Since the Austro-Hungarian and Tsarist eras, men’s intoxication has been deemed ‘masculine’ and women’s sobriety ‘feminine’ in western Ukraine; however, these ideologies are being rewritten to fit the new, post-socialist environment and to underscore a divergence from the Soviet past. While men are judged based on their ability to function after imbibing copious amounts of alcohol, women are explicitly expected to embody two stereotypes: the ‘Berehynia’ (a recently reformulated goddess of family and nation) and the ‘Barbie’ (a more globally-informed image). Digression from the ‘Barbie’ model is used as evidence to render public diagnoses of addiction, while the ‘Berehynia’ model underscores the sentiment that “we are not allowed to be weak.” Women are expected to be stronger than men; indeed, women are widely regarded as the carriers of morality. While men’s addiction is often met with sympathy – and linked to a presumed, inherent inability to cope with social, political and economic upheaval – addicted women are deemed to have consciously abandoned their femininity, their families, and their nation. These ideologies deeply affect the experiences of addicted people. In particular, women’s addiction is severely stigmatized, and they are extremely reluctant to “confess” and seek treatment. Based upon 14 months of ethnographic fieldwork, this thesis explores the gendered conceptualizations of ‘moral’ and ‘immoral’ that are being formulated with respect to drinking and addiction, and how these concepts inform the variety of addiction treatments that are available. In so doing, this analysis illuminates what is at stake for both the stigmatizers and stigmatized, and more specifically, the multiple ways that gender, drinking, and addiction have become implicated in constructions of the Ukrainian nation and state.

The purpose of this research was to determine whether a selected group of factors are significant when trying to predict the use of alcohol by adolescents who live in rural areas. This research is important because most of the studies concerning drug and alcohol use in adolescents have focused on adolescents who live in urban areas. The results of such studies may not be generalizable to rural populations. The factors investigated included the following: availability of alcohol, peer influence, parental influence, tobacco use, gender, and grade level. These factors were chosen based on their inclusion in four prominent theories regarding adolescent drug and alcohol use. Data were collected for this study in April 1994 in Warren County, a rural county in Kentucky. The responses from 2,3 53 high school students were collected using the Warren County KIDS (Knowledge and Information about Drugs and Substances) Team Survey. The data were analyzed using a chi square analysis. All of the factors were found to be significantly related to alcohol use in rural adolescents. The results of the study revealed that having alcohol available, having peer pressure to use alcohol, having parents who used alcohol or who had permissive attitudes toward alcohol use, using tobacco, being male, and being in higher grades increased the likelihood that adolescents would begin using alcohol.

Drug abuse continues to be one of the most significant problems in the United States today. Attempts to understand drug abuse have produced numerous multidimensional prevention and treatment models. These models have resulted in the identification of psychological, social and biological risk factors related to drug abuse. In this study, the risk for drug abuse was assessed in 311 college students. A questionnaire was developed to measure risk. The questionnaire assessed risk for abuse predicted by the following factors: academic performance, coping and psychological health, religiosity, family and peer drug use, and the individual's past and current drug use. Based on their risk scores students were placed into low, medium, or high risk groups. The participants also completed the Purpose in Life Test and Life Attitude Profile-Revised questionnaire which measured meaning in life. The results indicated that high risk students scored significantly lower on the global and composite scores of meaning in life. Consistent with the theories of Viktor Frankl, a lack of meaning in life and existential vacuum were related to risk for drug abuse. The results of this study suggest that lack of meaning in life may be an important contributing factor to drug abuse. These data suggest that meaning in life is a relevant issue to be considered in the prevention and treatment of drug abuse.

This project examines drug addiction and personal responsibility from the perspective of three different types of theories of addiction: full responsibility, diminished responsibility, and no responsibility. The rational theory of addiction is the fully responsibility theory. The philosophical insights by R. Jay Wallace and George Graham are the diminished responsibility theories. Berridge and Robinson’s Incentive Salience theory of drug addiction is the no responsibility theory examined. My conclusion is that diminished responsibility frameworks are the most suitable in a therapeutic context because they are most sensitive to relevant normative aspects.

