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Type of Setting, Employee Substance Abuse, and Hypothetical Supervisors' Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Referrals

NCJ Number
157388
Journal
Journal of Drug Issues Volume: 21 Issue: 4 Dated: (1991) Pages: 817-824
Author(s)
L H Gerstein; D Lynn; P Brown
Date Published
1991
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This study explored hypothetical supervisors' employee assistance program (EAP) referral behaviors toward three types of subordinates: cocaine abusers, alcohol abusers, and nonsubstance abusers who exhibited similar work behaviors.
Abstract
The study also examined supervisors' behaviors across the three work environments of a manufacturing company, a school system, and a hospital. The results showed that the supervisors referred cocaine abusers more often to an EAP than alcohol or nonsubstance abusers. The findings indicate that the subjects fond cocaine abuse to be a more severe problem than the other two impairments. Alcohol abuse, in turn, was considered to be a more severe problem than a job impairment by itself. However, contrary to expectations, supervisors associated with a school setting were no more likely to refer employees than those affiliated with a hospital or manufacturing company. 1 table and 13 references