Psychological And Methodological Issues In Substance Abuse Treatment/research

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The Treatment Section continues to investigate predictors that might be useful for patient-treatment matching to improve the delivery of appropriate treatments to individual patients. Individuals recovering from addictions frequently cite spirituality as a helpful influence. However, little is known about whether or how spirituality could be incorporated into formal treatment in a manner that is sensitive to individual differences. To address these questions, we conducted a focus-group study with 25 methadone-maintained outpatients (primarily high-school educated, African-American males) in which we asked them to discuss their beliefs about the role of spirituality in recovery and its appropriateness in formal treatment. Groups also discussed the relationship between spirituality and behavior during active addiction. Thematic analyses suggested that spirituality and religious practices suffered in complex ways during active addiction, but went hand in hand with recovery. Nearly all participants agreed that integration of a voluntary spiritual discussion group into formal treatment would be preferable to currently available alternatives. One limitation was that all participants identified as strongly spiritual. Studies of more diverse samples will help guide the development and evaluation of spiritually based interventions in formal treatment settings.