title: Longitudinal associations between fathers' heavy drinking patterns and children's psychosocial adjustment.
abstract: Psychosocial adjustment in children of alcoholics (N = 114) was examined in the year before and at three follow-ups in the 15 months after their alcoholic fathers entered alcoholism treatment, testing the hypothesis that children's adjustment problems will vary over time as a function of their fathers' heavy drinking patterns. Three unique patterns of heavy drinking in alcoholic fathers were identified through cluster analysis. The results demonstrated significant and meaningful associations between these drinking patterns in fathers and adjustment problems in children over time. Overall, children whose fathers remained mostly abstinent following their treatment showed lowest and decreasing adjustment problems, while children whose fathers continued and increased heavy drinking following their treatment showed greatest and increasing adjustment problems over time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, VAMC (116B1), 940 Belmont St., Brockton, MA 02301, USA. jba@hms.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Jasmina Burdzovic
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Andreas
authors.forename: Timothy J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: O'Farrell
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000145:classification / Q000150:complications*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002658:Developmental Disabilities / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D004522:Educational Status; D005220:Fathers; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008423:Maternal Age; D010331:Paternal Age; D012917:Social Adjustment