Appalachian Church Leaders: An IPA Study to Understand Their Experiences with Substance Misuse

The region of Appalachia in the United States is a diverse region that is full of beauty, mountains, art, and culture. Due to a history of abuse from large corporations, the impact of the decline in coal mining and generational poverty, the region is currently on a road toward recovery. Substance misuse rates are disproportionality high, and there are limited resources available to address the issue. Literature suggests that church leaders may be a potential resource. The goal of the study was to provide a better understanding of the substance misuse epidemic through the eyes of church leaders. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis guided this qualitative study. Church leaders (n = 10) were interviewed and four significant themes emerged: narratives used to describe their experiences with substance misuse, the stigma associated with substance misuse, the community impact that substance misuse has on Appalachia, and the lack of understanding and need for training on substance misuse for church leaders and healthcare practitioners. The results of the study are discussed and connected to discussions of the implications for clinical practice, recommendations for further research, and limitations of the study.

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy

Level thesis:degree_level

doctoral

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Human Development

Department dc:contributor.department

Adult Learning and Human Resource Development

Grantor dc:publisher

Virginia Tech

Year dc:date.issued

2020

Author dc:creator

• Thomas, Michael Evan

Chair dc:contributor.committeechair

• Grafsky, Erika L.

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Brossoie, Nancy
• Teaster, Pamela B.
• Few-Demo, April L.

• Appalachia
• Substance misuse
• opioid use
• church leaders
• IPA
• qualitative research

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Dc Identifier Other

vt_gsexam:24275

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/97246