Adult children of alcoholics. A valid diagnostic group?

"Adult children of alcoholics" (COAs) has become a popular diagnostic categorization denoting a group of adults sharing a common environmental background. These individuals are felt to share common familial effects of early development in an "alcoholic" home. The COA concept has gained significant acceptance in the popular press with many substance abuse treatment centers developing programmed treatment approaches for Adult COAs. However, little research evidence is available to validate this diagnosis. To evaluate the validity of the Adult COA concept among patients in treatment for substance abuse, we compared a series of patients for a variety of demographic, personality, psychiatric illness, and substance abuse phenomenology measures. The results of this comparison showed few distinctions in phenomenology between the two groups. The COA group reported more specific problem-drinking behaviors and medical problems related to alcohol as well as a higher total alcoholism severity score. This study finds only limited support for the validity of the diagnosis of Adult COA in a distinct inpatient substance abuse population.