Forty-six participants in an alcohol rehabilitation program were
assessed to determine whether neuropsychological impairment was associated
with a higher level of denial of alcohol-related problems and whether
depressive symptoms were associated with a lower level of denial. Denial
was measured based on the discrepancy between patients' rating of their
alcohol-related problems on a visual analogue scale and a psychiatrist's
rating. The neuropsychological functioning of the 15 patients in the group
who denied alcohol problems was similar to that of the other patients. A
modest inverse correlation was found between the level of depressive
symptomatology and the level of denial.
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