Landlords of Self-Governed Recovery Homes: An Initial Exploration of Attitudes, Opinions, And Motivation to Serve Others‪.‬

An issue of growing salience in the substance abuse literature is the provision of stable housing for individuals recovering from addictive behavior disorders. A large number of individuals with substance abuse problems have variable housing options upon leaving detoxification or treatment; these options often might include living with nonabstinent friends or relatives, or possibly homelessness. Prior research suggests that abstinence outcomes following treatment are best when individuals are provided with an abstinent housing environment, followed by a nonabstinent housing environment, and worst among those provided with no housing (Milby et al. 2005). Multiple models exist that are encompassed by the term supportive housing, and variable results have been found with regard to housing that is owned by a treatment or case management organization versus those owned by independent community members for particular subgroups. While some research has suggested that housing controlled by an organization might be more stable for some groups (McHugo et al. 2004), it is not necessarily true for all groups, and realistic community resource limitations make working with local landlords a necessity. Ongoing substance use has been found to predict unstable housing outcomes longitudinally (O'Connell, Kasprow & Rosenheck 2008), suggesting an increased need for abstinent housing environments. Conversely, chronic homelessness and poor housing quality are also associated with substance use (Stein, Dixon & Nyamathi 2008), highlighting the reciprocal and cyclical nature of the problem.