Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs最新文献

Aims: We used reports (n = 208) of drug-free friendships and alcohol and drug use by people diagnosed with substance use disorder in order to investigate their annual change trajectories across 4 years after treatment and the association between these trajectories and debut age and gender. Methods: The participants were recruited from the Stavanger region, Norway. Using cross-sectional analysis, we first examined the relationship between "alcohol and drug use" and "drug-free friendships" across the five follow-ups. We tested whether these associations were significant using chisquare chi-squared tests. Second, we developed three latent growth curve models examining the association between "alcohol and drug use" and "drug-free friendships". Results: Our analysis displays a stable drug-free friendships pattern across follow-ups. Only in the fourth follow-up was there a significant association between lower "alcohol and drug use" and having "drug-free friendships" (χ² = 18.27, df = 8, p < .05). In model 1, we found no association between gender, debut age, and alcohol and drug use; model 2 had significant variance on intercept but not on slope; model 3 had good fit (χ² = 44.33, df = 39, comparative fit index = 0.98, root mean square error of approximation = 0.027). However, we did not find any significant regression path between the "alcohol and drug use" and "drug-free friendships" slopes. Conclusions: Drug-free relationships were in the studied cohort group found to have little influence on reducing alcohol and drug use, while debut age and gender were unrelated to use trajectories across 4 years. We suggest that future research should focus on the frequency and quality of drug-free friendships and participants' friendship assessments because previous research has found such relationships to facilitate recovery.

Aims: Open drug scenes (ODS) have increasingly drawn the attention of the police and municipalities in Sweden. These locations, where illicit drugs are sold and/or consumed, are often associated with various forms of disorder and crime. While ODS are typically depicted as a phenomenon predominantly found in larger cities, their prevalence and characteristics in smaller cities remain underexplored. This study aims to analyse the patterns and characteristics of ODS, as identified by the police and municipalities, across a range of cities in southern Sweden. Methods: By utilising spatial and temporal analyses of police-reported crimes and demographic statistics, this research examines the characteristics of identified ODS and their connections to socioeconomic disadvantage. Results: The findings suggest that the identified ODS in smaller cities share similar patterns to those found in prior research and in larger urban areas, characterised by lower socioeconomic status and elevated crime rates. Conclusions: Police and municipalities in smaller cities identify places in their communities that closely resemble, although are not necessarily equivalent to, an ODS. Nevertheless, these places are disproportionately burdened by social problems and require targeted assistance.

Aim: The study aimed to assess the extent to which financial and/or mental health problems resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic were associated with an increased risk of alcohol consumption. Methods: Data stemmed from a Swedish cross-sectional population survey (n = 9122) collected during the second half of 2020. Questions were asked about changes in alcohol consumption during the pandemic and to what extent financial and mental health problems were experienced. Logistic regression analysis was used to estimate whether exposure to these problems was related to increasing consumption and as a complementary analysis to decreased drinking. An additive interaction analysis was conducted to assess whether there was a joint effect of these problems. Results: The proportion of respondents who reported increased alcohol consumption was higher among those who had experienced financial or mental health problems, and it rose with the severity of negative experiences. However, findings from logistic regressions (including both exposure variables and covariates) showed that only experiences of mental health problems significantly elevated the risk (odds ratio) of increased consumption. Experiences of mental health problems were also related to a higher likelihood of decreasing consumption, although the odds ratio was lower. No interaction effects were found. Conclusions: Although alcohol consumption overall declined in Sweden during the pandemic, a group experiencing pandemic-related mental health problems increased their drinking. A parallel decline in drinking in a subgroup of individuals experiencing mental health problems adds nuance to the findings and is suggested to be influenced by specific pandemic-related circumstances.

Aims: Gambling can lead to a variety of economic and social harms, many of which are of central concern to social work. However, the "invisibility" of gambling-related harms can impede professional assistance by delaying recognition in social and healthcare services. The present study illuminates how problematic aspects of gambling surface in social work encounters within municipal social services, and how municipal social workers of the City of Tampere, Finland, perceive the available service pathways for problem gambling help provision before the opening of a casino in the city in 2021 and before the health and social services reform of 2023. Methods: We conducted five focus group interviews with 15 social workers employed by the City of Tampere Social Services, utilizing the Reception Analytical Group Interview (RAGI) method. The data were analyzed thematically using ATLAS.ti. Results: Gambling-related harm is entangled with multiple other issues, often inadvertently revealed in daily social work encounters. Lack of time to adequately address clients' gambling issues and the absence of suitable services in the municipality were perceived as major structural obstacles to adequate help provision. The study participants recognized gambling-related shame, stigma and misconceptions as barriers to clients' help-seeking. However, they did not view the opening of the casino as likely to increase harms locally. Conclusions: The study highlights the importance of diverse approaches in providing appropriate services for individuals facing gambling-related harm. Furthermore, it underscores the necessity of addressing gambling issues in daily social work encounters and ensuring diverse, accessible service provision.

Aims: Individuals with a history of heavy drug use are especially vulnerable to losing loved ones to drug-related deaths, and drug use and complicated grief reactions are closely linked. However, limited knowledge exists on supporting them through bereavement. The present study, which was conducted in Norway, aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of how individuals dealing with heavy drug use and bereavement can be supported through professional support services. The bereaved person's reflections on help experiences are seen as grounded in their conduct of everyday life. Methods: We conducted qualitative interviews with individuals who have experienced bereavement in the context of heavy drug use. Using reflexive thematic analysis, we examined their stories and reflections on what was helpful and unhelpful, aiming to identify key themes, providing an understanding of how individuals dealing with heavy drug use and bereavement can be supported. Results: Five themes were identified. The first theme, 'Support Complexity', addresses the uncertainty about strengthening the help provided for processing losses. The other themes - "The Ripple Effect of Trust and Distrust", "Offering Supportive Communication", "Fostering Tailored Support" and "Promoting Support Through Companionship" - point to the key dimensions of the support that can help strengthen responses to drug-related bereavement. Conclusions: The study underlies how diverse expectations, norms and positions in the help provision setting influence the nature of support, as well as the access to, acceptance of and adaption to support initiatives. Furthermore, we discuss how the support context can provide multifaceted and contextualised bereavement support tailored to the various needs of the bereaved. The study also underscores the need for provider training focused on the intersections of bereavement and drug use.

Aims: There has been relatively little research on professional competencies in social work with individuals with alcohol use problems. The present study investigates the patterns of competencies and abilities that constitute different competence dimensions in this field of social work. Additionally, the study attempts to confirm the validity and assess the reliability in the use of the Perceived Social Work Competence Scale (PSWCS) for measuring professional competencies in Lithuania. Exploratory factor analysis was used for both purposes. Methods: First, the translated scale's reliability and validity were examined, after which an interpretative competence dimension analysis was performed. Results: The study shows that the translated scale, consisting of 30 items covering eight competence dimensions (consultation, emotional support, case management, professional resilience, retrospective consultation, team working, community work and relationship formation), demonstrates strong reliability. Conclusions:The study provides insight into the ways in which Lithuanian social workers employ a combination of procedural and meta-competencies with field-specific characteristics in their work with alcohol use problems.