Running Head: RESPONSE TO PARENTAL ALCOHOLISM AND MENTAL ILLNESS Differential Effects

Growing up in a household with alcoholic or mentally ill parents is more likely to produce lower self-esteem, greater dysphoria, and more anxiety in adulthood. To test this hypothesis, 139 undergraduate and graduate students completed measures of anxiety, depression, social avoidance, self-esteem, and social support. Results showed that adult children of alcoholics, adult children of mentally ill, and adult children of substance abusing mentally ill had lower self-esteem and were more socially anxious than normal controls. Adult children of mentally ill parents were more depressed and showed greater trait anxiety than adult children of alcoholics and controls. The impact of parental pathology is diminished if the adult child has a large and/or satisfactory social support network