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Drug courts have been part of the criminal justice system for over 30 years. A plethora of quantitative quasi-experimental, experimental, and meta-analytic studies have demonstrated their effective...

Drug courts are an alternative to incarceration for individuals who have substance use disorders and nonviolent arrests, and these programs can be an avenue to recovery for those who have opioid us...

Chronos and kairos are often understood as separate from one another in discussions of rhetorical temporality. For online and other highly mediated contexts, however, chronos and kairos can be unde...

Drug courts are an alternative to incarceration for individuals who have substance use disorders. The drug court model is guided by key interventions (e.g., required treatment, frequent status hear...

Providing contextualized, effective writing instruction for engineering students is an important and challenging objective. This article presents a needs analysis conducted in a large engineering c...

This article offers a methodology for conducting large-scale audience analysis called “big data audience analysis” (BDAA). BDAA uses distant reading and thin description to examine a large corpus o...

This article examines how empty state pages (ESPs) constrain user-generated communication through the ethical lens of Bourdieu’s habitus. The authors define ESPs as interactive instructiona...

Since 1989, drug courts have provided an alternative to incarceration for arrestees who have a substance use disorder. Previous research has suggested that participants who graduate from the program are less likely to recidivate than those who are terminated from the program. The majority of research on drug courts is quantitative; therefore, the benefits of qualitative methods are not fully seen in the literature. This qualitative study developed an in-depth understanding of participants’ (n = 42) views on the strengths and limitations of a Midwestern drug court. Two themes emerged from the data. First, participants felt that the drug court promoted camaraderie, which enhanced their motivation for change and supported them in graduating from the program. Second, participants felt that the drug court did not adequately treat their mental illnesses, which for some resulted in relapse and was perceived as a barrier to graduating from the program. Recommendations for drug court practice are discussed.

In this new book, Ruby Warrington utilizes research and personal experiences to propose a paradigm shift in how recovery from alcohol use disorders is conceptualized. She has unique experiences tha...

Motivational Interviewing was first introduced nearly three-and-a-half decades ago and has been used to treat a range of problems, including substance use disorders (SUDs). Treating SUDs is complex...

Drug courts have been a growing part of the criminal justice system since 1989. This qualitative study adds to the existing literature by developing an in-depth understanding of drug court from a woman’s (N = 25) perspective. Phenomenology and grounded theory guided the data collection and analysis, resulting in three themes. First, the women found the drug court team to be compassionate and empathetic, which they reported supported them in being successful in the program. Second, the majority of women reported histories of trauma and felt that the drug court could be improved by offering them more resources to treat their trauma. Third, the majority of women reported being single mothers and they shared examples of how being a single parent was a challenge to being successful in the drug court. Implications for drug court practice are discussed.

Unbroken Brain: A Revolutionary New Way of Understanding Addiction provides the reader with a critical analysis of addiction conveyed through the avenue of personal narrative, theoretical logic, an...

Veterans treatment courts (VTCs) are designed to offer a rehabilitative approach to criminal justice, focusing on treatment for mental health and substance use disorders. This qualitative study develops an in-depth understanding of a Midwestern VTC by asking participants (n = 15) their views on the most helpful aspects of the program and how the program could be more helpful. Three themes emerged from the data. 1) Military veterans felt that they were treated in a compassionate and caring manner, while also being held accountable for their behaviors. 2) Military veterans felt that they were not labeled by their mental health diagnoses, but that their identities as people and military veterans were more fully recognized. 3) Military veterans were dissatisfied with some of the services they received from the local VA. These findings are discussed in the context of problem-solving courts and military veterans’ experiences of services.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) represents a serious threat to initiating and sustaining recovery from substance use disorder (SUD), but early research has demonstrated that addiction counselors may not systematically screen and refer victims and perpetrators of IPV for services, that addiction treatment programs may not provide systematic policies about IPV screening, and that practitioners and agencies may not formally engage IPV agencies in the community. The current study utilizes formative evaluation data from 294 addiction professionals in four states to quantify practitioner IPV screening practices, agency support of IPV screening, and agency engagement with community-based IPV providers. Results suggest that individual practitioners engage in relatively high levels of IPV screening behavior, but neither agencies nor practitioners are engaging IPV providers in sufficient numbers to make robust referrals for IPV services. The authors conclude with policy and practice recommendations for impr...

