Adolescent Substance Abuse: An Introduction to Attachment and Systems Theories
Abstract
The substance abuse epidemic in America is not exclusive to the adult population. Adolescents are increasingly engaging in this behavior which has far- reaching effects. The adolescent is at a transitional phase within the family system and is in a unique stage in the developmental process. When addressing the particular needs of the adolescent within an integrative treatment approach, one must appraise the attachment styles of the adolescent and the systems with which the adolescent is engaged. In an effort towards positive treatment outcomes, the contextual factors that contribute to adolescent development must also be considered. This paper examines Attachment Theory and Systems Theory, considers the literature informing therapeutic interventions for the adolescent who abuses substances, and offers practical suggestions for intervention design with respect to this population. Finally, implications for future research are also offered.
References
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Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: Clinical applications of attachment theory. London: Routledge.
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Gerhan, P. & Freeman, A. (2009). Neither child nor adult: Applying integrative therapy to adolescents. Journal of psychotherapy integration, 19(3), 269-290. doi:10.1037/a0017067
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Parker, J. & Benson, M. (2004). Parent-adolescent relations and adolescent functioning: Self-esteem, substance abuse, and delinquency. Adolescence, 39(155), 519-530.
Poudel, A. & Gautam, S. (2017). Age of onset of substance use and psychosocial problems among individuals with substance use disorders. BMC Psychiatry, 17, 1-7.
Prieur, N. "National adolescent drug trends in 2017: Marijuana use edges upward." Michigan News, University of Michigan Regents, 14 Dec. 2017, ns.umich.edu/new/releases/25333-national-adolescent-drug-trends-in-2017-marijuana-use-edges-upward. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
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Stern, D. N. (1985). The Interpersonal World of the Infant. NY: Basic Books. In Golding, K. S. (2006, September). Attachment theory, debate, controversy, and hope. A clinicians perspective. Paper presented at Faculty for Children & Young People Annual Conference. Hertfordshire, UK: University of Hertfordshire.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2017). Key substance use and mental health indicators in the United States: Results from the 2016 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (HHS Publication No. SMA 17-5044, NSDUH Series H-52). Rockville, MD: Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Retrieved from https://www. samhsa.gov/data/
Thatcher, D. L. & Clark, D. B. (2008). Adolescents at risk for substance use disorders: Role of psychological dysregulation, endophenotypes, and environmental influences. Alcohol Research and Health, 31(2), 168-176.
van der Horst, F. C. & van der Veer, R. (2010). The ontogeny of an idea: John Bowlby and contemporaries on mother–child separation. History Of Psychology, 13(1), 25-45. doi:10.1037/a0017660
Wagner, F. A. & Anthony, J. C. (2002). From first drug use to drug dependence: Developmental periods of risk for dependence upon marijuana, cocaine, and alcohol. Neuropsychopharmacol, 26, 479-488. doi:10.1016/S0893-133X(01)00367-0
Wong, D. L., Hockenberry, M.J., Wilson, D., Winkelstein, M.L., & Kline, N.E. (2003). Wong’s Nursing Care of Infants and Children (7th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Mosby.
Yuen, E. & Toumbourou, J. W. (2011). Does Family Intervention for Adolescent Substance Use Impact Parental Wellbeing? A Longitudinal Evaluation. Australian & New Zealand Journal Of Family Therapy, 32(3), 249-263.
Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment and loss: Vol. 1. New York: Basic Books.
Bowlby, J. (1973). Attachment and loss: Vol. II Separation: Anxiety and anger. New York, NY: Basic Books.
Bowlby, J. (1980). Loss: Sadness & depression. Attachment and loss (vol. 3); (International psycho-analytical library no.109). London: Hogarth Press.
Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: Clinical applications of attachment theory. London: Routledge.
Bowlby, R. (2005). Attachment theory in practice: An overview. Service and practice update, 41(1). In K. S. Golding (Ed.), (2007). Attachment Theory in Practice, (Briefing Paper No.26, pp 9-12). Leicester: The British Psychological Society.
Bowen, M. (1974). Alcoholism as viewed through family systems theory and family psychotherapy. Annals of the New York Academy of Science, 233, 115-122.
Branstetter, S. A., Furman, W., & Cottrell, L. (2009). The Influence of Representations of Attachment, Maternal–Adolescent Relationship Quality, and Maternal Monitoring on Adolescent Substance Use: A 2-Year Longitudinal Examination. Child Development, 80(5), 1448-1462. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2009.01344.x
Brown, J. (1999). Bowen Family Systems Theory and practice: Illustration and critique. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy (ANZJFT), 20(2).
Children’s Bureau (ACYF, ACF) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2017). Child Welfare Outcomes 2010-2014 Report to Congress. https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/resource/cwo-10-14 Retrieved on May 31, 2018.
Cohen, E. & Lwow, E. (2004). The parent-child mutual recognition model: Promoting responsibility and cooperativeness in disturbed adolescents who resist treatment. Journal of Psychotherapy Integration, 14(3), 307-322. doi:10.1037/1053-0479.14.3.307
Connors, M. (2006). Symptom-focused dynamic psychotherapy. New York, NY: Academic Press.
Erikson, E. (1963). Childhood and society (2nd ed.) New York: Norton.
Franck, K. & Beuhler, C. (2007). A family process model of marital hostility, parental depressive affect, and early adolescent problem behavior: The roles of triangulation and parental warmth. Journal of Family Psychology, 21(4), 614-625.
