Predicting Substance Use Patterns Among Rural Adults: The Roles of Mothers, Fathers, and Parenthood

• Date: 01 June 2019
• Author: Christine Timko,Brenda M. Booth,Jessie J. Wong,Michael A. Cucciare
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12362
• Published date: 01 June 2019

Predicting Substance Use Patterns Among Rural

Adults: The Roles of Mothers, Fathers, and

Parenthood

JESSIE J. WONG*

†

MICHAEL A. CUCCIARE

द

BRENDA M. BOOTH

§

CHRISTINE TIMKO**

This study examined the role of parenthood and parental influences on substance use

patterns for 710 stimulant users age 18–61 living in the rural Midwest and Mid-south U.S.

Longitudinal growth analyses showed that a maternal history of drug use was associated

with increased baseline drug use severity, lesser declines in severity, and greater plateau of

drug use severity over time. Parental conflict was associated with lesser declines in drug

use severity, and drug use severity declined more steeply for participants who were them-

selves parents. Participants with two parents having a history of alcohol use had a greater

baseline severity of alcohol use, with paternal history of drug use associated with lower

baseline alcohol use severity. These findings demonstrate the importance of identifying

parental influences in evaluating adult substance use, and point to the inclusion of parents

in efforts to prevent and treat substance use disorders.

Keywords: Parenting; Parenthood; Family Context; Substance Use; Rural Health

Fam Proc 58:431–445, 2019

Family context as a determinant of substance use in adolescence and emerging adult-

hood is well-established (Ryan, Jorm, & Lubman, 2010; Stone, Becker, Huber, & Cata-

lano, 2012). Yet, research examining intergenerational family influences on adult drug

and alcohol use patterns is limited. Family systems theory (Bowen, 1974) posits that the

individual is best understood within his or her family system, and suggests that parental

factors may influence substance use and related problems over time. Systems theory also

*Center for Innovation to Implementation, VA Palo Alto Health Care System, Menlo Park, CA.

†

Center for Health Policy/Center for Primary Care and Outcomes Research, Stanford University, Stanford, CA.

‡

Center for Mental Healthcare and Outcomes Research, Central Arkansas Veterans Affairs Healthcare

System, Little Rock, AR.

§

Department of Psychiatry, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR.

¶

VA South Central Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Central Arkansas Veterans

Healthcare System, Little Rock, AR.

**Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Jessie J. Wong, Center for Innovation to

Implementation, VA Palo Alto Health Care System, 795 Willow Rd, Bldg 324 MPD-152, Menlo Park, CA

94025. E-mail: jessiejwong@gmail.com

This research was supported by National Institute on Drug Abuse grant R01 DA15363 and grant R01

DA14340. Dr. Timko was supported by the VA Health Services Research and Development (HSR&D) Ser-

vice (RCS 00-001), and Dr. Wong by the VA Office of Academic Affiliations and HSR&D. The views

expressed in this article do not reflect those of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the Department of

Veterans Affairs, or the relevant universities. The authors report no competing interests.

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Family Process, Vol. 58, No. 2, 2019 ©2018 Family Process Institute

doi: 10.1111/famp.12362