PROCESSES OF CHANGE IN ALCOHOLICS-ANONYMOUS - A REVIEW OF POSSIBLE MECHANISMS

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is the most influential approach to the treatment of alcoholism in the United States. Despite its hegemony, however, very little is known about the processes of change operative in AA. This article reviews four diverse literatures that may illuminate potential change mechanisms in AA: (1) group therapy process factors; (2) self-help group mechanisms of change; (3) the role of ideology; and (4) commitment generation in social orders. Each is discussed in turn, and the relevance of particular processes to AA is noted. The article concludes with suggestions as to how these potential processes of change might be best investigated.