Gerhan, P. & Freeman, A. (2009). Neither child nor adult: Applying integrative therapy to adolescents. Journal of psychotherapy integration, 19(3), 269-290. doi:10.1037/a0017067
Gibson, J. & Donigian, J. (1993). Use of Bowen theory. Journal of Addictions & Offender Counseling, 14(1), 25-35.
Golding, K. S. (2006, September). Attachment theory, debate, controversy, and hope. A clinicians perspective. In K.S. Golding (Ed.), (2007). Attachment Theory in Practice, (Briefing Paper No.26, pp 13-30). Leicester: The British Psychological Society.
Golding, K. S. (Ed.), (2007). Attachment Theory in Practice, (Briefing Paper No.26, pp 2-4). Leicester: The British Psychological Society.
Graham, L. (2008). The neuroscience of attachment. Retrieved from http://lindagraham-mft.net/pdf/WiseBrainBulletin-4-6.pdf
Harel, Y., Shechtman, Z., & Cutrona, C. (2011). Individual and group process variables that affect social support in counseling groups. Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, And Practice, 15(4), 297-310. doi:10.1037/a0025058
Herbert, M. (2000). Parenting skills interventions. In P. Reder, M. McClure, & A. Jolley (Eds.), Family matters: Interfaces between child and adult mental health (pp. 237-256). New York: Routledge.
Johnson, R. V. & Mayo Clinic. (1994). Mayo Clinic Complete Book of Pregnancy and Baby’s First Year (1st ed.). New York, NY: W. Morrow and Co.
Kaufman, E. (1994). Psychotherapy of Addicted Persons. New York: Guilford Press.
Main, M. & Solomon, J. (1990). Procedures for identifying infants as disorganized/disoriented during the Ainsworth strange situation. In M, Greenberg, D. Cicchetti, & E.M. Cummings (Eds.), Attachment in the preschool years: Theory, research and intervention (pp121-160). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
Maternity Support Services. (2012). Washington Nurse, 41(4), 29.
Mirick, R. G., & Steenrod, S. A. (2016). Opioid use disorder, attachment, and parenting: Key concerns for practitioners. Child & Adolescent Social Work Journal, 33(6), 547-557. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10560-016-0449-1 Retrieved from https://search.proquest.com/docview/1833158644?accountid=36783
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). (2017, December 14) Monitoring the Future Survey: High school and youth trends. Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/monitoring-future-survey-highschool-youth-trends on 2018, February 23
Pantone, P. J. (2000). Treating the parental relationship as the identified patient in child psychotherapy. Journal of Infant, Child, and Adolescent Psychotherapy, 1, 19-38.
Parker, J. & Benson, M. (2004). Parent-adolescent relations and adolescent functioning: Self-esteem, substance abuse, and delinquency. Adolescence, 39(155), 519-530.
Poudel, A. & Gautam, S. (2017). Age of onset of substance use and psychosocial problems among individuals with substance use disorders. BMC Psychiatry, 17, 1-7.
Prieur, N. "National adolescent drug trends in 2017: Marijuana use edges upward." Michigan News, University of Michigan Regents, 14 Dec. 2017, ns.umich.edu/new/releases/25333-national-adolescent-drug-trends-in-2017-marijuana-use-edges-upward. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
Stanis, J. J. & Andersen, S. L. (2014, April). Reducing Substance use during adolescence: A translational framework for prevention. Psychopharmacology, 231, 8, 1437-1453. ISSN: 00333158.
Stern, D. N. (1985). The Interpersonal World of the Infant. NY: Basic Books. In Golding, K. S. (2006, September). Attachment theory, debate, controversy, and hope. A clinicians perspective. Paper presented at Faculty for Children & Young People Annual Conference. Hertfordshire, UK: University of Hertfordshire.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2017). Key substance use and mental health indicators in the United States: Results from the 2016 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (HHS Publication No. SMA 17-5044, NSDUH Series H-52). Rockville, MD: Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Retrieved from https://www. samhsa.gov/data/
Thatcher, D. L. & Clark, D. B. (2008). Adolescents at risk for substance use disorders: Role of psychological dysregulation, endophenotypes, and environmental influences. Alcohol Research and Health, 31(2), 168-176.
van der Horst, F. C. & van der Veer, R. (2010). The ontogeny of an idea: John Bowlby and contemporaries on mother–child separation. History Of Psychology, 13(1), 25-45. doi:10.1037/a0017660
Wagner, F. A. & Anthony, J. C. (2002). From first drug use to drug dependence: Developmental periods of risk for dependence upon marijuana, cocaine, and alcohol. Neuropsychopharmacol, 26, 479-488. doi:10.1016/S0893-133X(01)00367-0
Wong, D. L., Hockenberry, M.J., Wilson, D., Winkelstein, M.L., & Kline, N.E. (2003). Wong’s Nursing Care of Infants and Children (7th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Mosby.
Yuen, E. & Toumbourou, J. W. (2011). Does Family Intervention for Adolescent Substance Use Impact Parental Wellbeing? A Longitudinal Evaluation. Australian & New Zealand Journal Of Family Therapy, 32(3), 249-263.
Authors
[1]
“Adolescent Substance Abuse: An Introduction to Attachment and Systems Theories”, Soc. sci. humanities j., vol. 3, no. 06, pp. 1379–1394, Jun. 2019, Accessed: May 01, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://sshjournal.com/index.php/sshj/article/view/411
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