Originally Posted by
Sasha1972 Somebody above asked about the research on children with alcoholic parents - here's some of the gold-standard research and reviews of research. This is pretty academic; for something more accessible look for the work of Dr Michael Ungar and the Resilience Research Centre in Canada.
The takeaway: children of alcoholics are at greater than average risk of developing psychological problems and poor coping behaviors. However, they aren't doomed, and there are protective factors that contribute to good outcomes, especially but not only a stable and consistent attachment to another adult in a caring capacity.
Werner, E. E. (1986). Resilient offspring of alcoholics: a longitudinal study from birth to age 18. Journal of studies on alcohol, 47(1), 34-40.
Werner, E. E., & Johnson, J. L. (2004). The role of caring adults in the lives of children of alcoholics. Substance Use & Misuse, 39(5), 699-720.
Park, S., & Schepp, K. G. (2015). A systematic review of research on children of alcoholics: Their inherent resilience and vulnerability. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(5), 1222-1231.
Velleman, R., & Orford, J. (2013). Risk and resilience: Adults who were the children of problem drinkers. Routledge.
Wlodarczyk, O., Schwarze, M., Rumpf, H. J., Metzner, F., & Pawils, S. (2017). Protective mental health factors in children of parents with alcohol and drug use disorders: A systematic review. PloS one, 12(6), e0179140.