Despite the fact that much information is available in the literature regarding adolescents with a substance abuse problem, little exists that focuses on the parents' personal experience dealing with this problem. Not many researchers actually interviewed parents--when they did, it was usually for parents' observations of their adolescent or their views of treatment success--and seemingly none did so for the purpose of allowing parents to tell their own story in their own words. Furthermore, most of the existing literature has tended to see such parents in terms of their deficits, even when advocating the importance of their being included in the treatment process. Through the lens of a Family Systems perspective and by allowing parents to speak for themselves, this preliminary study explores what it was like for three parents to have had their sons go through a residential substance abuse treatment program. Six categories emerged from the semi-structured interviews: initial departure, settling in, homecoming, resources, costs and losses, and advice to other parents and professionals. The findings expand the primarily negative view of such parents to include a richer and more complex understanding. / Master of Science

Research has found support for the effectiveness of procedural justice, specifically perceived fairness, in gaining compliance from people with respect to the police and the courts (Sunshine & Tyler, 2003; Tyler, 1984; Tyler, 2001). Further, research has examined the effectiveness in jail-based residential substance abuse treatment (RSAT) programs in reducing recidivism for offenders with substance abuse problems (Bahr, Harris, Strobell, & Taylor, 2012; Eisenberg & Fabelo, 1996; Hiller, Knight, & Simpson, 1999). However, research has yet to test whether procedural justice can impact recidivism for offenders with substance abuse problems and multiple incarcerations. The major focus of this Master’s thesis was to examine whether 78 participants in the 90-day jail-based RSAT program known as Starting Treatment and Recovery Today (START) were less likely to be rearrested after release from jail if they felt they were treated fairly by the jail staff. Bivariate analyses were conducted on survey data and official criminal records. The findings suggest that perceived fairness of the jail staff was not related to post-program recidivism. Moreover, the results indicate that offenders with more extensive criminal histories were more likely to recidivate. Recommendations for future research and the implications of the findings are discussed.

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