ABSTRACT
Although residential treatment in therapeutic communities for chronic substance abusers has been described as cost-effective for clients who graduate or remain in the program for at least 3–6 months (Gerstein & Harwood, 1990; Hubbard, Marsden, Rachal, Harwood, Cavanaugh, & Ginzburg, 1989; Simpson, 1981), many questions remain about how treatment outcomes can be improved. Toward this end, studies have aimed at predicting early dropouts (Craig, 1985; DeLeon, 1989), reducing relapse rates (Donovan & Marlatt, 1988), and matching treatment programs more closely to client circumstances, motivation, readiness, and suitability for treatment (DeLeon & Jainchill, 1986) to increase time in treatment, which is currently regarded as the best predictor of outcome at follow-up (DeLeon, 1989).
