Emotional Experience and Consequences of Growing Up in a Family with Alcoholism in Adult Children of Alcoholics
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15633/pch.13105Słowa kluczowe:
Alcoholism, family, addiction, adult children of alcoholics, emotional regulationAbstrakt
Adult children of alcoholics are adults who spent a part of, or their whole childhood in a dysfunctional family, where the biggest problem was alcohol addiction in one or both parents. In families with parental alcoholism, there is usually a lot of dysfunction in interpersonal relationships and in the upbringing of the children, which does not provide a healthy and optimal developmental environment for the child. There is often physical and psychological violence, and other forms of abuse and neglect that children perceive as traumatic. All this leaves the child with severe consequences, which they also struggle with in adulthood. Unresolved and traumatic childhood content often remains repressed and unprocessed and helps shape one’s functioning in adulthood, which is frequently emotionally and socially immature. Adult children of alcoholics often have problems in experiencing and regulating their emotions, as they had to carry many emotional burdens in a dysfunctional family, while they had no real opportunity for the healthy development of emotional regulation. The article will present research on the emotional experience of children with their alcoholic parents and how they recognize related consequences in their adult lives. Using the content analysis method, we analyzed 71 anonymous forum posts on the counselling forum on the topic “Adult children of alcoholics.” The directed approach to content analysis was used to validate forum posts by people who described their childhood experiences with an alcoholic parent. We identified parts of the content that fell into two predetermined categories: emotional experience in childhood with an alcoholic parent and the experience of its consequences in adulthood. The results showed that the adult children of alcoholics mostly experienced severe feelings of fear, shame, sadness and disgust with their alcoholic parents in their childhood, and that these feelings have remained unprocessed. In adulthood, they struggle with negative consequences in the personal sphere (e.g. poor self-esteem, inferiority, anxiety, depression), in interpersonal relationships (e.g. problems in partnerships, mistrust, social phobia, parental stress, complicated relationships with parents) and in everyday functioning (e.g. coping with one’s own addiction, dysfunctional behavioural patterns), but they also recognize that because of this experience they have managed to lay the foundations of their lives differently and better. The results confirm that children are hidden victims of parental alcoholism and justify the need for psychosocial and therapeutic support even in their adulthood.
Bibliografia
Agha S., Zia H., Irfan S., Psychological problems and family functioning as risk factors in addiction, “Journal of Ayub Medical College” 20 (2008), pp. 88‒91.
Assarroudi A., Heshmati Nabavi F., Armat M. R., Ebadi A., Vaismoradi M., Directed qualitative content analysis: the description and elaboration of its underpinning methods and data analysis process, “Journal of Research in Nursing” 23 (2018), pp. 42‒55.
Beesley D., Stoltenberg C. D., Control, attachment style, and relationship satisfaction among adult children of alcoholics, “Journal of Mental Health Counseling” 24 (2002), pp. 281−298.
Caan W., Alcohol and the family, “Contemporary Social Science” 8 (2013), pp. 8–17. Collins G. R., Christian Counselling, Nashville 2007, Thomas Nelson.
Crespi T. D., Rueckert Q. H., Family therapy and children of alcoholics: Implications for continuing education and certification in substance abuse practice, “Journal of Child & Adolescent Substance Abuse” 15 (2006), pp. 33‒44.
Dayton T., The ACOA trauma syndrome: The impact of childhood pain on adult relationships, Deerfield Beach 2012, Health Communications.
Fewel, C. H., An attachment and mentalizing perspective on children of substance-abusing parents, in: S. A. Straussner, C. H. Fewell C. H. (eds.), Children of substance-abusing parents: Dynamics and treatment, New York 2011, Springer, pp. 29‒48.
Fonagy P., Gergely G., Jurist E., Target M., Affect regulation, mentalization and the development of the self, New York 2002, Other Press.
Geddes D., An international perspective on the communication problems of families with an alcoholic and adult children of alcoholics, “World communication” 22 (1993), pp. 68‒73.
Gerhard S., Why Love matters, London 2004, Routledge.
Godsall R. E., Jurkovic G. J., Emshoff J., Anderson L., Stanwyck D., Why some kids do well in bad situations: Relation of parental alcohol misuse and parentification to children’s self-concept, “Substance Use & Misuse” 39 (2004), pp. 789‒809.
Gostečnik C., Srečal sem svojo družino II, Ljubljana 2003, Brat Frančišek in Frančiškanski družinski inštitut.
Gostečnik C., Srečal sem svojo družino, Ljubljana 1999, Brat Frančišek in Frančiškanski družinski center.
Gross J. J., Thompson R., Emotion regulation: Conceptual foundations, in: J. J. Gross (ed.), Handbook of emotion regulation, New York 2006, Guilford, pp. 3‒24.
Hall C. W., Webster R. E., Risk factors among adult children of alcoholics, “International Journal of Behavioral Consultation and Therapy” 3 (2007), pp. 494‒511.
Hart K. E., Fiissel D. L., McAleer M., Do adult offspring of alcoholics suffer from poor medical health? A three-group comparison controlling for self-report bias, “The Canadian journal of nursing research” 35 (2003), pp. 53–72.
Harter S. L., Psychosocial adjustment of adult children of alcoholicss: A review of the recent empirical literature, “Clinical Psychology Review” 20 (2000), pp. 311‒337.
Haverfield M. C., Theiss J. A., A theme analysis of experiences reported by adult children of alcoholics in online support forums, “Journal of Family Studies” 20 (2014), pp. 166‒184.
Hooper L. M., Wallace S. A., Evaluating the parentification questionnaire: psychometric properties and psychopathology correlates, “Contemporary Family Therapy” 32 (2010), pp. 52‒68.
