Time In Residential Care And Participation In Alcoholics Anonymous as Predictors Of Sobriety Linda Farris ~ u r t z

In 1377 there were at least ~ , ~ . ~ . ~ halfway 5ii35Gseafar abusers in Xorth Lxierica providing low cost residential treatment. — Studies of these progrms are few in n-mber and often fail to describe , , ,, ,,,gram, tkn the residents’ characteristics, or the r€laf,ionship of their experience to outcome (Rubington, 1977, p . 3 0 4 ) . Residential halfway houses appeal to the less affluezt, m2ue isolated and d’ysfunctional client (Battison, Sobell & Sobell, 1877). This may account for the relatively poor cutcome in evaluatiofi of such progra;%s. F=llcw=-c;p studies u LLLIYU~L~4 v n A by e-7-m I

Rubington indicated that clients of halfway houses experizzced aSout a 20% rate of continued aSstinznce. &xiount of treatment was positively associatad with successfully remaining free of mood altering chzmicals by numerous evaluators (Eaekeland, 1977; Patton, 1379; Polich, A-mn-, =- A. I L I V A . U

Eraiker, 1880). Anrount of treatment varies, however, according to progran: design, client’s mtivation, socio=economic status, and existence of a sn-i , , ,a l network for the client. These factors also —+-ibute to the maintenance of sobriety gfter discharge LULL&A. A

(Eaakrland, 1877). Partici-,ationin Alcoholics honymous (PA)or other supportive , , , ,, ,is one contributor tward success in staying s ~ b e r{Bolich, clrn1qnc.

Armor, & Eraiker, 1980). If abstinence is the goal and clients are of middle s~cio=ecsnomic status, is effective in helping maintain sobriety {Sobell & Sobell, 1878). The Rockdale House in Conyers, Georgia, is a 15-bed facility which serves men and women who abuse chemicals. It was founded in 1874 by local citizens and is supported by state, county, and city taxes and private donations. The program is staffed by a nonprof—‘,- ,,,;,rial director and two assistants. The program concentrates on teaching the principles of Alcoholics honyrnsis in group discussion and AA meetings. The goal of the program is to link clients to an AA support system so they will continue a life free from mood-altering chemicals after discharge. No fees are charged

* School of Social Work, Athens, Georgia 30002. mless clients ore &le to pay, There is no limit to the l~ngthof stay if progress is shokm. Records of 274 discharged residents shmed t h t they rere overuhelmincjly m l e {79,6%), white (93,4%), withat fanily ties (73,3%), divorced (59%), and thn-dt 4Juu WIGLN r.7 ‘ nh -n Ar ;S L A nnnL ~ € (85.8%)- A =forit’$ of tk2 r~~iderits(51%) &~sed w l y alcohol, 35% used both alcohol and other drugs, and 3% used alcohol, druqs and evidenced mjor aental illris. Tlrz exact nat.r;’s of Lheprciblm was u&ncz~ra far 1%- A similar malysis of the residmts located in follow-up wl== were sober did not ir,dicate a y difference in Lhese clulrxtszistics f r m t k total poplatiw F;d. .?n’W-,,n PGL Y

The house director a ~ da board a&er located 158 of the 274 foraer rasidants by calling relatives and residents themelves and inquiring sbout their contimed sobriety and participstion in U, It was not possible find 1C8 of the for~erresidents and eight were deceased. Eightyseven of the 158 ( 55%) reported they h d been free of mod-altzring chemicals for periods raqiq from 1 mo. to 4 yr. Seventpone (45%; were using either alcohl or otkr mod-altering chemicals, The hypotheses + A t participation in AA and days in residence contribute to abstinence were sllpport~d by the reports of these individuals, Of the 87 who were free of mood-altering chemicals, 8 2 participated in AA ad five did not. Of the 69 who were not abstinent, 26 were participating in AA. and 43 were not. The relationship of sobriety and AA participation between the abstinent and non-abstinent groups was significant I X i 2 = 5 7 , p c.001). The total number of days in residence includes the sum of the days of all admissions for those with more than one admission. Of the total, 78% had only one adnais&on, 229 had two or more admissions. No one had more than four admissions, There was wide variability in the number of resident days for the contacted residents- Of the abstinent population, the most resident days was 690, and the least, two days. Analysis of the difference between groups indicates tlaattbse who had been in the program more days were likely to be abstinent. The mean number of days in residence for the abstinent group was 112; for the nonabstinent group it was 78 ( F I , I ~= ~ 5.53, p < .05). The tentative conclusion here is that the indefinite length of stay and longer stays.produce a firmer attachment to AA and thus greater probability of successful sobriety.

BAEKELAND, F , Evaluationof treatment methods inchronic alcoholism. In B. Kissin & H. Begleiter (Eds,) , Treatment and rehahilitation of the chrmic, alcnhalic New York; Plenum, 1977. Pp. 385-428. PATTISON, E.M., SOBELL, M.B., & SOBELL, L.C. Emerging concepts of alcohol dependence. New York: Springer, 1977. PATTON, M.Q. Profile of Hazelden patients discharged in 1978. Center City: Hazelden, 1979. POLICH, J.M., ARMOR, D. H. & BRAIKER, H.B. The course of alcoholism: four years after treatment. Santa Monica: Rand, 1980. RUBINGTON, E. , The role of the half-way house in the rehabilitation of alcoholics

Accepted March 31, 1981,