TPC_Journal Digests_Volume_2_Issue_1

A b s t r a c t The primary goal of this paper is two-fold: to challenge the belief that adult children of alcoholics tend to abuse alcohol as the result of genetic composition, and to show instead evidence that the unpredictable home environment in which alcoholics grow up may be responsible. James M. Benshoff Melinda M. Gibbons This paper identifies the common ground between adult children of alcoholics (ACoAs) and other adult children including those growing up in homes where there is divorce, domestic violence, emotional deprivation, serious financial problems, and other substance-related abuse. The point of this paper is based on the notion that the common ground among such adult children is their growing up in a chaotic environment where they were not able to develop a healthy attachment to their caregivers because their caregivers were unpredictable in their care. While some researchers turn to biology and physiology (nature) to explain the etiology of addiction, this paper highlights the influence of the environment (nurture) in developing and maintaining adult addictions. This paper argues against the genetic composition to explain alcohol dependence. All C haotic E nvironments and A dult C hildren of A lcoholics TPC Digest All humans are born with a genetic predisposition to addictions of any kind. It takes an environment to trigger the addiction. TPC Journal Volume 2 Issue 1