RESUMEN
AIMS: To compare two contrasting socio-cultural groups in terms of parameters relating to the stress - coping - health model of alcohol, drugs and the family, and to test hypotheses derived from the model in each of the two groups separately. DESIGN: Cross-sectional, comparative and correlational, using standard questionnaire data, supplemented by qualitative interview data to illuminate the findings. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred close relatives, mainly partners or parents, from separate families in Mexico City, and 100 from South West England. Data sources. Coping Questionnaire (CQ), Family Environment Scale (FES), Symptom Rating Test (SRT), Semi-structured interview. FINDINGS: Mean symptom scores were high in both groups, and not significantly different. The hypothesis that relatives in Mexico City, a more collectivist culture, would show more tolerant - inactive coping was not supported, but there was support for the prediction that relatives in South West England would show more withdrawal coping. This result may be as much due to differences in poverty and social conditions as to differences in individualism - collectivism. As predicted by the stress - coping - health model, tolerant - inactive coping was correlated with symptoms, in both groups, after controlling for family conflict, but there was only limited support for a moderating role of coping. Wives of men with alcohol problems in Mexico City, and wives of men with other drug problems in South West England, reported particularly high levels of both engaged and tolerant - inactive coping. CONCLUSIONS: Tolerant - inactive coping may be bad for relatives' health: causality may be inferred but is not yet proved. Certain groups are more at risk of coping in this way. Qualitative data help understand the nature of tolerant - inactive coping and why it occurs despite the view of relatives themselves that it is counter-productive.
Asunto(s)
Adaptación Psicológica , Trastornos Relacionados con Alcohol/psicología , Salud de la Familia , Trastornos Relacionados con Sustancias/psicología , Adulto , Anciano , Trastornos Relacionados con Alcohol/etnología , Análisis de Varianza , Estudios Transversales , Inglaterra , Análisis Factorial , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , México , Persona de Mediana Edad , Padres/psicología , Análisis de Regresión , Religión , Factores Sexuales , Apoyo Social , Esposos/psicología , Trastornos Relacionados con Sustancias/etnologíaRESUMEN
AIMS: To explore the structure underlying individual differences in the ways family members cope with drinking or drug problems. DESIGN: Cross-sectional interview and questionnaire study of a series of family members in two contrasting socio-cultural groups. SETTING: Mexico City and South West England. PARTICIPANTS: Two hundred and seven family members from separate families, three-quarters women, one-quarter men, mostly partners or parents. DATA: Long semi-structured interviews; the Coping Questionnaire (CQ). FINDINGS: Factor and subscale analyses of the CQ data and textual analysis of the interview reports were used to test the hypothesis that the underlying structure to coping could be described in terms of eight or nine coherent and distinct ways of coping. Neither form of analysis gave strong support to this hypothesis. CONCLUSIONS: It is concluded that the structure of coping can best be described in terms of three broad coping positions: tolerating, engaging and withdrawing. These conclusions challenge some previous assumptions about functional and dysfunctional ways of coping with excessive appetitive behaviour in the family.