Date of Award

5-2023

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

College/School

College of Education and Human Services

Department/Program

Counseling

Thesis Sponsor/Dissertation Chair/Project Chair

Dana Levitt

Committee Member

Amanda Baden

Committee Member

Kathryn Herr

Committee Member

Vanessa Alleyne

Abstract

Clients who are legally mandated to addiction treatment for an opioid use disorder have high rates of treatment dropout, relapse, and recidivism. To gain a better understanding of the impact of treatment interventions on those measures, the author conducted a study to learn about the mandated treatment experience for opioid users from the clients’ perspectives using qualitative interviews. The first theme derived from the data was The Mandated Counselor-Client Relationship with subthemes of Cookie Cutter Counselor, Feeling Commodified, and Collusion. The second theme derived from the data was Necessary Conditions with subthemes of Feeling Cared for and Trust. The findings of this study revealed that there are significant problems with current addiction treatment practices and highlighted what the participants found to be the most beneficial aspects of treatment. Implications for counselors and counselor educators are presented along with suggestions for future research.

File Format

PDF

Included in

Counseling Commons

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