Adolescents in Treatment for Chemical Dependency

Abstract

Although often unreported, clinicians and researchers believe that a significant proportion of adolescents in treatment for chemical dependency have a history of sexual and/or physical abuse. There are few studies which document the proportion of adolescents with histories of physical abuse in this population. Estimates of sexual abuse vary from 22% to 71% for females and approximately 7% to 28% for males (Blood & Cornwall, 1996). This pilot study uses data routinely collected by treatment providers to begin the process of constructing profiles which distinguish between chemically dependent adolescents who are likely to have a history of abuse and those not likely to have such a history. The study results indicate: (1) that there are different profiles for males and females, (2) unlike individual correlates, it may be possible to construct profiles with sufficient predictive ability to provide a means of identifying clients in need of in-depth screening for a history of physical and/or sexual abuse, and (3) these profiles can be constructed using intake data collected by most treatment providers.