NCJ Number
204386
Journal
Journal of Ethnicity in Substance Abuse Volume: 2 Issue: 3 Dated: 2003 Pages: 1-29
Date Published
2003
Length
29 pages
Annotation
A cross-sectional survey of a convenience sample of 425 Asian-Americans solicited their perceptions of substance-use problems in the Asian-American community, along with help-seeking preferences.
Abstract
The respondents ranged between the ages of 18 and 75, with a mean age of 37.4. Among the respondents, 30.4 percent self-identified ethnically as Chinese, 19.1 percent Indian, 28.2 percent Korean, and 22.4 percent Vietnamese. Regarding gender, 50.8 percent of the respondents were female. Significant differences existed for demographic variables of age, education, and employment status across the four ethnic groups. Respondents were asked to rate the severity of the problem of drinking and drug use in the Asian-American community along a four-point Likert-type scale, including two questions about respondents' own drinking and drug-use pattern. Responses were also sought on the topics of beliefs about the etiology of substance use, attitudes toward drug treatment, perceived help-seeking preferences, and perceived helpful services. Regarding their own alcohol and drug use, 20.9 percent of the respondents reported alcohol use, and 3.3 percent reported drug use. As a group, respondents did not perceive substance use as a serious problem in the Asian-American community; however, the Vietnamese-American respondents did generally report alcohol and drug abuse to be a serious problem in their community. Respondents had a positive attitude toward drug treatment. Help preferences were for the use of personal resources rather than professional help or formal treatment programs in dealing with substance-use problems. There was an apparent lack of interest in using support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous. Given these findings, the authors recommend that drug prevention education of Asian-American populations focus on the range of available treatment options, the pros and cons as well as the feasibility of using personal resources to address substance-use problems, family support for substance abusers, open discussion of the cultural stigma of substance-use problems, and culturally appropriate localized knowledge of drug abuse. Among the recommendations for treatment is that it use the cultural strengths of self-reliance in the recovery process, along with culturally sensitive treatment procedures that would normalize the seeking of professional help. Suggestions are offered for future research. 5 tables and 42 references