title: Families of adolescent drug abusers: systemic interventions to attain drug-free behavior.
abstract: Adolescent drug use in the community is a widespread social problem. The abuse of alcohol and/or other illegal drugs ranges from random experimentation to a complex pattern of regular use of a combination of drugs. This paper addresses systemic therapeutic interventions which have been constructed to achieve drug-free behavior. The family is considered the unit of treatment. Contextual goals (necessary to attain a therapeutic climate) and family goals are delineated. These include unity and action within a parental coalition, therapeutic utilization of urinalyses, the bogeyman cometh, probation, home detoxification, and countering adolescent sabotage. Family structural and interactional features outside the explicit arena of drug-taking, such as marital conflict or adolescent autonomy/dependence issues, are not addressed but are discussed elsewhere. Clinical illustrations to document interventions discussed are provided.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Family Development, University of Georgia, Athens 30602.
authors.forename: W H
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Quinn
authors.forename: B P
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Kuehl
authors.forename: F N
authors.initials: FN
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Joanning
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000534:rehabilitation; D005190:Family; D005196:Family Therapy; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D012917:Social Adjustment; D012932:Social Facilitation; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*