THE TRAJECTORY OF CLIENT PROGRESS - A LONGITUDINAL PILOT-STUDY

Successful nonchemical drug treatment is a transformative experience: client change is the goal of treatment. Two domains in which programs intend to facilitate change are emotional well-being and the therapeut ic relationship. Little previous research has addressed the question o f what changes clients in drug treatment actually undergo while in tre atment. This article presents results from a pilot longitudinal study of clients in two short-term drug treatment programs in Houston, TX. R esults showed measurable increases in self-esteem and connection to co unselor and decreases in anxiety and depression over the course of tre atment Sor clients who completed treatment. Program graduates and earl y withdrawals showed distinctly different patterns of progress as meas ured by emotional and relationship scales. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Inc.