What We Do: www.addictionandfamily.org

Introduction
Historically, alcoholism and drug abuse have been viewed, either implicitly or explicitly, as individual disorders best treated on an individual basis. However, more contemporary conceptualizations of substance use disorders recognize that substance-abusing patients are embedded in, and influence, different social systems (e.g., family, friends, work, community). Broadly speaking, there is a reciprocal and dynamic relationship between the individual and the systems in which he or she is ensconced. The individual influences the system and the system influences the individual; as one changes, so does the other.

While recognizing the importance of the different systems in which substance-abusing individuals are a part, The Addiction and Family Research Group (AFRG) focuses largely on marital and family systems (as our name implies). We are interested not only studying the effect of drinking and drug use (and its negative sequelae) on the family and its members, but also how changes in the individuals and/or the familial system (brought about by different kinds of interventions) may bring about healthful individual and systemic change.

This is, indeed, a very broad charge; no one group could explore all of the different aspects of the "substance use–family functioning" nexus. To date, the AFRG has focused its attention on four main areas:

Relationship Therapy for Substance Abuse: Multiple studies conducted during the last three decades have supported the use of relationship treatment, particularly Behavioral Couples Therapy (BCT), as an effective intervention for married or cohabiting alcoholic and drug-abusing patients. Research by AFRG and scientists from other groups has demonstrated that participation in BCT, compared to other "standard" interventions for substance abuse, results in significantly greater reductions in drinking and drug use, as well as improved marital and family functioning.

Parent Training for Substance-Abusing Couples: Recent studies by AFRG and other scientists suggest that participation in BCT by substance-abusing parents leads to improved adjustment among the custodial children of these parents, even though the children themselves do not participate in, nor are the focus of, the intervention. Preliminary studies indicate that adding parent skills training to standard BCT may improve the emotional and behavioral adjustment of children even more than standard BCT only.

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and Substance Use: Among the most hotly debated topics in the IPV literature is whether or not substance use and intoxication play a causal role in episodes of IPV. AFRG has conducted a series of studies that reveal a robust temporal relationship between substance use and IPV that support a causal connection. These findings have important implications for the treatment of IPV, whether that treatment occurs in batterers' programs or substance abuse treatment facilities.

Children of Substance Abusers (COSAs): It is widely recognized that Children of Alcoholics (COAs) have significantly greater emotional and behavioral problems compared to children from families with parents who do not abuse alcohol or other drugs. Unfortunately, research on children whose parents primarily abuse drugs other than alcohol lags far behind that of COAs. In recent studies conducted by AFRG, it was revealed that COSAs have significantly more emotional and behavioral problems than COAs, which appears to be the result of poor parenting practices, increased relationship problems, and high levels of domestic violence.

It is important to recognize that, while the four primary topic areas are presented separately, they are very much interrelated. For example, our team has done research examining the effect of participation in BCT on IPV, how IPV influences the adjustment of COSAs , and so forth. Thus, much of our research does not fit neatly into any one area; consequently, there is some overlap in different parts of the "What We Do" section of our Web page.