Child Abuse Potential in Parents With Histories of Substance Use Disorder

• NCJ Number: 180001
• Journal: Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 23 Issue: 12 Dated: December 1999 Pages: 1225-1238
• Author(s): Robert T. Ammerman; David J. Kolko; Levent Kirisci; Timothy C. Blackson; Michael A. Dawes
• Date Published: 1999
• Length: 14 pages
• Grant Number(s): P50-DA 05605
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute on Drug Abuse
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article examines the relationship between parental history of substance use disorders (SUDs) and abuse potential.

Abstract

Fathers and mothers (with and without histories of SUDs) of 10- to 12-year-old boys completed Milner’s Child Abuse Potential Inventory. Fathers and mothers with lifetime histories of SUDs had higher Abuse Scale scores and were more likely to score in the Elevated range (as determined by clinically significant cutoff scores) than parents without such histories. There were no differences between parents with current diagnoses of SUD and those with past (but not current) diagnoses of SUD. Fathers and mothers with a partner who had a history of SUD were more likely to score in the Elevated range, regardless of their own SUD histories. Separate regression models revealed that, for both fathers and mothers, emotional dysregulation (positive and negative affectivity) predicted Abuse Scale scores. Additional contributors to Abuse Scale scores were SUD status in fathers and lack of involvement with the child in mothers. The article concludes that history of SUDs in both fathers and mothers increases abuse potential. Contributors to abuse potential differed in fathers and mothers, underscoring the importance of examining parents separately in child maltreatment research. Tables, references