The Predictive Validity of the Survey of Readiness for Alcoholics Anonymous Participation * (Report‪)‬

MOST TREATMENT PROGRAMS for substance-use problems in the United States encourage their clients to participate in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) as a form of aftercare (Roman and Blum, 1997). This encouragement appears justified as research has shown that posttreatment participation in AA is associated with reduced drinking and fewer psychosocial problems (Emrick et al., 1993; Humphreys and Moos, 1997; Kaskutas et al., 2005; McCrady et al., 2004; Tonigan et al., 1996b). However, many persons who begin in AA do not participate at sufficient levels to benefit from the program (Fiorentine, 1999; Tonigan et al., 2003). Accordingly, there is a need to identify factors that influence AA participation. Once these factors are identified, they can be targeted to enhance an individual's readiness to participate in AA or to refer the individual to another form of aftercare. Numerous studies have examined potential correlates of AA participation. These studies have shown that alcohol-problem severity is the most reliable predictor of this behavior (Emrick et al., 1993; Tonigan et al., 1996b). Demographic, personality, social, and cognitive variables that have been examined across several studies generally have shown nonsignificant, weak, or inconsistent associations with AA participation. However, it would be premature to draw firm conclusions from this research. The prior studies have differed substantially in their methodologies, which may have contributed to variations in findings. Further, most of the studies have not been guided by theoretical frameworks and have not examined the most logical factors (e.g., beliefs specific to AA) as potential predictors (Emrick et al., 1993). Given the widespread use and apparent effectiveness of AA, more research is needed on factors that may influence participation in it (Miller and McCrady, 1993; Moos and Moos, 2004).