Trauma and psychosocial predictors of substance abuse in women impacted by HIV/AIDS.
The purpose of this study was to estimate the relative contributions of trauma, chronic stress burden, depression, anxiety, social support, and social undermining in predicting alcohol and drug abuse, and whether ethnicity moderated these relationships. A multi-ethnic sample of 288 HIV-positive and HIV-negative women was recruited. Multiple group path analysis indicated that greater drug dependence was associated with being HIV+, more depression, and higher chronic burden. Trauma was related only to anxiety. Also, greater alcohol dependence was associated with more depression and more social undermining, and these effects were moderated by ethnicity. African American and Latina women evidenced different relationships between depression, social support and social undermining. Depression, social support and social undermining served as intervening variables in influencing the relationships between the other psychosocial variables and drug and alcohol dependence. The implications of these findings for alcohol and drug abuse research and services are discussed.
Myers
Hector F
HF
Department of Psychology, UCLA, Franz Hall 1285, P.O. Box 951563, Los Angeles, CA 90095-01563, USA. myers@psych.ucla.edu
Sumner
Lekeisha A
LA
Ullman
Jodie B
JB
Loeb
Tamara B
TB
Carmona
Jennifer Vargas
JV
Wyatt
Gail E
GE
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D015141:Los Angeles; D008960:Models, Psychological; D015233:Models, Statistical; D012918:Social Alienation / Q000523:psychology; D012944:Social Support; D040921:Stress Disorders, Traumatic / Q000523:psychology / Q000821:virology*; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology / Q000821:virology*; D055815:Young Adult