Project Details
Abstract
Excessive alcohol use has been associated with a large variety of health, social, and legal
problems. Since problems with alcohol consumption accumulate gradually, hazardous or harmful
drinkers should be detected early to establish timely and appropriate interventions. Alcohol, which
is legally accessible in Taiwan, plays an important role in Chinese culture as it is viewed as an
acceptable drink to relieve stress and enhance socialization. As a result, drinking problems are
easily ignored. Individuals with a family history of alcoholism are at greater risk of developing
alcoholism than those without such a history. Moreover, close family members of patients with
alcohol problems may suffer stress-related physical and psychological symptoms that can be
severe and long lasting, placing a significant burden on healthcare resources. This background
highlights the importance of screening and intervening for problem drinking in family members of
patients identified as problem drinkers. Current studies on alcohol drinking-related problems
mainly focus on patients and few studies have focused on their family members either in western
countries or in Taiwan. No model is available for the hazardous-drinking behaviors among family
members of problem-drinker patients. Based on a review of the relevant literature and the research
team members’ experiences, we consider that the drinking behavior of family members of
problem-drinker patients is related to their perceived stress (in general and specifically related to
problem-drinker patients), coping mechanisms (in general and specifically related to
problem-drinker patients), social support (professional and informal), health condition (physical
and psychological symptoms, quality of life) and their beliefs about hazardous drinking (protective
factors against hazardous drinking and facilitative factors for hazardous drinking). Since most of
these factors cannot currently be measured due to lack of structured questionnaires, we plan to
gather qualitative data to develop questionnaires, and then to establish and examine a model for
drinking behaviors among family members of problem-drinker patients. This proposed 3-year
study will include three stages. In Stage I, we will explore the lived experience, perceived stress,
and coping mechanisms among family members of hazardous-drinker patients, their protective
factors against hazardous drinking, and their facilitative factors for hazardous drinking. In Stage II,
we will develop and validate four questionnaires for perceived stress, coping mechanisms,
protective factors against hazardous drinking, and facilitative factors for hazardous drinking
among family members of hazardous-drinker patients. In Stage III, we will establish and examine
a hazardous drinking-behavior model for family members of hazardous-drinker patients. The study
results will provide a comprehensive model to understand the drinking behaviors of family
members of hazardous-drinker patients. Such a model will facilitate the development and clinical
examination of intervention programs for reducing or preventing hazardous-drinking behaviors
among family members of hazardous-drinker patients.
Project IDs
Project ID:PC10308-1221
External Project ID:MOST103-2314-B182-014-MY3
External Project ID:MOST103-2314-B182-014-MY3
Status | Finished |
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Effective start/end date | 01/08/14 → 31/07/15 |
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