A meta-analysis is proposed to determine the association between social relationship factors and alcoholism treatment drinking outcomes. Alcoholism treatment programs have been addressing interpersonal factors with increasing frequency in recent years, recognizing that treatment is but one element among many environmental forces that affect a patient during and following treatment. This shift in treatment orientation is occurring, however, while little is known about either the magnitude of the relationship between interpersonal factors and drinking outcome or the mechanisms through which social relationships might effect posttreatment change. As length of treatment decreases and brief interventions and outpatient settings come to dominate alcoholism treatment policy, the ability to address patients' social environment and use their close social ties as adjuncts to treatment becomes increasingly relevant to treatment professionals. A comprehensive quantitative review and synthesis of the findings of past research will assess 1) the extent to which pre-treatment social relationships predict drinking behavior following treatment; 2) the magnitude of the association between post-treatment social relationships and drinking outcomes; 3) the relationship and strength of potential moderators and mediators of pre- and post-treatment associations between social relationships and drinking outcomes; and 4) the role of social relationships as mediators of the association between treatment and drinking outcomes. These analyses will be enriched by conceptual clarification of the domain of social relationships, as we a) analyze which components of social relationships (quantity, structure, function, and quality) are associated with drinking outcomes; b) investigate the associations of drinking outcomes with relationships in various life domains (e.g., marriage, family, friends, co-workers); and c) differentiate the roles of alcohol-specific and general dimensions of social relationships in relation to drinking outcomes. The proposed project will take three years. In the first year, a comprehensive literature review will be undertaken. All studies published in English since 1966 that have addressed the association between social relationships and alcoholism treatment drinking outcomes will be gathered, including dissertations, currently funded research project reports, and studies from the bibliographies of identified studies. During years 1 and 2, these research reports will be coded into a relational database; there will be ongoing assessment of inter-rater reliability. Data analysis, undertaken in years 2 and 3, will encompass estimating the existence and the magnitude of relationships and accounting for the heterogeneity of results across studies. Weighted regression analysis and hierarchical linear modeling will be employed.
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| Beattie, M C; Longabaugh, R (1999) General and alcohol-specific social support following treatment. Addict Behav 24:593-606 |
| Beattie, M C; Longabaugh, R (1997) Interpersonal factors and post-treatment drinking and subjective wellbeing. Addiction 92:1507-21 |
