African American Adult Children of Alcoholics: The Impact of Cultural Influences.

Introduction

A discussion of African American adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs) must be devised within a cultural context. Cultural factors define specific parameters of African American ideological unity and response to mainstream constructs of behavior. African American experiences summarize the uniqueness of the population that make them a culturally identifiable entity (Anderson, 1986). Butler (1992) described the experiences of African Americans along two dimensions: "one in terms of interactions and responses to interactions with European Americans and the other in terms of their own internal dynamics, both as individual personalities and as a collective group" (p. 25). African American experiences include environmental displacement, psychological disorientation, racism, and socio-cultural disruption (Butler, 1992; Mosley, Atkins, Klein, 1988; Wright, 1988).

While African American ACOAs are not a homogeneous group, they do exhibit a cluster of characteristics that systematically define addiction-related problems with unique cultural attributes that are pivotal in facilitating an exploration of cultural functioning and influences. While there is some given to alcoholism and addiction among African Americans, little specific focus has been given to the role of culture in behavior among African American ACOAs. The paucity of on African American ACOAs and cultural influences on their functioning and behaviors serve as a requisite for this article. The purpose of this article is to examine cultural factors that influence the functioning of African American ACOAs. This will be done with specific focus on survival roles, identity development, kinship bonds, and community perception of alcohol use. Implications for rehabilitation also will be provided.

Survival Roles

Survival roles refer to behavioral strategies employed by children in alcoholic homes as a manner of coping with the alcoholic's behavior and its effects on others. As children grow older, they continue to perform the same strategies in adulthood that they used as children. Survival roles include the family hero, scapegoat, lost child, and mascot (Wegscheider, 1981). In addition to the characteristics of these roles, the significance of culture for African American ACOAs have a substantial impact on family functioning.

The family hero is typically the eldest or only child in an alcoholic family. This child is respected and held in high regard because of the ability to take care of everything and perform well. African American ACOAs in this role earn respect in the community (Hill, 1972). Alston and Turner (1994) asserted that the feeling of being responsible is a source of satisfaction for those providing assistance or support to the family. Brisbane (1988) pointed out that the African American female, because of culture, will also assume the role of hero in healthy family functioning and is unlikely to seek help for her problem because of the rewards of praise from the family for being responsible.

The scapegoat behaves in a destructive manner and serves as a sponge who absorbs all of the adversities within the family. Based on this information it can be hypothesized that African American ACOAs continue to play this role as a result of accusations from within and without the family. For example, the family may continue to blame the scapegoat for all of its problems, or for individual lack of achievement which violates the sense of excellence which governs the necessity to achieve the highest honor in African American families. Likewise, racism, oppression, and other deviant forms of social interaction interrupted the transitional stages from childhood to adulthood through the delegation of African Americans as lazy, unmotivated, and less intelligent.

The lost child avoids trouble and is ignored by the family and' left to face problems alone. The individual avoids making close connections in the family or friends with other people, and lacks adequate social skills (Murphy, 1984). African American ACOAs in this role are often confronted with being identified as a misfit because they fail to project the sense of community which is at the core of the African American identity formation.

The mascot provides relief and humor for the family by being the clown during stressful situations. African American ACOAs who played the role of mascot commonly aspire to be an entertainer (e.g. actor, musician). In their drinking circles, they may be the individual who is the storyteller (Murphy, 1984).

Identity Development

African American ACOAs, like all other children, are apprentices of their parents and family. They learn to function based on models they observe. According to Anderson (1986), "a variety of adults, older children, and friends also influence the self-concept and personality development of any one black child" (p. 212). Explicit in identity development of African Americans is their defense system. Bell and Evans (1981) stressed that an exploration of the cultural dimensions of addiction is incomplete without an understanding of the African American cultural defense system. Because of racism and racial oppression which are inherent in American society, African Americans' identity is that of "double consciousness" (Bell & Evans, 1981). In working with African American ACOAs, progress cannot be attained unless the dualities (e.g., self-perception and perception of others) of double consciousness are addressed. The development of a positive self-concept for African Americans is predicated on their ability to overcome such obstacles as negative stereotypes, inappropriate outlets for expression, and economic, environmental, and psychological stressors (Butler, 1992). In spite of these obstacles, African American families have been able to instill positive self-concept in their children. The individual's self-concept is dependent upon the corporate definition of one's people or within-the parameters of one's cultural attributes (Bell & Evans, 1981; Butler, 1992).

