The Interpersonal and Emotional Consequences of Being an Adult Child of an Alcoholic

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare adults raised in an alcoholic home (N = 409) with those adults raised in a nonalcoholic home (N = 179) on their perceptions of alcohol-related differences in the home, violence, sexual abuse, communication, and interpersonal differences experienced as adults. The adults who were raised in alcoholic families (1) reported significantly less utilization of interpersonal resources as a child; (2) had significantly more family disruptions characterized by a higher divorce rate and premature parental and sibling death; (3) reported more emotional and psychological problems in adulthood; (4) experienced more physical and sexual abuse as children; and (5) more frequently became alcoholic and married alcoholics when compared to adults raised in nonalcoholic families.