification and risk prevention that supports a more complex, less parsimonious, model than that suggested by Havey and Dodd. Second, I present research to support the at-risk status of COAs. Third, I discuss issues related to identification of COAs and question the validity of Havey and Dodd's identification techniques. On the basis of conceptual and methodological arguments, I contend that Havey and Dodd's conclusions are not well-founded in their own or others' research and that the at-risk status of COAs cannot be dismissed on the basis of their research. I also contend that early identification may not be necessary for intervention with COAs or other at-risk groups. Alternatively, primary prevention programs provide the context for both service delivery and identification of individuals who might not otherwise be easily identified, particularly those at risk for developing mental health problems because of family environment factors (e.g., family alcoholism or conflict), or those currently experiencing mild or internalized (e.g., depression) adjustment difficulties.

A comparison of mechanisms underlying substance use for early adolescent children of alcoholics and controls.

The current study examined differences between children of alcoholics (COAs) and controls in parent monitoring, stress-negative affect, and temperament mechanisms underlying early adolescent substance use. Using structural equation modeling, we tested whether these mechanisms were equally predictive of substance use for both groups. We extended an earlier study that tested mediators of COA risk for substance use but did not examine COA status as a moderator of these mechanisms. Overall, we found no evidence of differential importance for COAs and non-COAs of the parent monitoring and negative affect mechanisms. Parental socialization and negative affect mechanisms significantly predicted adolescent substance use regardless of COA status. Differences did emerge regarding the effects of age and parent education on peer substance use and the effect of sociability on adolescent substance use.

Variables associated with alcohol abuse among self-identified collegiate COAs and their peers.

In order to investigate the interrelationship among children of alcoholics (COA) status, problem drinking, gender, and several psychosocial variables, a sample of college students completed a questionnaire that measured consequences of drinking, parental drinking habits, family environment, and personality. No relationship was found between COA status and either the likelihood or severity of problem drinking. Furthermore, COAs and non-COAs differed on only 4 of 15 psychosocial variables, suggesting a smaller impact of parental alcohol abuse than is commonly assumed. The variable most consistently related to problem drinking was social nonconformity, a measure of antisocial behavior. Findings suggest the importance of investigating the development and maintenance of antisocial behaviors as etiological factors in problem drinking among college students, rather than COA status per se.

The role of risk and protective factors in predicting symptomatology in adolescent self‐identified children of alcoholic parents

Tested a stress process model for predicting mental health symptoms in children of alcoholics (COAs). Stress and mental health measures were completed twice over a 3-month period by 145 high school students, 43 of whom self-identified as COAs. Using structural equation modeling, a stress process model for predicting mental health symptoms in children provided a good fit to the data. COA status was related to higher levels of negative and lower levels of positive events. In turn, positive and negative life events were found to have an immediate, but not a longitudinal, direct effect on adolescent symptomatology.