NCJ Number
205175
Journal
Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly Volume: 22 Issue: 1 Dated: 2004 Pages: 27-42
Date Published
2004
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This study used regression analyses to examine the separate and combined influences of sexual victimization, gender, and the number of years of alcohol and other drug abuse on treatment history.
Abstract
The study sample consisted of 219 males and 114 females (n=333) who were outpatients presenting for alcohol and other drug abuse treatment at a large southwestern university medical center. The mean age of the sample was 37. A semistructured interview was administered at intake to obtain information on substance use and sexual victimization. Because age was significantly associated with alcohol and other drug abuse duration, it was included in the regression analyses as a control variable. The final regression analysis used age, gender, sexual victimization, and summed duration of alcohol and other drug abuse to predict treatment history. In addition, a simple regression was used to determine the relationship between gender and sexual victimization. As predicted, the women were more likely than the men to have experienced some form of sexual abuse. The experience of sexual abuse and/or incest was a predictor of delayed and troubled treatment, thus supporting and expanding on the findings of previous studies. Further, the study found that women with a history of sexual abuse were likely to have used a wider variety of substances over a longer period of time and were likely to have experienced more unsuccessful treatment attempts. Since women who have been sexually abused tended to be more resistant to drug treatment, sexual victimization should be addressed prior to or simultaneously with treatment for alcohol and other drug abuse. Study limitations and future research are discussed. 2 tables, 3 figures, and 38 references