A fully updated new edition of the popular text that separates the facts from the myths about drug and substance use and provides practical, evidence-based guidance on dealing with them.

The literature on diagnosis and treatment of drug and substance abuse is filled with successful, empirically based approaches, but also with controversy and hearsay. Health professionals in a range of settings are bound to meet clients with troubles related to drugs – and this text helps them separate the myths from the facts. It provides trainees and professionals with a handy, concise guide for helping problem drug users build enjoyable, multifaceted lives using approaches based on decades of research. Readers will improve their intuitions and clinical skills by adding an overarching understanding of drug use and the development of problems that translates into appropriate techniques for encouraging clients to change behavior themselves. This highly readable text explains not only what to do, but when and how to do it. Seasoned experts and those new to the field will welcome the chance to review the latest developments in guiding self-change for this intriguing, prevalent set of problems.

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From the reviews

"The book is concise and easy to read. It provides evidence that guides assessment and treatment for people with substance use problems. This book is based on a review ofthe evidence for the effectiveness of treatments, and on the clinical and research experience of the author. this very useful book teaches the reader about the general and basic principles of various treatment methods for substance use problems. For example, there is a very good description of motivational interview, harm reduction, and relapse prevention concepts."
Tin-po Chiang, MBBS, MRCPsych, FHKCPsych, FHKAM (Psychiatry), Castle Peak Hospital, Hong Kong SAR, China, in East Asian Archives of Psychiatry, vol. 26, 2016

Praise for the book

“This book provides a balanced, research-based approach to the description of drug use and methods of assessment and treatment of individuals who experience problems related to their drug use. A harm reduction approach guides the discussion, and the research that informed the book is current and wide-ranging. The book is written very clearly and is accessible to both clinicians and clinical researchers, in particular given its frequent side boxes of real clinical application of concepts or procedures discussed in the text. I highly recommend this book for an accurate, very readable, and useful overview of drug use problems and their treatment.”
Stephen A. Maisto, PhD, ABPP, Professor of Psychology, Syracuse University, NY

“This comprehensive second edition manages to integrate state-of-the-art research and theory and clearly shows how this applies to practice. Interspersed with great clinical insights, this book will not only appeal to practitioners but also to researchers striving to close the distance that sometimes exists between theory and practice.”
Derek Heim, PhD, Professor of Psychology, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk, UK; Editor-in-Chief, Addiction Research and Theory

Substance Use Problems

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