Fatherhood and drugs
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Fatherhood and drugs – how men with problem opiate use experience fatherhood
IRAS ID
163791
Contact name
Luisa S Frei
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 6 months, 29 days
Research summary
Alcohol and drug misuse are the cause and consequence of many difficulties in everyday life, but the nurturing and supportive parenting of children while struggling with addiction poses a particular challenge. A lot of research on the effects of drugs and alcohol on parenting focuses on problem substance use in mothers and the outcomes for children of problem substance users. It is often found that there is a similarity in the pathway which leads from own childhood maltreatment and neglect to both substance abuse and neglectful parenting. This can foster a cross-generational perpetuation of a vicious cycle of vulnerability to substance abuse and dysfunctional parenting. There are currently only few studies focusing on the effects of childhood experiences and problem substance use on fathers' parenting strategies.
This study aims to elucidate how fathers’ experiences in childhood influence the parenting of their own children against their background of substance misuse. We are particularly interested in fathers’ insight into this possible mechanism of transmission, attempts to counteract it, and willingness to receive support with parenting from social/health services.
We plan to interview a small sample (10-14 participants) of opiate using fathers currently accessing services of the Edinburgh Substance Misuse Directorate. Interview data will be transcribed and analysed qualitatively, searching for common themes in fathers’ experiences and life stories. The qualitative data analysis method is called Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis and allows to investigate in detail the experience of a small homogeneous sample of participants.
It is hoped that the results of this study will increase health professionals’ awareness of their male clients as fathers, as well as inform the development of parenting interventions for opiate using fathers.
REC name
Scotland A REC
REC reference
15/SS/0039
Date of REC Opinion
22 Apr 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion