CASC 250 - Effects of Addiction on Families and Society

Credit(s): 3
Addiction affects individuals, their family members, and the family dynamic. Addiction and substance use disorders have serious social and economic consequences. In this seminar with the use of the family systems approach, students will explore the effects of addiction, while paying particular attention to the family unit’s coping strategies and ones awareness of attitudes toward cultural differences. Addiction may affect each family member differently and this course examines how the addicted individual’s children, parents, and significant others are impacted by the cycle of addiction. Students will explore the differential effects on families that result from particular substances (i.e., heroin, cocaine, alcohol, and the abuse of prescription medications). Students will embark on an examination of the consequences addiction has on the larger societal and economic scheme, including implications for criminal activity, the judicial system, the healthcare system, and the cost of public and private recovery programs.