ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: This exploratory study examined the community's role in the promotion of recovery from addiction and the prevention of relapse among women, and the differences in women's addiction and recovery by ethnicity. Community was defined as six institutions: home, church, workplace, school, law enforcement and medical care system. METHODS: The study sample consisted of 39 Anglo and 24 ethnic minority women (21 African American; 3 Hispanic) between the ages of 21 and 70, living along the Gulf Coast of Texas, who had been in continuous recovery from addiction to alcohol or other drugs for at least six months. The study was cross-sectional, and data were collected through the use of structured interviews utilizing the Women in Recovery Questionnaire, an instrument developed by the investigative team. RESULTS: This study found that community institutions (church, school, home, workplace and law enforcement and medical systems) were seldom involved in promoting recovery or preventing relapse in women, with the exception of the home, which supported recovery. Anglo and ethnic minority women differed by primary drug usage, number of times in treatment, religion, perception of sexism, and likelihood of citations for traffic violations. CONCLUSION: Large, randomized studies are needed to investigate the community's role in women's recovery from alcohol and other drugs.
Subject(s)
Alcoholism/rehabilitation , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Illicit Drugs , Social Support , Social Welfare/psychology , Substance-Related Disorders/rehabilitation , Adult , Black or African American , Aged , Alcoholism/ethnology , Alcoholism/psychology , Chi-Square Distribution , Family , Female , Hispanic or Latino , Humans , Middle Aged , Patient Selection , Prejudice , Religion , Secondary Prevention , Social Environment , Substance-Related Disorders/ethnology , Substance-Related Disorders/psychology , Surveys and Questionnaires , United States/epidemiology , White People , WorkplaceABSTRACT
Nine different behavioral responses to alcohol by over two hundred ninth-graders in Austin, Texas, were examined in a survey designed to identify the relationship between adolescents' alcohol use, religious affiliation, religiosity, and gender. The relationship between alcohol use and family adaptability was also examined. While religious affiliation was found to be mildly predictive of use, religiosity determined only specific behavior. Gender differences in alcohol use appeared to be narrowing. Family adaptability was the most predictive variable, showing a relationship with six of the nine kinds of alcohol behavior. Future studies of family influences on adolescents' alcohol behavior and alcohol use among females are recommended.
