Social stress, economic hardship, and psychological distress as predictors of sustained abstinence from substance use after treatment

Elizabeth A. Wahler, Melanie D. Otis

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

Social characteristics associated with disadvantage, such as racial/ethnic minority status, female gender, and low socioeconomic status (SES), are often associated with increased psychological distress and substance use disorders. This project tests a conceptual model derived from Pearlin's social stress theory for predicting abstinence from substance use between baseline and 1-year follow-up in secondary data from a large statewide sample of Kentucky substance abuse treatment participants (N = 1,123). Racial minority status, employment, and higher education level were predictive of substance use at follow-up, while female gender was predictive of abstinence. Limitations, implications for practice, and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1820-1832
Number of pages13
JournalSubstance Use and Misuse
Volume49
Issue number13
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 10 2014

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2014 Informa Healthcare USA, Inc.

Keywords

  • Addiction
  • Economic hardship
  • Relapse
  • Social disadvantage
  • Stress
  • Substance abuse

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Health(social science)
  • Medicine (miscellaneous)
  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
  • Psychiatry and Mental health

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