Recovery Capital: A Primer for Addiction Professionals| Written by William L. White, MA and William Cloud, PhD | |
| Thursday, 06 November 2008 The history of addiction treatment in America contains within it a history of key ideas that have transformed service philosophies and practices. In the early history of modern treatment, for example, chemical dependency emerged as a core idea that helped integrate what were then two separate fields: one focused on alcoholism; the other on drug addiction. Other concepts, such as codependency, dual diagnosis, gender-specific, developmental appropriateness, cultural competence, trauma-informed, evidence-based, stages of change, motivational enhancement, recovery management and recovery coaching helped, or are now helping, transform addiction treatment into a more person-centered, holistic, family-centered and recovery-focused system of care. Addiction professionals across America are witnessing the field’s paradigmatic shift from a pathology and intervention focus to a recovery focus (White, 2004; 2005). Attention on the lived solution to alcohol and other drug (AOD) problems is reflected in the growing interest in defining recovery; conducting recovery prevalence surveys; illuminating the varieties of recovery experiences; and mapping the patterns, processes, and stages of long-term recovery (Betty Ford Institute Consensus Panel, 2007; White & Kurtz, 2006). One of the key ideas at the core of this shift is that of recovery capital (RC). This article defines RC and explores how attention to RC can be integrated into the service practices of front-line addiction professionals. . . . . . . ________________________________________________ |
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