‘Pickle or a cucumber?’ administrator and practitioner views of successful adolescent recovery

AbstractIntroduction: Adolescent substance use disorders often involve a recurring cycle of treatment and relapse. The academic and practical definition of addition recovery for adults has been debated; yet, elements determining a successful adolescent recovery aside from abstinence have not been delineated. Thus, we sought to explore how practitioners and administrators define ‘success’ in recovery and how they foster youth progress toward success.Methods: Using a qualitative design, we purposively selected and visited treatment and recovery services sites and interviewed practitioners and administrators (N = 13). Sites included recovery high schools (N = 2), alternative peer groups (N = 4), and one treatment center. Two authors analyzed the data using the constant comparative method.Results: Success emerged from the interviews in three primary themes (1) factors demonstrating success, (2) progress that highlights success, and (3) factors enabling success and two subthemes (1) use of metaphors and (2) us...