ATTRIBUTIONAL STYLE IN CHILDREN OF SUBSTANCE-ABUSERS

This study examined attributional style in children of substance abuse rs. We hypothesized that children of substance abusers are more likely to develop a depressogenic attributional style. Forty children betwee n the ages of 8 and 14 participated in the study.Twenty children were from families with a history of substance abuse and 20 were from famil ies without such a history. Each child completed self-report measures of depression and attributional style. After controlling for depressio n and other factors, the results revealed that children Of substance a busers had a more depressogenic attributional style than did children without such a family history. Implications of the results for childre n of substance abusers and for hopelessness theory are discussed.