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”Spiritus contra spiritum” - En religionspsykologisk studie avomvändelseprocesser hos medlemmar i Anonyma Alkoholister(”Spiritus contra spiritum” - A religious psychological study on transformation processesamong members of Alcoholics Anonymous)The purpose of this study was to understand and illustrate the conversion processes forpeople who have attained sobriety through membership in Alcoholics Anonymous. My aimwas to ascertain how the interviewees constructed their life story regarding their path tosobriety. I sought to learn how "God" as a function, a central tenet of AlcoholicsAnonymous, served the interviewees in achieving and maintaining sobriety. Dan P.McAdams’s (1993) The stories we live by: personal myths and making of the self, providedthe theoretical tools. Steinar Kvale´s (1997) The qualitative research interview provided themethod. The conclusion was that membership in Alcoholics Anonymous allowed theinformants a sense of healing, conversion and reconciliation from their earlier alcohol abuse.Through this confident community the informants were provided with the narrative meansto improve their life story and truth by a renewed identity and spiritual awakening.Keywords:

Personalens erfarenheter av missbruk är centralt inom tolvstegsbehandling – en vanlig behandlingsform inom svensk missbruksvård. Syftet med föreliggande studie var att undersöka på vilket sätt personalens erfarenheter av ett eget alkohol- och/eller olika substansmissbruk påverkar deras förståelse för och förmåga att verka i rollen som behandlare. Studien har utformats och analyserats mot bakgrund av de teoretiska begreppen empati respektive rollteori. För att få en djupare förståelse inom det valda området genomfördes sju kvalitativa intervjuer med behandlare som har bakgrund av eget missbruk. Studien genomfördes på fyra olika behandlingshem med koppling till tolvstegsbehandling. Resultatet visar att erfarenheterna kan bidra med en djupare förståelse för klienten och underlätta alliansskapandet. Studien implicerar att det utmärkande med erfarenheter av eget missbruk är möjligheten att fungera som förebild för klienterna, då dessa behandlare kan visa att ett nyktert/drogfritt liv är möjligt och eftersträvansvärt. Distans och självreflekterande förmåga lyfts fram som viktiga aspekter i förhållande till de egna erfarenheterna. Diskussion förs kring förutsättningar för att erfarenheterna ska bidra till adekvat förståelse och bemötande av klienten. / In Sweden the twelve-step program is commonly used in treatment of persons with addiction. A central aspect of the program is the use of staff with own experiences of substance abuse. The aim of this study is to explore and examine the extent to which staffs’ previous experience of addiction influences their understanding and ability to manage their role as an addiction counselors. The study and data analysis was conducted on the basis of empathy and role theory. A qualitative approach was applied to the seven interviews that were conducted amongst addiction counselors; all of whom had own experiences of addiction. Interviews were carried out in four different treatment centers applying the twelve-step program. The results indicate that personal experiences can be of importance for a deepened understanding of clients situation and also in the establishing of alliance. Attributable to the counselors’ own experiences of addiction is an unique ability to function as models for the clients. Their story is proof that life without drugs/alcohol is both achievable and beneficial. In regard to these findings, experiences need to correspond with an ability of distancing and self-reflectiveness. Important aspects relating to counselors own experiences of substance abuse are discussed in regard to their ability to understand and intervene with the client.

For over 75 years the process of (un)forgiveness has been anecdotally understood to play an important role in the Twelve-Step Model of addiction and recovery. However, only very recently have scholars begun to examine the empirical evidence in support thereof. Multiple dimensions and aspects of forgivingness (trait), state forgiveness, and problematic substance use are relevant to one another in the context of addiction and recovery. Models of the association between forgiveness and problematic substance use have been developed, including the conceptual identification of the process of (un)forgiveness as inherent to and/or consistent with evidence-based treatment modalities. Relevant empirical evidence is reviewed and of the 21 empirical studies in the published scientific literature, 90 % show a salutary association. Indeed, forgivingness of self may be the most important dimension of forgiveness for recovery. A future research agenda is proposed and implications for individual, public, and societal health are discussed.

There is increasing evidence that aspects of human eating may be 'addictive'. Much of the existing literature examining this focuses on specific foods or individual pathologies of 'addiction'. Qualitative research methods, in particular content analysis, offers a rich opportunity to better understand 'addictive' aspects of human eating through the stories shared by those who have experienced compulsive eating. This research examines two different organizations that use storytelling as a tool for changing eating behaviours. Overeaters Anonymous (OA) and Weight Watchers (WW) began in the United States in the early 1960s as mutual support groups designed to help members with problems of compulsive overeating. This research examines: 1) the ways that OA and WW addressed 'addictions' with food when they were first formed; 2) how each organization has changed over time; and 3) the ways that identities are constructed through the telling of stories within each programme. For this thesis, I used historical analysis, in-person and online participant observation, and content analysis as research methods. I found that while OA and WW once similarly addressed 'addictions' with food, this is no longer the case. WW no longer understands their members as fundamentally different from others in the ways that they eat, and OA now welcomes members with a variety of different compulsive eating behaviours. However, similar themes regarding identity emerged from the OA and WW stories used in this research. OA and WW members describe that they acquire different belief systems regarding health and how to eat in each programme. In comparing these two organizations, how each has changed over time and the shifts in identity described by OA and WW members, this research identifies aspects of everyday living that members of both groups similarly highlight as important factors influencing compulsive eating. Based on these findings, I then assess to what extent a new framework for understanding 'addiction' may be needed, and conclude by suggesting further areas of research that would be suitable for constructing this.

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The purpose of this essay is to investigate what practical function religion or spirituality has for six members of Alcoholics Anonymous. Furthermore, the aim is to investigate and analyze the members' religious turning point and compare their views on religion and spirituality before and after sobriety. The methods used are qualitative semi-structured interviews where the collected material in the form of audio recordings will be transcribed to then carry out a narrative analysis on the transcribed material. The results show that religion or spirituality fulfills a practical function for all respondents and that their view of religion and spirituality has changed to a more positive approach. The respondents' turning point came in connection with the early steps in the twelve-step program where everyone created an individual religious or spiritual view.

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Both substance abuse and suicidal behavior are global public health concerns. Much of the progress made in addressing problematic substance use and suicidal ideation and behavior stems from the notion of alleviating pathological factors. Positive psychological characteristics, such as forgiveness, have received much less attention from empirical investigators. We review the extant literature pertaining to the value and role of forgiveness as an effective resource for clinicians when treating individuals struggling with substance abuse and suicidal behavior. We discuss relevant theory and research (i.e., definitions, processes, and linkages) regarding similarities in models of forgiveness, substance abuse, and suicidal behavior and conclude with an overview of various means of using the process of forgiveness as a positive psychotherapy; whether through stand-alone forgiveness interventions, infusion with Twelve-Step Facilitation Therapy, or application through acceptance-based treatment modalities. In sum, forgiveness may be an important factor in the facilitation of change in the difficult often existangst-derived struggles (i.e., emotionally and philosophically driven psychological distress) inherent to substance abuse and suicidal behavior.

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