The Community Reinforcement Approach.

Abstract

This chapter reviews two behavioral substance abuse treatments: The Community Reinforcement Approach (CRA) and Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT). Both of these programs were built on the concept that an individual's recovery is greatly affected by his or her unique environment. This environment, or reinforcing "community," is composed of family, friends, work/school, social activities, and perhaps spiritual affiliations. CRA, the first of these two programs to be developed, was created specifically for the problem drinker (Hunt & Azrin, 1973). The goal of CRA is to rearrange multiple aspects of an individual's "community" so that a clean and sober lifestyle is more rewarding than one that is dominated by alcohol and drugs. Subsequently, CRAFT was developed for the many individuals with substance abuse problems who are vehemently opposed to treatment (Institute of Medicine, 1990). CRAFT works through concerned family members and friends of these treatment refusers in an effort to get them to seek therapy (Sisson & Azrin, 1986). Descriptions and the empirical support for CRA and CRAFT follow.