Skip to main content
International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research logoLink to International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research
. 2008 Jun 10;17(Suppl 1):S70–S73. doi: 10.1002/mpr.252

Predicting utilization of formal and informal help among general hospital inpatients with alcohol use disorders

Jennis Freyer‐Adam 1,, Beate Coder 1, Gallus Bischof 2, Sebastian E Baumeister 1, Hans‐Jürgen Rumpf 2, Ulrich John 1, Ulfert Hapke 3
PMCID: PMC6879083  PMID: 18543366

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this prospective study was to identify predictors of utilizing formal and informal help among currently non‐help‐seeking individuals with alcohol use disorders. Methods: Data was based on 197 general hospital inpatients with alcohol dependence or abuse. Using multivariable logistic regression analyses, intention to utilize formal help was tested in addition to evidence based predictors of utilization of help. Results: Intention to seek help and prior help‐seeking were identified as central predictors for formal and informal help‐seeking. Conclusions: The lack of utilization of formal help among persons with alcohol use disorders may be reduced by focusing professional interventions on enhancing help‐seeking motivation. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Keywords: alcohol use disorders, intention, prospective, help‐seeking

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (75.0 KB).

REFERENCES

  1. Ajzen I. The theory of planned behavior. Organiz Behav Hum Decis Processes 1991; 50: 179–211. DOI:10.1016/0749‐5978(91)90020‐T [Google Scholar]
  2. Berwick DM, Murphy JM, Goldman PA, Ware JE Jr, Barsky AJ, Weinstein MC. Performance of a five‐item mental health screening test. Med Care 1991; 29: 169–76. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. British Medical Association . Alcohol: Guidelines on Sensible Drinking. London: British Medical Association, 1995. [Google Scholar]
  4. Cunningham JA, Breslin FC. Only one in three people with alcohol abuse or dependence ever seek treatment. Addict Behav 2004; 29: 221–3. DOI:10.1016/S0306‐4603(03)00077‐7 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Freyer J, Tonigan JS, Keller S, John U, Rumpf HJ, Hapke U. Readiness to change versus readiness to seek help for alcohol problems: the development of the Treatment Readiness Tool (TReaT). J Stud Alcohol 2004; 65: 801–9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Freyer J, Coder B, Bischof G, Baumeister SE, Rumpf HJ, John U, Hapke U. Intention to utilize formal help in a sample with alcohol problems: a prospective study. Drug Alcohol Depend 2007; 87: 210–16. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Grant BF. Toward an alcohol treatment model: a comparison of treated and untreated respondents with DSM‐IV alcohol use disorders in the general population. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 1996; 20: 372–8. DOI:10.1111/j.1530‐0277.1996.tb01655.x [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. John U, Hapke U, Rumpf HJ. A new measure of the alcohol dependence syndrome: the severity scale of alcohol dependence. Eur Addict Res 2003; 9: 87–93. DOI:10.1159/000068806 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Miller WR, Rollnick S. Motivational Interviewing. Preparing People for Change. New York: The Guilford Press, 2002. [Google Scholar]
  10. Moos RH, Cronkite RC, Billings AG, Finney JW. Health and Daily Living Form Manual. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Medical Centers, 1985. [Google Scholar]
  11. Neff JA, Zule WA. Predictive validity of a measure of treatment readiness for out‐of‐treatment drug users: enhancing prediction beyond demographic and drug history variables. Am J Drug Alcohol Abuse 2002; 28: 147–69. DOI: 10.1081/ADA‐120001286 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Prochaska JO, Velicer WF. The transtheoretical model of health behavior change. Am J Health Promot 1997; 12: 38–48. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Project MATCH Research Group . Matching alcoholism treatments to client heterogeneity: Project MATCH posttreatment drinking outcomes. J Stud Alcohol 1997; 58: 7–29. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Rumpf HJ, Hapke U, John U. Previous help seeking and motivation to change drinking behavior in alcohol‐dependent general hospital patients. Gen Hosp Psychiatry 1998; 20: 115–9. DOI:10.1016/S0163‐8343(97)00130‐8 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Rumpf HJ, Meyer C, Hapke U, John U. Screening for mental health: validity of the MHI‐5 using DSM‐IV Axis I psychiatric disorders as gold standard. Psychiatry Res 2001; 105: 243–53. DOI:10.1016/S0165‐1781(01)00329‐8 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Rumpf HJ, Meyer C, Hapke U, Bischof G, John U. Inanspruchnahme suchtspezifischer Hilfen von Alkoholabhängigen und ‐miβbrauchern: Ergebnisse der TACOS‐Bevölkerungsstudie [Utilization of alcoholspecific help among alcohol dependent and alcohol abusing persons: Results from the TACOS general population study]. Sucht 2000; 46: 9–17. [Google Scholar]
  17. Schwarzer R. Social‐cognitive factors in changing health‐related behavior. Curr Dir Psychol Sci 2001; 10: 47–51. Doi:10.1111/1467‐8721.00112 [Google Scholar]
  18. Sobell LC, Cunningham JA, Sobell MB. Recovery from alcohol problems with and without treatment: prevalence in two population surveys. Am J Public Health 1996; 86: 966–72. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research are provided here courtesy of Wiley

RESOURCES