Quote of the Day 119

	Eriksons phases of psycho-social development have been used to illustrate the potential psychological and emotional problems in the children of alcoholics. Trust versus mistrust (birth to one year). During this phase, the pre-eminence of trust is essential to later healthy personality development. The infant is entirely dependent on the mother for the meeting of its basic needs (warmth, food, security, etc.). If the mother is alcohol dependent, or is caught up in her partners alcoholism, she may not be able adequately to meet these needs, and therefore may undermine the development of healthy trust in the child. The phase of initiative versus guilt, which occurs during the age of four to five, requires a consistent balance between parental permissiveness and restrictiveness if it is to be negotiated adequately The alcoholic parent may play a very inconsistent role with regard to his children, and the child will often struggle to determine what response his behaviour may elicit. This may lead to a suppression of the childs initiative and creativity due to overconformity. The early school-going years correspond to Eriksons phase of industry versus inferiority. At this stage, a sense of industry or usefulness is needed. The child needs to feel that his achievements and growth are being noticed. As the family system is characterised by the centrality of the alcohol, he may remain unnoticed. The phase of identity versus identity diffusion is a phase of development which corresponds with adolescence. One of the central tasks of adolescence is the development of a clear identity and value system. The adolescent who is surrounded by an unhealthy, negative family system may begin to develop a deviant negative self-concept. The development of powerful defence mechanisms in childhood which are carried through to adulthood have been explored by Ackerman (1978). The reason suggested for this is that children of alcoholics encounter enormous growth problems and have little security from their pasts from which to draw and internalise extreme defence mechanisms therefore develop to assist them in coping. Examples include: Regression may occur and is characterised by the child returning emotionally and behaviourally to a previous state of security, if one indeed existed; Suppression of both feelings and actions to avoid upsetting the system even further is common and is frequently carried over into adulthood; Sublimation of feelings into acceptable activities such as workaholics at school and carried over into adulthood.
	LEE WILCOCKS and LAURA EDMONDS Wilcocks, L. and Edmonds, L. (1988) The drug-abusing child in the children's home, in Gannon, B. (ed.) Today's Child Tomorrow's Adult, Cape Town: NACCW. pp.87-91