Children of Substance Abusers: Overview of Research Findings

Abstract

A relationship between parental substance abuse and subsequent alcohol problems in their children has been documented extensively. Children of alcoholics (COAs) are considered to be at high risk because there is a greater likelihood that they will develop alcoholism compared with a randomly selected child from the same community. COAs and children of other drug-abusing parents are especially vulnerable to the risk for maladaptive behavior because they have combinations of many risk factors present in their lives. The single most potent risk factor is their parent's substance-abusing behavior. This single risk factor can place children of substance abusers at biologic, psychologic, and environmental risk. Since the turn of the century, many reports have described the deleterious influence of parental alcoholism on their children. A series of studies measured mortality, physiology, and general health in the offspring of alcoholic parents and concluded that when mothers stopped drinking during gestation, their children were healthier. Today, research on COAs can be classified into studies of fetal alcohol syndrome, the transmission of alcoholism, psychobiologic markers of vulnerability, and psychosocial characteristics. Each of these studies hypothesizes that differences between COAs and children of nonalcoholics influence maladaptive behaviors later in life, such as academic failure or alcoholism. This research supports the belief that COAs are at risk for a variety of problems that may include behavioral, psychologic, cognitive, or neuropsychologic deficits. The vast literature on COAs far outweighs the literature on children of other drug abusers. Relatively little is known about children of heroin addicts, cocaine abusers, or polydrug abusers. Nonetheless, many researchers suggest that the children of addicted parents are at greater risk for later dysfunctional behaviors and that they, too, deserve significant attention to prevent intergenerational transmission of drug abuse. Most research on children of other drug abusers examines fetal exposure to maternal drug abuse. The overview of the research on children of substance abusers points toward the need for better, longitudinal research in this area. Most studies on COAs or other drug abusers are not longitudinal; they examine behavior at one point in time. Given the studies reviewed in this article, it is unclear whether we see true deficits or developmental delay. Longitudinal studies will allow us to predict when early disorders and behavioral deviations will be transient or when they will be precursors to more severe types of maladaptive behavior. Longitudinal research also will enable us to explain specific childhood outcomes. Differences in outcome could be studied simultaneously to understand whether antecedents discovered for one are specific to it or are general antecedents leading to a broad variety of outcomes.

Parenting and drug addiction: A psychodynamic proposal based on a multifactorial perspective.

“…Empirical studies geared toward the parenting patterns of drug-addicted individuals show that their children are exposed to a high number of risk factors (e.g., family, genetic, and environmental), including a high risk of developing an addiction to drugs as they reach adulthood (e.g., Arria, Mericle, Meyers, & Winters, 2012; Bauman & Levine, 1986; Belcher & Shinitzky, 1998; Biederman, Faraone, Monuteaux, & Feighner, 2000; Bierut et al, 1998; Dawe, Harnett, Staiger, & Dadds, 2000; Gainey, Haggerty, Fleming, & Catalano, 2007; Johnson & Leff, 1999; Lam et al, 2007), with or without psychiatric comorbidity (McCutcheon et al, 2013). These children’s lives are characterized by high degrees of unpredictability due to consumption-related illegal conduct, the critical effects of relapse, financial problems affecting the family, and legal conflicts (e.g., Bancroft, Wilson, Cunningham-Burley, Backett-Milburn, & Masters, 2004; Barnard, 2007; Keller, Catalano, Haggerty, & Fleming, 2002).…”

The longitudinal impact of HIV+ parents' drug use on their adolescent children.

“…In multiple contexts and across different developmental periods, parental substance use has been found to have a negative influence on parenting practices, family functioning, and child adjustment (Boyd, Plemons, Schwartz, Johnson, & Pickens, 1999; Johnson & Leff, 1999). Parental drug use has been found to have both a direct influence, as well as mediated effect through problematic child rearing practices, on emotional and behavioral outcomes in toddlers (Brook, Tseng, & Cohen, 1996).…”

Exposure to parental tobacco and alcohol use: Effects on children's health and development.

“…Research suggests that smoking or drinking while pregnant can place the unborn child at increased risk for a number of maladies. These health problems often continue into adolescence and adulthood, burdening the offspring with ailments that may be as severe as, or worse than, those experienced by the actual substance user (Jacobson, 1999; Johnson & Leff, 1999; Streissguth, Barr, Bookstein, Sampson, & Olson, 1999). In addition to the numerous physiological health effects associated with prenatal exposure to alcohol or tobacco, there is a large body of literature examining the various adverse effects of prenatal exposure to these substances on children’s mental health.…”