Hsieh H. F., Shannon S. E., Three approaches to qualitative content analysis, “Qualitative Health Research” 15 (2005), pp. 1277‒1288.
Johnson P., Dimensions of functioning in alcoholics and nonalcoholics families, “Journal of mental Health Counseling” 23 (2001), pp. 127‒136.
Kearns-Bodkin J. N., Leonard K. E., Relationship functioning among adult children of alcoholics, “Journal of studies on alcohol and drugs” 69 (2008), pp. 941–950.
Kelley M. L., Cash T. F., Grant A. R., Miles D. L., Santos M. T., Parental alcoholism: Relationships to adult attachment in college women and men, “Addictive Behaviors” 29 (2004), pp. 1633–1636.
Kelley M. L., Schroeder V. M., The influence of family factors on the executive functioning of adult children of alcoholics in college, “Family Relations” 57 (2008), pp. 404‒414.
Lander L., Howsare J., Byrne M., The impact of substance use disorders on families and children: from theory to practice, “Social work in public health” 28 (2013), pp. 194‒205.
McLaughlin K. A., Gadermann A. M., Hwang I., Sampson N. A., Al-Hamzawi A., Andrade L. A., Angermeyer M. C., Benjet C., Bromet E. J., Bruffaerts R., Caldasde-Almeida J. M., de Girolamo G., de Graaf R., Florescu S., Gureje O., Haro J. M., Ruskov Hinkov H., Horiguchi I., Hu C., Karam A. N., Kovess-Masfety V., Lee S., Murphy S. D., Nizamie S. H., Posada-Villa J., Williams D. R., Kessler R. C., Parent psychopathology and offspring mental disorders: Results from the WHO World Mental Health Surveys, “British Journal of Psychiatry” 200 (2012), pp. 290–299.
Ochsner K. N., Gross J. J., The cognitive control of emotion, “Trends in Cognitive Science” 9 (2005), pp. 242‒249.
Omkarappa D. B., Rentala S., Anxiety, depression, self-esteem among children of alcoholic and nonalcoholic parents, “Journal of family medicine and primary care” 8 (2019), pp. 604–609.
Oravecz R., Otroci odvisnikov, “Psihološka obzorja” 11 (2002), pp. 95‒107.
Pasternak A., Schier K., The role reversal in the families of Adult Children of Alcoholics, “Archives of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy” 14 (2012), pp. 51‒57.
Potter W. J., Levine-Donnerstein D., Rethinking validity and reliability in content analysis, “Journal of Applied Communication Research” 27 (1999), pp. 258‒284.
Rangarajan S., Kelly L., Family communication patterns, family environment, and the impact of parental alcoholism on offspring self-esteem, “Journal of Social and Personal Relationships” 23 (2006), pp. 655–671.
Rodriguez L., Neighbors C., Knee R. C., Problematic alcohol use and marital distress: An interdependence theory perspective, “Addiction Research and Theory” 22 (2014), pp. 294‒312.
Ruben D. H., Treating adult children of alcoholics: A behavioral approach, San Diego 2001, Academic Press.
Simonič B., Poljanec A., Building motherhood in the young mothers’ group, “Child Care in Practice” 20 (2014), pp. 270‒285.
Sorocco K. H., Carnes N. C., Cohoon A. J., Vincent A. S., Lovallo W. R., Risk factors for alcoholism in the Oklahoma family health patterns project: Impact of early life adversity and family history on affect regulation and personality, drug and alcohol dependence, “Drug and Alcohol Dependence” 150 (2015), pp. 38‒45.
Thompson R. A., Meyer S., The socialization of emotion regulation in the family, in: J. Gross (ed.), Handbook of emotion regulation, New York 2006, Guilford, pp. 249‒268.
Trtnik N., Okrevanje odraslih otrok alkoholikov in duhovnost, “Bogoslovni vestnik” 76 (2016), pp. 191‒201.
Pobrania
Opublikowane
Numer
Dział
Licencja
![Creative Commons License](http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by/4.0/88x31.png)
Utwór dostępny jest na licencji Creative Commons Uznanie autorstwa 4.0 Międzynarodowe.
Twórca oświadcza, że służą mu prawa autorskie do utworu i że nie są ograniczone w zakresie objętym niniejszym oświadczeniem oraz że utwór jest dziełem oryginalnym i nie narusza praw autorskich innych osób.
Twórca zezwala Uniwersytetowi Papieskiemu Jana Pawła II w Krakowie na nieodpłatne, niewyłączne i nieograniczone w czasie korzystanie z utworu, to jest:
- utrwalanie i zwielokrotnianie: wytwarzanie egzemplarzy utworu techniką drukarską, reprograficzną, zapisu magnetycznego oraz techniką cyfrową;
- obrotu oryginałem albo egzemplarzami, na których utwór utrwalono (wprowadzanie do obrotu, użyczenie lub najem oryginału albo egzemplarzy, publiczne wystawienie, wyświetlenie, a także publiczne udostępnianie utworu w taki sposób, aby każdy mógł mieć do niego dostęp w miejscu i w czasie przez siebie wybranym);
- włączenie utworu w skład utworu zbiorowego;
- udzielanie przez Uniwersytet Papieski Jana Pawła II w Krakowie sublicencji Creative Commons Uznanie autorstwa 4.0 Międzynarodowe (CC BY 4.0)
Uniwersytet Papieski Jana Pawła II w Krakowie udostępnia utwór na Platformie Czasopism należącej do uczelni, na licencji Creative Commons Uznanie autorstwa 4.0 Międzynarodowe (CC BY 4.0). Tym samym uprawnia wszystkich zainteresowanych do korzystania z utworu pod następującymi warunkami:
- zostanie podany autor i tytuł utworu,
- zostanie podane miejsce publikacji (tytuł czasopisma i adres internetowy do oryginalnie opublikowanego utworu).