Therapists' Conceptualizations of Alcoholism: Measurement and Implications for Treatment Decisions

An Understanding of Alcoholism Scale was developed and tested for assessing the beliefs of treatment providers regarding the nature and causes of alcoholism. Two reliable factors emerged, the first of which blended disease, moral, and characterological models (the disease model beliefs subscale), and the second of which emphasized psychosocial factors (the psychosocial beliefs subscale). High scorers on the disease model beliefs subscale were more likely to be in recovery themselves and showed less flexibility in setting treatment goals for clients in an analogue task.