The Internet has been changed not only business modeling design in the enterprises but also the lives of average citizens as much as did the telephone in the early part of the 20th century. There are some users applied the Internet for the task such as data collection, information searching and social network building. One specific application is making friends in the Internet. However, few wallow in acquaintanceship while they are surfing in the virtual world, that effects their normal social life dramatically. Researchers and social critics are debating whether the Internet is improving or harming participation in community life and social relationships. After reviewing the previous literatures, we adopt TPB (Theory of Planned Behavior) and Interpersonal Theory to explore the reasons of making friends in the Internet. This study results suggest that, first, some users extend their social network in the physical world to the Internet. Second, virtual relationship substitutes for the physical relationship. Finally, others¡¦ anxiety is increased while they were not able to satisfy the virtual acquaintanceship.

Title from title page of PDF (University of Missouri--St. Louis, viewed February 9, 2010). Includes bibliographical references (p. 107-119).

Thesis (M.A.)--York University, 1998. Graduate Programme in Kinesiology and Health Science. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 69-85). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ39203.

Community Pharmacists are the most accessible health care providers in Canada. Utilizing these cadres in effectively addressing substance abuse and addiction problems would help minimize the health and socioeconomic negative outcomes associated with the disease of addiction. Therefore, the purpose of this project is to: 1) Comprehend pharmacists’ encounters with PWSAD including satisfaction, feelings, situation management, red flags, and outcome(s), 2) Identify skills and educational needs for community pharmacists concerning providing optimum services to PWSAD, 3) Define the types of educational/training programs pharmacists require to improve their services toward PWSAD, 4) Identify immediate needs to improve current services (e.g. referral guide) and inquire about possible obstacles facing community pharmacists in providing services to PWSAD. Qualitative methodology was deemed as the most appropriate method for the research purpose. To recruit study participants, a questionnaire was sent to all community pharmacists in the city of Saskatoon. The survey results also provided general understanding of community pharmacists’ perspectives about addiction. Another survey was sent to all pharmacy schools in Canada, inquiring about the main educational material concerning addiction in undergraduate curricula. The inquiry concerned with the type of educational knowledge covered including pharmacological aspects, social aspects or others. Those pharmacists selected to be interviewed where asked to comment on the education and skill needs for community pharmacists and the suitable means to address such needs. Data analysis revealed four major themes; Work Environment, Lack of Knowledge, Health System and Educational and Training Needs. Each theme represents barriers facing community pharmacists to provide optimum health care for PWSAD. It was evident for educational and training needs that the demand is to have training on the social aspects of the disease such as communication skills and inter-professional interactive learning sessions. The need to focus on the social aspects of addiction was one of the major demands, expressed by participants. This work will influence future educational plans as well as provide suggestions to improve the contemporary educational plans based on a view from the practice field. It is not surprising as the university survey also showed lack of emphasis on the social aspects of addiction within the pharmacy curricula across Canada. Based on research findings, recommendations were categorized to two main streams; recommendations at the undergraduate level and recommendations at the continuous education and practice level. It is recommended to shift the focus of addiction educational material from pharmacology and law endorsement to social issues and patient care at the undergraduate level. On the other hand, implementing inter-professional sessions as well as protocol that pharmacists can follow during their encounter with PWSAD are key recommendations at the continuous education and practice level.

The family has been described as the center or heart of societal relationships with each family member playing an integral part in that relationship (Garret & Landau, 2007; Jay & Jay, 2000). Therefore, when a family member is affected by a disease such as addiction, his or her predicament typically impacts other members of the family. When this occurs, family members may seek therapy to provide solutions. One technique that has been found to be beneficial to the entire family by providing education about the addiction is brief family-based treatment (FBT) (Jay & Jay; Johnson, 1998). Brief family-based treatment, teaches, that as family members work together, they have a much better chance of changing their own perceptions/attitudes about addiction and thereby changing the outcome for the relative with addiction.

This cross-sectional study examines data from the 2008-2009 Youth Smoking Survey among never, current and former smoking grade 9-12 students using logistic regression. Path analysis examining correlates of former from current smoking was conducted for females and males. Former smokers represent a distinct, often intermediary, group of students between current and never smokers. Former smokers have similarities with current smokers on individual factors but more closely resemble never smokers on social and environmental factors. Among females, social factors were most influential; whereas environmental and individual factors played more of a role in male smoking cessation. These results further describe youth who quit smoking. The strong effects from social factors suggest the importance of family and peer support for quitting. These findings inform the development of youth cessation programming by providing a target profile and highlighting areas for intervention focus.