| Course | ADC 630 Diagnosis and Treatment of Substance Abuse Disorders |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 7 |
| Paper type | Outcomes research paper |
| Length | About 1,050 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Psychology and Addiction Studies |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for ADC 630 Module 7
Is Treatment Working? Reading Outcomes Research and One Client's Six Months
Student Name
Psychology and Addiction Studies Program, Aspen University
ADC 630: Diagnosis and Treatment of Substance Abuse Disorders
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
Is Treatment Working? Reading Outcomes Research and One Client's Six Months
Half a year after his first appointment, Sam asked his counselor, Brooke, whether treatment was working. He had not had a drink for most of that time, with two brief slips, and had used cocaine once. His partner's sister had told him that "real recovery" meant never using again. The answer, drawn here from outcomes research, is less simple than either yes or no; Sam and Brooke are, as throughout, fictional.
Measuring Outcomes
How treatment's success is judged depends on the measure chosen.
| Measure | What it shows | Limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Continuous abstinence | Whether any use occurred | Ignores large reductions; one slip counts as failure |
| Percent days abstinent | How often the person used | Does not capture amount |
| Heavy drinking days | Frequency of high-risk use | Does not capture lighter use |
| Problems from use | Harm to health, work, relationships, law | Depends on self-report |
| Functioning | Work, relationships, mental health | Influenced by factors beyond treatment |
How Much People Improve
Miller et al. (2001) pooled data from seven large multisite studies of alcohol treatment in the United States involving several thousand clients. In the year after treatment, about one in four clients remained continuously abstinent, and another one in ten drank moderately without problems. On average, however, clients reduced their drinking dramatically, with days abstinent rising substantially and the quantity consumed on drinking days falling, and alcohol-related problems decreased by a large proportion. The authors argued that judging treatment only by continuous abstinence greatly understates its benefits: most clients who did drink again drank far less and had fewer problems than before.
Relapse After Treated and Untreated Remission
Moos and Moos (2006) followed several hundred people with alcohol use disorders who had initially sought help, tracking them for sixteen years. Some achieved remission after receiving treatment or attending mutual-help groups; others achieved remission without such help. Over the long follow-up, those who had remitted with help were less likely to relapse than those who had remitted on their own. Factors associated with lower relapse included longer participation in treatment or mutual-help groups, more social resources and better coping. The study suggested that treatment's value lies partly in helping remission last.
Who Is Followed Up
Outcome studies face a practical problem: people who cannot be reached for follow-up often fare worse than those who can. Studies that report only on clients they found may overstate success. The large studies Miller and colleagues pooled made strong efforts to follow everyone, which is one reason their findings are trusted. Programs reporting their own outcomes should say how many clients they could not reach.
Many Paths to Recovery
Kelly et al. (2017) surveyed a nationally representative sample of US adults and found that about 9 percent reported having once had, and now resolved, a significant problem with alcohol or drugs, representing millions of people. About half reported resolving their problem without formal treatment or mutual-help groups, though those with more severe problems were more likely to have used such help. Recovery, by this evidence, is common and varied, and formal treatment is one road among several.
Lapse, Relapse and Recovery
Outcomes research also clarifies language. A slip is one occasion of use; relapse means sliding back into the old pattern. Sam's slips were lapses, each followed by a return to his goals. The view that recovery means never using again, voiced by his partner's sister, is one definition among several. Many researchers and people in recovery describe recovery as a process of improving health, functioning and quality of life, in which reduced or stopped use plays a central part but a single lapse does not erase progress.
Why Programs Report Abstinence
Programs often report continuous abstinence because it is simple and seems rigorous. But Miller and colleagues' findings show that it hides most of the improvement clients achieve, and it can lead programs to undervalue their work and clients to believe they have failed. Reporting several outcomes gives a fuller, more accurate picture to clients, families and funders alike.
Applying the Findings to Sam
By continuous abstinence, Sam had not succeeded: he had two drinking slips and one cocaine lapse. By the other measures, he had improved dramatically. His drinking days fell from nearly daily to two in six months, his cocaine use from half of weekends to once, his Addiction Severity Index scores in employment, family and legal areas improved and he had kept his job and relationship. Brooke showed Sam his progress on each measure. She explained that the research Miller and colleagues reported found exactly this pattern in most clients who improved, and that Moos and Moos's findings suggested staying involved in treatment and support would help keep his gains.
Sam's Own View
When Brooke showed him the measures, Sam said the numbers matched how he felt: mornings were better, work was steadier and his partner had stopped talking about leaving. He added that the slips had frightened him more than anything, and that seeing them as two days out of a hundred and eighty had made him less ashamed. His reaction illustrates why the choice of outcome measure matters to clients as much as to researchers.
