Decision Making Styles and Stress Coping Strategies among Alochol Addicts

In a demanding situation, a normal healthy adult makes decision based on experience, expertise or seeking knowledge from others or rely on own intuition. But a person under the influence of alcohol tends to be impulsive which hinders his effective decision making process. Situations demanding deeper levels of thought can cause stress. A person under the influence of drug may not be able to assess the problem clearly and therefore may not use an appropriate strategy. With this hypothetical belief, the present study was done to know if styles of making decision have a significant influence on stress coping strategies of alcohol addicts. Further the researcher also want to know if there was significant difference in stress coping strategies used among addicts based on their age and place of residence. The sample for the study was the alcohol addicts seeking treatment in de-addiction centers in Salem and Erode (Tamil Nadu). 150 alcohol addicts were randomly chosen form 8 centers. Regression and t-test were used to analyse the collected data. The results revealed that vigilance style of making decision has a significant influence on acceptance, refocus on planning and catastrophizing strategies of coping with stress. There was a significant difference in self-blame, other blame and positive refocusing based on the age of the addicts. Further there was a significant difference in rumination and refocus on planning among alcohol addicts based on their place of residence.