Drug courts are designed to offer treatment in lieu of incarceration for nonviolent offenders who have substance use disorders. Recent evidence has suggested the African American participants are less likely to graduate drug court than their White counterparts. This qualitative study interviewed 38 participants from a midwestern drug court to compare and contrast Whites' (n = 22) and African Americans' (n = 16) lived experiences in the program in order to learn about the factors that may contribute to racial disparities in outcomes. Findings suggest that both White and African American participants felt that the drug court team was supportive and compassionate and wanted them to succeed in the program. White participants found managing the demands of drug court with other obligations they had to be a noticeable challenge, and they also reported continued alcohol use in the program even though the program required total abstinence. African Americans were most critical of the quality of substance ab...

In the past decade, there has been a proliferation of books related to trauma and addiction, most likely because of scientific advancements on the neurological impact of trauma and increased social...

White, W. L. (2014). Slaying the dragon: The history of addiction treatment and recovery in America (2nd ed.). Bloomington, IL: Chestnut Health Systems/Lighthouse Institute. 558 pp., $24.95 (paper)...

Drug courts have provided an alternative to incarceration for arrestees with substance use disorders since 1989 in the USA, and the first drug court outside of the USA began in 1998 in Canada. As drug courts continue to increase throughout the world, it is important for social work students to learn about the role of drug courts in their communities, as they may interact with these programs directly or indirectly, whether it is being a member of a task force that begins a drug court or providing substance abuse treatment to participants. This Ideas in Action article conceptualizes drug courts and discusses their relevance for social work education. The article also proposes several direct service-learning techniques, such as completing practicums and course projects, which can be used within schools of social work to educate students about drug courts and promote civic engagement, reflection, and reciprocity.

Drug courts have been used in the criminal justice system to treat substance use disorders since 1989. This study evaluates a drug court in Indiana, focusing specifically on the most predictive variables for being terminated from the program and comparing recidivism patterns of drug court and probation participants. Participants were most likely to be terminated from drug court if they did not have a high school diploma or equivalent at admission, were not employed or a student at admission, identified cocaine as a drug of choice, had more positive drug tests, had a violation within the first 30 days of the program, and had a criminal history. Additional findings suggest that drug court is more effective than probation at reducing criminal recidivism rates for offenders with substance use disorders. Implications for drug court practice and future research are discussed.

Mixed methods were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the infant adoption awareness trainings. Quantitative data were collected through a pre-test/post-test design (n = 2797) that measured trainees’ level of knowledge gained from the trainings. Qualitative data were collected through a follow-up survey (n = 304) and telephone interviews (n = 82) with trainees to assess whether the learning that occurred at the trainings has been applied to adoption-related practices. Findings suggest that trainees felt more comfortable discussing adoption as an option and were better prepared to use correct adoption terminology. Implications for practice, policy advocacy, and future research are discussed.

Tiger, R. (2013). Drug courts and coercion in the justice system: Judging addicts. New York: New York University Press. 198 pp., $22.00 (paper). Criminal justice systems continue to seek effective ...

The criminal justice system has traditionally applied punitive approaches to individuals with substance use disorders, which has offered little to no opportunity for rehabilitation. However, over t...

This qualitative study with 14 African American participants of a Texas drug court explored the factors that might contribute to racial disparities in drug court outcomes. The findings suggest that the factors that might contribute to racial disparities in outcomes include African American participants’ (a) beliefs that drug court sanctions were not implemented in a culturally sensitive manner; (b) dissatisfaction with being mandated to attend Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meetings; (c) perceptions that they were not offered enough resources to gain and maintain employment; (d) views that they were not receiving individualized treatment; and (e) beliefs that they can relate better to other African American clients and staff members. Implications for policy advocacy, future research, and social work practice are discussed.

In this new book, Anne M. Fletcher offers a unique perspective on the current culture of addiction treatment in the United States, touching on some historically controversial topics. Fletcher has a...

A qualitative research method was used to examine the views that Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselors hold toward a selected set of professional and ethical standards related to education and training, dual and sexual relationships, and unlawful conduct. Nine Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselors participated in a focus group. Analysis of the statements given by the research participants resulted in identifying two major themes, both of which have implications for the profession. Findings suggest that additional training surrounding the ethical standard of dual relationships and the development of a peer assistance program would support the unique challenges that some chemical dependency treatment professionals face.

Herie, M., & Skinner, W. (2010). Substance Abuse in Canada. Don Mills, Canada: Oxford University Press. 253 pp., $19.95. The international communities continue to seek effective and efficient ways ...

In this new book, Jennifer Murphy discusses the current culture of drug treatment in the United States, with a particular focus on how the criminal justice system and drug treatment programs have c...