ABSTRACT
This chapter summarizes research which documents the correlation between chemical dependency and incest. It provides a conceptual framework for addressing incest on a continuum consisting of psychological precursors, covert incest and overt incest. It is important to place this type of incest within the context of our socialization because it is not just an isolated problem. It is part of a larger social conditioning process involving sexism and female denigration. The social failure to recognize male sexual abuse may, in part, account for the lower reported rates of male incest victims. Boundaries might best be viewed as the physical and psychic space around us. Families as well as cultures vary in their established rules regarding appropriate boundaries. These boundary problems are the basis of intimacy dysfunction, which has been highly correlated to individuals with chemical dependency. Comparisons made between chemically dependent and non-chemically dependent individuals have shown that the chemically dependent individuals have experienced more "boundary inadequacy" in growing up.
