The relationship of selected demographic, socioeconomic status
(SES), and psychological characteristics was examined in interviews with
176 Northern Plains American Indian mothers whose children were referred
to diagnostic clinics for evaluation of developmental disabilities, including
fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). Thirty-nine mothers had children
diagnosed with an FASD (Group 1), 107 had children who were not diagnosed
with an FASD or other major disability (Group 2), and 30 additional mothers
with normally performing children, matched by age, sex, and reservation with
those diagnosed with an FASD, were recruited as a comparison group (Group
3). Analysis revealed statistically signifi cant differences (p < .001) in alcohol
consumption among all three groups, and a statistically signifi cant difference
in the mean Total Distress score among the three groups of mothers, F(2,
176) = 9.60, p < .001, with Group 3 having a lower mean score than Groups
1 and 2. Sequential regression analysis revealed that the quantity of alcohol
consumed prior to knowledge of pregnancy, when combined with SES and
Total Distress, was more highly associated with having a child diagnosed
with an FASD (R2 = .206) than was quantity of alcohol consumed alone.