Filipino alcoholic fathers and their adolescent children: A phenomenological study

• Main Author: Kunnathuparambil, Jancy V.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2007
• Subjects: Children of alcoholics > Philippines; Alcoholics > Family relationships > Philippines; Alcoholism > Philippines; Counseling
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_doctoral/145; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/etd_doctoral/article/1144/viewcontent/CDTG004152_P__2_.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

This study explored the experience of Filipino alcoholic fathers and their adolescent children with regard to the fathers alcoholism. It defined the concepts of alcoholism and described the factors leading to alcoholism of the father, the rehabilitation experiences, the effects upon the children, and the adolescents™ ways of coping with their situation. The present phenomenological study was done in two phases. The first phase employed two focus group discussions: one with 10 fathers and another with 10 adolescent children and the second phase were case studies of 10 adolescent children of alcoholics. The focus group discussions investigated the concepts and experiences of alcoholism in general. The case studies utilized in-depth interviews of adolescents to further describe the concept of alcoholism, the factors leading to alcoholism of their fathers, the rehabilitation experiences of their fathers, the effects of alcoholism on the fathers and their ways of coping in their lives. The findings indicate that initially, curiosity and tendency to find enjoyment in life motivated the fathers to experiment with alcohol, and gradually alcohol became part of their lives. They defined alcoholism as a behavior of consuming alcohol in greater quantity and frequency. According to the alcoholic fathers, the main reason for their alcoholism was to lighten their distress due to poverty, emotional disturbances and other personal struggles. Hence, they blamed psychological, environmental, social, occupational and economic factors for their addiction. Even though the 12-step program followed in the rehabilitation center was found to be helpful in stopping their alcoholism, the fathers were not fully reformed, and most of them had relapses upon their return home. Despite the rehabilitation experience, the basic character weakness of the alcoholics had not been adequately addressed and they had not built enough self-awareness nor self-sufficiency to solve their own problems. Dependence on other persons, blaming others for their condition in life, emotional disturbances, lack of educational attainment, and harmful behaviors were the effects of alcoholism in the lives of adolescent children of alcoholics. The children adopted constructive and destructive coping strategies in order to cope with the trouble they experienced from their alcoholic fathers. As a result of the study, awareness programs for the family as a whole, counseling programs for alcoholics and their codependents, and educational programs on alcoholism are recommended.