Kinship Bonds

African American families have received an abundance of negative press in regard to crime, violence, female-headed households, joblessness, and alcohol and other drug use (Butler, 1992; Spicer, 1989; Wright, 1988), while the positive aspects have not received comparable attention. Despite this lack of equitable exposure, African American families are organized around a traditional system of kinship ties (Alston & Turner, 1994; Bulter, 1992). Anderson (1986) stated that in working with African American ACOAs emphasis should be made on a connection between African American functioning and ACOAs experiences within the context of the family and community. The significance of African American kinship was echoed by Butler (1992) as:

   Kinship controls all relationships in the community and binds together the
   interdependent relationship of all members of the group. The kinship system
   is deeply rooted in the African tradition, which established the
   relationship of every living form to another. (p. 46)

Strong kinship bonds are also reflected in the African American ACOAs' interpretation of individual reaction to family functioning. For example, Brisbane (1988) found that the family hero will not leave the home or family if it would be perceived that such action is family abandonment. Furthermore, when the African American female family hero is the first to leave home, she does so as a means "to provide a `safe place' for siblings to be with her and under her protective custody" (p. 31). Denial of self-fulfillment is commonly observed in African American ACOAs in response to caring for the family as long as others in the family, especially the mother, are using alcohol excessively (Weems, 1984).

The ability of African American family members to exercise "extendedness" and "role flexibility" when faced with a crisis increases strong kinship bonds and provides balance for the family in the event of prolonged illness or dysfunction among key family members (Hatchett, Cochran, & Jackson, 1991). The concept of extendedness in African American families is supported by the hierarchical-compensatory model (Taylor & Chatter, 1986) in that kinship bonds extend to friends, neighbors, church members, and organizations. The African American community emits an opportunity for support, protective barriers against the negative dynamics of racism, and the structure required for the transmission of culture (Butler, 1992).

Community Perception of Alcohol Use

African Americans have historically received contradictory messages from European Americans about the consumption of alcohol. On the one hand, European Americans opposed alcohol consumption by African Americans because they believed that African Americans would revert to violence and destruction with consumption. On the other hand, alcohol was used as a pacifier, a reward, or a motivator to perform unpleasant tasks (Mosley et al., 1988). Anderson (1986) contended that African Americans, having strong fundamentalist practices, either abstain or misuse alcohol.

For some African Americans, heavy drinking is a means of overcoming feelings of social and economic frustration, hopelessness, and racism and discrimination (Reed, 1989). Waite and Ludwig (1985) asserted that when community conditions do not improve, African American chronic drinkers do not demonstrate an interest to improve and blame these conditions for their drinking. African Americans generally tend to deny alcoholism as a primary disease. "Consequently the community does not clearly define standards for acceptable and unacceptable chemical use" (p. 213).

African Americans tend to have the following alcohol consumption patterns: to be group drinkers, to drink with friends and family as opposed to drinking in isolation, to drink more frequently and heavily on weekends, and either drink heavily or not drink at all (Harper, 1976, 1977). Bell and Evans (1981) attributed much of the adversities of alcohol problems in African American communities to "a lack of positive community response to the incidence of public intoxication, alcohol-related family violence, and other alcohol-related community problems" (p. 10).

The African American church is inclined to produce two types of responses to alcoholism: one as a moral failing, and the other as invisible (e.g., to ignore it) (Waite & Ludwig, 1985). Church leaders often focus more on issues of economic and social discrimination. The community's perception of alcoholism among African Americans was clearly expressed by Hooks (1993):

   In many traditional black communities, folks believed that an alcoholic was
   a person who drank too much and could no longer exercise control over his
   or her behavior. People who were obviously dependent on drink who
   manifested no anti-social behavior were never identified as alcoholics. (p.
   69)

In general, African American ACOAs must confront the denial of alcoholism in their individual homes and collective communities.

Implications for Rehabilitation

Cultural diversity is an area of counseling which has received substantial attention in recent years. Much of the general focus addresses issues of counselor awareness and sensitivity. Specific focus needs to transcend the acknowledgement of cultural differences and move to the application of multicultural skills. In this respect, Anderson (1986) advocated that the counselor needs to examine one's own racial attitudes and sense of the African American experience when working with African American ACOAs. Accordingly, Taylor and Bell (1984) indicated that "many white counselors have expressed feelings of inadequacy in coping with racial pain" (p. 34). The remainder of this section will provide illustrations of how rehabilitation professionals can incorporate strategies into service delivery when working with African American ACOAs.

The stigma associated with the label of alcoholism (Redd, 1989) and stereotypes attached to African Americans result in mistrust by African Americans toward the white dominated rehabilitation counseling profession. This mistrust translates into hesitation of African American ACOAs to seek intervention and related services, or to expose their perceived fragilities. Rehabilitation counselors must approach this hesitation with a genuine understanding of why it exists and the potential impact it will have on the counseling relationship. For example, this hesitation is highly correlated with factors such as sensitivity of service providers, types of services offered, and attitude toward rehabilitation (Belgrave & Walker, 1991; Walker, 1988). Further evidence that the counseling relationship will be affected is demonstrated by the fact that African Americans who are in [rehabilitation] treatment are terminated quickly and prematurely (Solomon, 1988). The hesitation on the part of African Americans should be viewed as a "healthy caution" in their approach to individuals whom they consider to be "outsiders" (e.g. not a part of the family or community), and not as an unwillingness to cooperate.

