Return to search

An Investigation of the Program Curriculum Leading to Successful Sobriety in a Substance Abuse Residential Treatment Center in Florida

Recovery from alcoholism and substance abuse has had an ignominious history. There does not appear to be any statistics that stand up to any rigorous fact-checking which show how well treatment centers do at helping their clients to stay sober. Statistics that are used to show success rates are not considered credible and they are shockingly low. Despite these issues, substance abuse research has failed to link the historical knowledge of why people stay sober for long periods of time with what is being taught in treatment centers in hopes of creating a better, more accurate outcome. The qualitative, phenomenological research study was conducted to ascertain whether a treatment center was teaching the curriculum components that prior research studies had found allowed an addict or alcoholic to stay sober for 20 plus years. Twelve volunteer participants (i.e., nine clients and three counselors), at a treatment center located in Southeast Florida, were interviewe d regarding their perceptions of the curricula being taught in the treatment center. Patterns emerged with the clients regarding their perceptions of spirituality and 12-step programs, believing that spirituality and 12-step programs were significantly emphasized in treatment and that they were very important to their recovery when they left treatment. Counselors agreed with this finding, but felt stronger about the importance of family and social support than did the clients. Overall, the clients felt that what was emphasized in treatment was important to their recovery and intended to use their new knowledge in helping them stay sober. Implications for treatment centers and recommendations for future studies are discussed. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2015. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:fau.edu/oai:fau.digital.flvc.org:fau_32083
ContributorsFoster, Anthony G. (author), Villares, Elizabeth (Thesis advisor), Florida Atlantic University (Degree grantor), College of Education, Department of Counselor Education
PublisherFlorida Atlantic University
Source SetsFlorida Atlantic University
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeElectronic Thesis or Dissertation, Text
Format142 p., application/pdf
RightsCopyright © is held by the author, with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder., http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Page generated in 0.0022 seconds