Measuring Outcomes in Everyday Practice
Clinics can track several outcomes without research budgets. Brooke's clinic asks clients each month how many days they used, how many were heavy days and how they rate their health, work and relationships, and repeats the Addiction Severity Index at three and six months. These measures let counselors and clients see change and let the clinic report outcomes that reflect what treatment actually achieves.
What Outcomes Research Means for Programs
Programs that judge themselves only by continuous abstinence will underestimate their effects and may discharge clients who lapse, the people who most need continued care. Outcomes research supports measuring several outcomes, treating lapses as information and offering continuing care, consistent with the chronic illness view discussed in other courses.
Conclusion
Miller, Walters and Bennett showed that most clients reduce drinking and problems substantially even when few remain continuously abstinent. Moos and Moos found that remission achieved with help is more stable, and Kelly and colleagues showed that recovery is common and follows many paths. For Sam, measured fairly, six months of treatment had brought substantial improvement, and continued involvement offered the best chance of keeping it.
References
Kelly, J. F., Bergman, B. G., Hoeppner, B. B., Vilsaint, C., & White, W. L. (2017). Prevalence and pathways of recovery from drug and alcohol problems in the United States population: Implications for practice, research, and policy. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 181, 162-169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2017.09.028
Miller, W. R., Walters, S. T., & Bennett, M. E. (2001). How effective is alcoholism treatment in the United States? Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 62(2), 211-220. https://doi.org/10.15288/jsa.2001.62.211
Moos, R. H., & Moos, B. S. (2006). Rates and predictors of relapse after natural and treated remission from alcohol use disorders. Addiction, 101(2), 212-222. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2006.01310.x
What the ADC 630 Module 7 instructions ask for
The seventh module of ADC 630 typically asks for a paper on treatment outcomes research. Follow the Module 7 page in your Aspen course; the client is a composite. Explain how outcomes are measured and why the choice of measure matters, with an example of how one client looks under different measures. Report major findings on improvement, abstinence and relapse with numbers and the length of follow-up. Consider recovery without treatment. Interpret what outcomes mean for clients and programs, including what a lapse does and does not signify. Apply the findings to a client's progress. Present your sources in APA 7, and avoid treating abstinence as the only meaningful outcome. Distinguish a lapse from a relapse when you judge a client's progress, and say which measures you used.
Inside the ADC 630 Module 7 example
Sam, the composite client, reaches six months with one cocaine lapse and his drinking down from daily to two slips. Miller, Walters and Bennett's Journal of Studies on Alcohol article pools large studies showing about one in four clients continuously abstinent in the following year but large average reductions in drinking. Moos and Moos's Addiction study shows lower relapse after treated remission. Kelly and colleagues' national survey counts millions of American adults who have put a drinking or drug problem behind them, many with no formal help. A five-row table compares outcome measures with what each shows and misses. By most measures, Sam has improved substantially, and the counselor shows him his progress on each.
Reading the ADC 630 Module 7 grading rubric
Outcomes papers earn credit for explaining measures, reporting findings accurately and interpreting them sensibly. This example shows why abstinence alone understates treatment's effects, using numbers. Relapse evidence is reported with its comparison of treated and untreated remission over a long follow-up, which shows treatment's role in making recovery last. Recovery without treatment is acknowledged rather than ignored, which keeps the paper honest about treatment's place among many paths. The table compares outcome measures clearly. The application judges the client's progress by several measures, which is how outcomes research suggests progress should be judged. It also draws a lesson for programs that discharge clients after a lapse.
ADC 630 Module 7 help from the desk
Outcomes papers often treat any use after treatment as failure. Report several outcomes: abstinence, reduced use, reduced problems and functioning, each with its strengths and limits. Use numbers from large studies. Distinguish relapse from lapse. Recognize that plenty of people get better without treatment, and that treatment earns its place partly by making recovery last and by reaching people with the most severe problems. Apply findings to a client fairly. Share outcome measures with clients; seeing their own progress in numbers can strengthen commitment during difficult weeks. Be careful with outcome data from programs' own reports, which often follow only clients who could be reached.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Aspen University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
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ADC 630 Module 7 questions, answered
What does ADC 630 Module 7 usually ask for?
Aspen's ADC 630 covers treatment outcomes research in this module, so a paper on how outcomes are measured and what major studies show is typical. Open your Module 7 prompt.
How effective is alcohol treatment?
Miller, Walters and Bennett found about one in four clients continuously abstinent in the following year, but large average reductions in drinking and alcohol-related problems.
Is relapse less likely after treatment?
Moos and Moos found that people who achieved remission with help relapsed less often over sixteen years than those who achieved it without help.
Where can I find a free ADC 630 Module 7 sample paper?
This page has the full paper: how outcomes are measured, evidence on improvement and relapse, recovery without treatment and a client's six-month progress.
How many Americans have recovered from alcohol or drug problems?
In Kelly and colleagues' national survey, roughly one adult in eleven said they had once had, and since resolved, a serious alcohol or drug problem, often without formal help.