Addiction is a poorly known and not yet fully accepted pathological phenomenon in today’s society. People with experience of addiction are, due to society’s prejudices, often a stigmatized part of the population, since the society is not aware of the fact that the causes of addiction stem precisely from the fundamental cell of society - the family. By consuming the substances that lead to addiction, people seek substitutes which would satisfy their unfulfilled childhood needs. These substitutes offer comfort, a sense of power and control, as well as freedom to the individual.
Each family is a system. Members inside of the system influence each other and maintain the balance of the family system through their interaction. In families with experience of addiction, the attention is mostly directed towards the person who experienced addiction. Other members, especially siblings, remain ignored.
The theoretical part describes the functioning of family as a system.
Part of the thesis focuses on family dynamics of families with experience of addiction, with emphasis on the position of siblings of persons with addiction experience. The aim was to use qualitative analysis as a tool to gain insight into their emotions, their understanding of the roles of family members as well as their relationships with each other. Insight into the position of siblings in a family with experience of addiction was gained through qualitative analysis of four cases and is presented in the empirical part.
|
