Mechanisms of Association Between Paternal Alcoholism and Abuse of Alcohol and Other Illicit Drugs Among Adolescents

Abstract

The current study examines the effect of paternal alcohol problems on adolescent use of alcohol and other illicit drugs as a function of maternal communication, as well as adolescent social and coping skills (N = 145). Structural equation modeling (SEM) analyses indicated that adolescents with a paternal history of alcohol problems reported higher levels of problematic communication with their mothers than did adolescents with fathers who were light drinkers or who were non-drinkers. Moreover, problematic maternal communication functioned as a partial mediator for both adolescent negative social skills and self-blame coping skills. Adolescents who reported using self-blame coping skills more frequently also tended to use alcohol more frequently. Findings suggest that these high-risk adolescents might need more intensive and targeted social and psychological services in their schools and communities.

KEYWORDS:

• adolescents' alcohol and other illicit drug abuse
• coping skills
• maternal communication
• paternal drinking
• social skills

Acknowledgments

This work was supported in part by a grant from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (R01 AA10246).