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Studies of Familial Alcoholism: A Growth Industry

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Abstract

In 1940, Jellinek [1] proposed a diagnostic category called “familial alcoholism” characterized by early age of onset and a particularly severe course. Neglected for nearly 40 years, the concept of familial alcoholism has recently awakened new interest. The impetus for the revival has been a number of twin and adoption studies indicating a possible genetic predisposition to alcoholism. Two kinds of research have evolved from these studies: (1) comparisons of familial and nonfamilial alcoholics, and (2) comparisons of children of alcoholics with children of nonalcoholics (high-risk studies).

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© 1984 Kluwer-Nijhoff Publishing

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Goodwin, D.W. (1984). Studies of Familial Alcoholism: A Growth Industry. In: Goodwin, D.W., Van Dusen, K.T., Mednick, S.A. (eds) Longitudinal Research in Alcoholism. Longitudinal Research in the Behavioral, Social and Medical Sciences, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-5644-5_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-5644-5_7

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-010-8989-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-009-5644-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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