This book presents an in-depth qualitative study carried out with inpatients under treatment for substance use disorders (SUDs) in seven therapeutic communities (TCs) located in three countries: Peru, Nicaragua and Czech Republic. By comparing the experiences in these different cultural contexts, the book presents a grounded theory of SUDs treatment in TCs from a cross-cultural perspective, identifying factors that influence the efficacy of SUDs treatment in TCs based on interviews carried out with inpatients.
Based on rigorous qualitative research methods, this book presents not only a comparative analysis of TCs located in different cultural contexts, but also analyzes the cross-cultural nature of the therapeutic programs adopted in these communities, such as the combination of traditional Amazonian medicine based on the therapeutic use of ayahuasca with conventional psychotherapy and occupational therapy, among other approaches. Departing from the interviews carried out with inpatients, the authors present a comparative analysis of how the different TCs address important issues related to SUDs treatment, and complement this analysis with machine-generated summaries of relevant scientific papers. These summaries contain results of similar research projects conducted in other cultural contexts.
Substance Use Disorders Treatment in Therapeutic Communities: A Cross-Cultural Approach presents the results of a unique comparative study with great translational potential which will be of interest to both researchers and practitioners working in TCs. This unique comparative study identifies factors affecting the efficacy of therapeutic programs and proposes a grounded theory which aims to serve as an important source of information for therapists and other professionals working with SUDs treatment and for the replication of applied therapeutic methods in other TCs.
About the Author: Miroslav Horák, Ph.D, is a social and cultural anthropologist, ecologist, and linguist. He specializes in medical anthropology, ethnobotany, and phytotherapy. Currently works as an associate professor at the Department of Languages and Cultural Studies, Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies, Mendel University in Brno. In his research on substance use disorders treatment in cross-cultural perspective, he compared therapeutic programs in Peru, Nicaragua, and the Czech Republic. For this purpose, he implemented several projects in which he focused on spirituality in the treatment, retention of inpatients in therapeutic communities and their motivation. Since 2007, the traditional medicine of the Amazon has been a subject of his professional interests. He is the author and editor of several books, e.g. The House of Song (2013), A Reader in Ethnobotany and Phytotherapy (2014), Etnobotánica y Fitoterapia en América (2015), or Ayahuasca in the Czech Republic [Extended Version] (2019). He is a member of the Czech Anthropological Society and the scientific committee of Universidad-Verdad.
Nahanga Verter, Ph.D, is an economist and linguist. He specializes in international, agricultural, and development economics. He currently works as an assistant professor at the Department of Regional and Business Economics, Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies, Mendel University in Brno. He is also the Managing Editor of an international peer-reviewed scientific journal Agricultura Tropica et Subtropica and an editorial board member of IntechOpen.
