NCJ Number
195617
Journal
Substance Use & Misuse Volume: 37 Issue: 4 Dated: March 2002 Pages: 473-494
Date Published
March 2002
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This study confirmed a strong link between childhood-abuse history and substance abuse based upon data obtained from an ethnically diverse (largely Alaska Native) sample of 192 pregnant women in substance abuse treatment in the mid-1990's.
Abstract
The sample was administered the Michigan Alcohol Screening Test (MAST), which was developed as a rapid and effective screening for lifetime alcohol-related problems and alcoholism for a variety of populations. All client records included in this study reflected data from clients who had been discharged and had received treatment at the facility for the first time. Three types of data analyses were conducted: analyses of variance, odds-ratio calculations, and z tests of proportion. Of the 192 women whose charts were reviewed for this study, the vast majority (71.9 percent) had a history of childhood abuse. Compared to women with no abuse history, abused women were significantly younger at the age of onset of substance abuse, used substances more often, had experienced more blackouts, had more family members with substance-abuse concerns, were more likely to have been raped, revealed more psychological problems, and had less formal education. Risk patterns differed slightly for women with physical compared with sexual abuse histories, with the experience of physical violence having a stronger relationship with adulthood problem behaviors than the experience of sexual molestation. Overall, findings suggest an interactive cycle of violence and substance abuse that began early in childhood, especially for women who were physically abused, and continued into adulthood. No cause-and-effect conclusions can be drawn, however. The treatment and prevention implications of these findings are discussed. 3 tables and 34 references