Family dynamics in male adolescent substance misuse processes

Abstract

The discovery that one's son or daughter is abusing drugs carries with it intense feelings and emotions. Working closely with young substance misusers and their families brings to the fore the struggles and efforts of both the users and their families in coping with substance misuse and its effects. Such field experience provided the inspiration and motivating force for this study. Through a series of 12 in-depth interviews with substance misusers and their families, this study sheds light upon the perceptions, feelings and changes that have occurred within the family as a result of substance misuse. The findings in this study substantiate the hypothesis that substance misuse affects not only the user, but also his or her family. This work gives a detailed account of the varying forms of responses to male adolescent substance misuse by different family members. Family members need to be helped to understand how substance misuse has affected them as a family and as individuals. They need to be encouraged to express their true feelings and to have those feelings validated as reasonable and understandable. Recommendations aimed at provoking further research into this area are also forwarded.