The experience of language for those who have received treatment for a substance use disorder

Date

2019-08

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Abstract

For the present study, the researcher used interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) to examine how those with a substance use disorder (SUD) who have received specialized treatment experience the language used to describe their condition. The researcher conducted semi-structured interviews with six participants who had been diagnosed with an SUD and received specialized treatment. The study explored two primary research questions: 1) How do those with an SUD make meaning of the language used to describe and discuss their condition and treatment? 2) What specific terms related to SUDs carry significant meanings for persons with SUD and how do they experience these terms and associated meanings? Following the analysis procedures of IPA, the researcher conducted a structural and textual analysis of the interviews. Emergent themes were clustered resulting in six superordinate themes: Contextual Factors Influence How Someone Experiences Language; Positive Language; Negative Language, Meaning, and Self-perception; Ways of Talking; Conversations as a Means for Healing; and Language as a Weapon. The discussion chapter of this dissertation provides clinical implications concerning treatment language as well as suggestions for future research concerning language describing the SUD experience.

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Keywords

Substance use disorder, Treatment, Addiction, Treatment language, Implicit bias

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