Treatment of Substance Use Disorders in Mexican American Families

Although Mexican Americans make up one of the largest U.S. minorities, comprising 11% of the general U.S. population, substance use treatment models often fail to incorporate cultural factors that affect the efficacy of treatment for this population. The authors examine the severity of substance use disorders among this population and barriers to treatment. To account for unique factors affecting Mexican American families, the authors propose a new approach for the conceptualization of roles in the alcoholic family. The authors present a case vignette to demonstrate how therapists might use the authors’ new conceptualization of family roles to more competently treat Mexican American families seeking substance use disorder treatment.