PROBLEM DRINKING AND LIFE STRESS AMONG OLDER ADULTS

这个项目考察了生活压力和应对资源在 老年人过度饮酒。为什么有些老年人会出现 或者在面对有压力的生活环境时重新开始酗酒， 当其他人停止饮酒或继续保持正常功能时？怎么能 社会资源或应对反应帮助老年人克服或 适应充满压力的生活环境？什么是社交和情景 在老年人中促进或抑制问题饮酒的因素？ 我们在这里通过关注高危老年人来解决这些问题 (主要是男性)来自医疗和门诊护理诊所和团体 居住情况，如城市居民照料设施和单身人士 客房占有率(SRO)酒店。第一阶段需要建造和 半结构化访谈和问卷程序的改编 评估问题饮酒、生活压力以及社交和应对资源 上了年纪的人。在第二阶段，我们在短期内使用这些程序 筛查高危个体并选择和跟踪的前瞻性研究 三组在人口统计上相匹配的老年人。其中一组将是 由酗酒后开始或重新开始有问题的人组成 经历最近紧张的生活环境。第二组将 由处于“缓解期”的个人组成，也就是那些 过去有过酗酒问题，但甚至没有“复发” 尽管他们最近遇到了压力源。第三组将 包含从未经历过饮酒问题的个人，以及 成功地应对了最近的压力。这些数据将用于 描述饮酒习惯并检查生活压力的影响 问题饮酒及相关功能指标的应对资源 在高危老年人中。

This project examines the role of life stress and coping resources in excessive drinking among older adults. Why do some older persons develop or resume problem drinking when faced with stressful life circumstances, while others stop drinking or continue to function adequately? How can social resources or coping responses help an older individual overcome or adapt to stressful life situations? What are the social and situational factors that promote or inhibit problem drinking among older adults? We address these issues here by focusing on high-risk older adults (primarily men) drawn from medical and ambulatory care clinics and group living situations, such as urban residential care facilities and single room occupancy (SRO) hotels. Phase I entails the construction and adaptation of semi-structured interview and questionnaire procedures to assess problem drinking, life stress, and social and coping resources among older adults. In Phase II, we use these procedures in a short term prospective study to screen high-risk individuals and to select and follow three groups of demographically matched older persons. One group will be composed of individuals who have begun or resumed problem drinking after experiencing recent stressful life circumstances. The second group will consist of individuals who are in "remission," that is, persons who have had past episodes of problem drinking but who have not "relapsed" even though they have encountered recent stressors. The third group will contain individuals who have never experienced drinking problems and who are coping successfully with recent stressors. The data will be used to characterize drinking habits and to examine the influence of life stressors and coping resources on problem drinking and related indices of functioning among high-risk older adults.