Mechanisms, Determinants and Processes of Change in the Modification of Drinking BehaviorAlcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research 31 (s3), 13s–20s.
This article explores the conceptual foundations of the search for mechanisms of change in psychotherapy and behavior change approaches.
A series of key questions is addressed. The first critical question is, Where are the appropriate places to look for mechanisms of change in the modification of drinking behavior: person, provider, intervention, or environment? The second questions what we know about change mechanisms from recent research. The third addresses the appropriate methods and designs to isolate and understand these mechanisms. The final question is, How should we proceed to advance our understanding of the critical mechanisms that drive the process of the modifying drinking and recovery from alcoholism?
We propose a dynamic, life course and an interactive, multidimensional perspective that focuses on personal mechanisms of change and how they interact with interventions, providers, policies, and other life context factors that facilitate or act as barriers to engaging these mechanisms of change.
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