Through the Life of their Spouses- Coping Strategies of Wives of Male Alcoholics

Authors

  • Chinnu Sebastian1 , Suja M.K2

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37506/ijfmt.v14i4.12340

Keywords:

Alcohol dependents, Alcoholism, Coping Strategies, Wives of alcoholics,

Abstract

Background: Alcoholism is a major health issue and it affects the mental stability of the individual. It is also
considered as a family disease and social problem because the alcoholism of one person in the family affects
the entire family by mentally, economically and physically. Among family members, the wives of alcoholics
are the most affected person by their emotional and physical attachment in the relationship. The wives of
alcoholics often face domestic violence, marital conflicts, insecurity, social isolation, job losses or house
lose due to the alcoholism of their partner and it leads them into psychological problems like stress, anger,
shame, anxiety, depression, self- blame, hopelessness, low self- esteem and suicide tendency. Copings are
the thoughts and actions used by an individual to deal with a threatening situation. Since wives of alcoholics
are stressed due to the drinking habit of their spouse, they need to choose different coping strategies. Coping
strategies are the intensive efforts used by the wives of alcoholics both behavioural as well as psychological
to endure and decrease the stress associated with their husband’s drinking habit.
Methods: In this study, researchers attempted to understand the coping strategies used by the wives of
alcoholics. The study measured the level of Coping Strategies and significant factors associated with wives
of alcoholics of Kottayam district of Kerala, India. Survey Design was used for the study. Census method
used to collect the samples. Conclusion: Nearly half (42%) of the respondents have a medium level of
coping strategies and 32% of the respondents have high level and 26% have low level of coping strategies.
The study reveals that Coping Strategies has no significant difference between sociodemographic variables
like age, religion, area of residence, type of family, education, occupation, family monthly income and
duration of habit in the spouse. In this study, it is understood that the coping strategies of wives of alcoholics
depend on the family atmosphere, behaviour of the husbands and genetic factor and personality of the wives.

Author Biography

  • Chinnu Sebastian1 , Suja M.K2

    1PhD Scholar, 2Associate Professor,
    , Department of Social Work, Amrita School of Engineering, Coimbatore,
    Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, India

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Published

2020-10-29

How to Cite

Through the Life of their Spouses- Coping Strategies of Wives of Male Alcoholics. (2020). Indian Journal of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology, 14(4), 4442-4446. https://doi.org/10.37506/ijfmt.v14i4.12340