The counselor will need to initiate a direct approach to alleviate this hesitation of African American ACOAs and biases in their own perceptions as counselors. One way in which this can be accomplished is through reciprocal determinism (Butler, 1992) which promote increased program ownership, both perceived and actual, by consumers and community organizations rather than by service deliverers. This approach establishes partnerships composed of community organizations (e.g., churches, advocacy groups, urban league), agencies, and consumers who collaborate on all aspects of program development and implementation. This approach will also reinforce consumer empowerment espoused by Solomon (1988).

An equally critical implication for rehabilitation counselors is for them to be ever cognizant of the family and community perception of alcohol use. The issue among African American communities is not that of approval or disapproval of use, but that of providing protection (e.g., support) for the user. While it is important for counselors to zealously address the residual effects of growing up in an alcoholic home, their approach must be tempered with a sociocultural perspective because the addictive relational matrix often leads to confusion and inconsistency of expectations in the lives of African American ACOAs. For example, African American ACOAs are expected simultaneously to protect the family, to deny that alcohol use is problematic, to develop a strong racial identity, to combat racism, and to conform to community-specific norms while developing socially acceptable constructs that allow them to function in a microcosmic world. A viable solution was offered by Anderson (1986) who recommended that the counselor should help African American ACOAs examine their role(s) and development based on the larger picture. That is, ACOAs need to analyze alcoholism realistically, examine family dynamics and generational issues, review society's attitudes, and discuss political realities concerning discrimination. It will be necessary for the counselor to access community and family networks which can provide a favorable prognosis for African American ACOAs in the quest to resolve issues of childhood conflict and adulthood aberrations. Anderson (1986) pronounced this process as a validation of ACOAs reality. This validation is deemed highly relevant to the recovery of African American ACOAs.

A final implication for rehabilitation counselors relates to the issues of employment. In general, ACOAs place loyalty to the job over self-care and care of family (Phillips, 1988) Conversely, African American ACOAs are more likely to place their primary focus on the care of the family. It is not an uncommon occurrence for African American ACOAs to have high rates of absenteeism and tardiness or to quit a job because of pressing family issues. Because of vocational rehabilitation's focus on securing and maintaining employment, when African Americans do not view employment as a high priority, counselors typically interpret this as a lack of motivation or interest. Inadvertently, counselors do not vigorously pursue rehabilitation plans for African Americans (Wright, 1988). One approach which counselors can employ is to have African American ACOAs prioritize their goals goals and indicate aspects of their culture which influence employment and work behavior. In turn, the counselor can contrast culture-specific characteristics with those which are highly valued by the dominant culture. While the counselor should search for the best possible fit between African American cultural influences and those of the dominant culture, the consumer's cultural attributes should be utilized to maximize positive interactions with the consumer. Since African Americans will continue with a program as long as it meets their needs and expectations (Craig & Huffine, 1976), it is feasible to pursue a multicultural plan of action.

Conclusion

African American ACOAs represent a subculture within their communities. While not all African American ACOAs are alike, their culture serves as the nucleus for individual identity and community unity. Family and community are undeniable aspects of African American ACOAs functioning. The influence of culture accentuates the responsibility of rehabilitation counselors to analyze all aspects of consumer characteristics and develop services that have practical application and cultural relevance.

Ultimate solutions to the complexities of culture and its influence on African American ACOAs come from an examination of the role these individuals play in the broader society. African Americans in general, and African American ACOAs in particular, present rehabilitation counselors with the challenge to address culturally relevant issues with more than a placebo designed to provide a superficial response to deep-rooted and neglected cultural patterns. Traditional rehabilitation services have not been cognizant of the distinctiveness of African Americans and of the values and beliefs they hold in high regard. Understanding cultural norms, values, and behavioral codes increases a rehabilitation counselor's ability to plan, develop, and implement accurate and useful services.

Where there is cultural congruency and reciprocal determinism in developing and delivering services, rehabilitation counselors will have access to community networks, will find communication to be more open, and will encounter less consumer hesitation and resistance. In conclusion, a genuine aspiration to achieve cultural relevance is needed to provide adequate services to African American ACOAs.

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Received: September 1994

Revision: January 1995

Acceptance: February 1995

Debra A. Harley, Ph.D., CRC, Assistant Professor, University of Kentucky, Department of Special Education and Rehabilitation Counseling, 124 Taylor Education Building, Lexington, Kentucky 40506-0001.