Examined whether risk of drug abuse in offspring of fathers with substance use disorders differs with respect to presence or absence of the father. Concluded increased risk for substance abuse in offspring of separated parents due to the combination of the transmission of more severe liability from the father, and fewer resources available to the…

Study looked at sample of African-American adolescent males to determine the degree to which family structure (e.g., single parent vs. two-parent families) vs. the nature of the family relationships predict sons' involvement in substance use/abuse and illegal behavior. Of 33 relationships measures analyzed, 3 predicted the degree of recent…

Illegal behavior, drug trafficking, and substance abuse levels of two groups (both parents, mother only) of inner-city African-American youth were compared. African-American subjects who had been raised in mother-only households reported significantly fewer illegal offenses. Findings are contrary to common attitudes regarding the effects of…

Gave Parental Bonding Inventories (PBI) to 173 males and analyzed scores based on the participants' familial risk for alcoholism. Results indicate that fathers of the high familial risk participants were rated by sons as being significantly less caring than the fathers of low familial risk participants. Other findings are reported. (RJM)