Abstract
One of the most prevalent addition in our society that has far reaching social, economic and psychological ramifications is alcoholism. At least 16.3 million Americans who are above 18 years have Alcohol Use Disorder as at 2014. However, not everyone who consumes or excessively consumes alcohol ends up with alcohol use disorder. This study speculates that persons with alcohol addiction have an inherently addictive personality and goes ahead to propose a study to investigate it. Using a random sample, a two group-study will be implemented. Personality test will be used to collect information on addictive personality. A t-test for two-groups will be used to compare the means for the alcohol disorder group and normal group. The study speculates that there is a difference in the mean addictive personality score of the two groups.
One of the most prevalent addition in our society that has far reaching social, economic and psychological ramifications is alcoholism . A survey conducted by The National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) reveals that at least 16.3 million Americans who are above 18 years have Alcohol Use Disorder as at 2014. That translates into at least 6.8 percent of the adult population. The prevalence rate is 9.2 percent among men and 5.7 among women. It further reports that at least 1.5 million adult Americans received some form treatment. Unfortunately, alcohol-abuse is no longer a preserve of adults. The prevalence rate of drinking among teenagers below 18 years is very high. The survey by NIAAA reveals that at least 34.7 percent of teenagers have drunk alcohol at least once while the prevalence rate of binge drinking is 13.8 percent. The impacts of alcohol abuse cannot be overemphasized. Alcohol impairs judgement and increases traffic-related accidents. In 2007, approximately 13,000 traffic deaths were caused by drunk driving. Besides, it is estimated that at least 40 percent of violent crimes in the USA occur under the influence of alcohol. In Europe, at least one in ten premature deaths is caused by alcohol dependence.
Alcohol abuse is prevalent because unlike other drugs, alcohol is socially and legally accepted. In the USA, at least 87.6 percent of adult American indicate that they have drank alcohol. At least once in their lifetime, 71 percent reported that they have drank in the last one-year while at least 56 percent indicated that they have drank in the last one month. Therefore, it is easy for someone to slide into alcoholism compared to other drug-related addiction. Mulder (2002) shows that excessive consumption of alcohol influences the consumer behaviour. However, not everyone who consumes or excessively consumes alcohol ends up with alcohol use disorder. Although approximately 25 million American adults reported to have engaged in excessive alcohol consumption in the last one month, only around 16 million Americans have alcohol abuse disorder. Therefore, there is a need to identify if persons with alcohol addiction have an inherently addictive personality. It is on this background that this study seeks to assess whether persons with alcohol abuse disorder have a higher addictive personality relative to the general population that makes them develop alcohol addiction once they start drinking alcohol.
There are few studies that have assessed the whether persons with alcohol use disorder have addictive personality. Berglund et al. (2011) assesses the personality traits of men with alcoholism. They carry out an experiment with 100 participants and a control group of 131 study participants. The study participants are recruited through a new paper advertisement. Karolinska Scales of Personality is used to assess the personality traits of the participants. Comparisons with the control group was conducted using multivariate ANOVA and t-test. They find evidence men with alcohol use disorder have addictive personalities. However, there study primarily focuses on adult men. Therefore, no information can be deduced about female. Alcoholism is not a problem that is confined to men. Although statistics shows that there is a higher proportion of men who have alcohol abuse disorder, the proportion of female is also significant. Earlier studies by Sher and Trull (1994) reported similar findings. The study assessed alcoholism in addition to anti-social personality behaviour. Their study reveals that persons suffering from alcoholism tend to not only have addictive personality but also anti-social behaviour which compounds the problem. The study assesses both men and women. However, it focuses only on adults. Underage drinking has become a real social issue today. With at least one in every three persons below 17 years indicating that they have drank alcohol already. Therefore, there is a need to assess this segment of the population as well. The present study will differ from previous studies by incorporating all segments of the population: adult male and female as well as teenage girls and boys.
The biopsychosocial model argues that all illnesses are influenced by a dynamic interaction of three group of factors; biological, psychological, and social factors. The biological aspects encompass aspects such as genetic make, race or gender. Psychological factors entail psychological influences on health such as stress, negative thinking or negative thinking. Social factors encompass socio-cultural influences such as family background. These factors are likely to influence alcohol use disorder. However, the present study is only interested in assessing one factor. Therefore, appropriate measures to control for the other variables will be taken.
The population of interest is persons with alcohol use disorders. The study participants will be recruited through from an alcohol rehabilitation centers. It is easier to find the targeted population at those centers. A control group will be recruited from shopping malls. A random sample will be selected to eliminate researcher bias. A personality assessment test will be issued. The personality test will assess the addition personality. The demographic profile of the respondents will be recorded. Participation will be voluntary. A t-test for 2 sample means will be used to compare the means of the personality disorder scores for the two groups.
The null and alternate hypothesis will be as follows;
Null Hypothesis
There is no difference in the mean addictive personality score of persons with alcohol use disorder and the normal population group.
Alternate Hypothesis
There is no difference in the mean addictive personality score of persons with alcohol use disorder and the normal population group.
Based on previous studies, we predict that we will reject the null hypothesis.
References
Berglund, K., Roman, E., Balldin, J., Berggren, U., Eriksson, M., Gustavsson, P. & Fahlke, C. (2011). Do men with excessive alcohol consumption and social stability have an addictive personality? Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 52, 257–260.
Borrell-Carrió, F., Such, A., & Epstein, R. (2004). The biopsychosocial model 25 years later: principles, practice, and scientific inquiry. Annals of Family Medicine, 576-582.
Foundation for a Drug Free World. (2016, June 15). International Statistics. Retrieved from http://www.drugfreeworld.org: http://www.drugfreeworld.org/drugfacts/alcohol/international-statistics.html
NHIAAA. (2016, June 15). Alcohol Facts and Statistics. Retrieved from https://www.niaaa.nih.gov: https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohol-health/overview-alcohol-consumption/alcohol-facts-and-statistics
Sher, K., & Trull, T. (1994). Personality and Disinhibitory Psychopathology: Alcoholism and Antisocial Personality Disorder. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 92-102.
