Tenets of Adlerian theory and practice are compatible with the philosophy and practices of Alcoholics Anonymous. Counselors can expect treatment approaches based on Adlerian counseling theory to be congruent with 12-Step practices of individuals who are in recovery from alcohol dependence.
Epidemiologists measure the extent of the alcohol problem, while anthropologists note the differences in ethnic customs. Behaviorists seek antecedents and consequences of drinking, while psychoanalysts probe for underlying causes. Those concerned with genetics examine biochemical markers . . . while pathologists study slices of tissue. . . . As inheritors of the intellectual methods of Descartes, we seek answers in reductionist polarities; it must be either this or that, never both or more (Metzger, 1988, p. 3). lbenty-nine percent of people in the United States seeking mental health treatment will have met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-ZV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) criteria for alcohol dependence at one point in their lives . In 1995, in the month before being surveyed, 1 1 1 million Americans age 12 and older had used alcohol. Of that number, 32 million people had engaged in binge drinking. That is, they drank five or more drinks on the same occasion at least once in the previous month. Heavy drinkers, those who drank five or more drinks per occasion on five or more days in the previous month, numbered 1 1 million (Substance Abuse and Mental Health, 1996).
Varying opinions about the causes and maintenance of alcohol dependence influence how it is treated. Counselors, therefore, do not agree on how to help clients who are alcohol-dependent (Ross, 1994; Rotgers, Keller, & Morgenstern, Jane J. Carroll, is a n assistant professor in the Department of Counseling, Special Education, and Child Deuelopment a t the Uniuersity of North Carolina Charlotte. Correspondence regarding this article should be sent to Jane J. Carroll at the Department of Counseling, Special Education, and Shild oeueloprnent, 5055 Coluard,