Three Views of Recovery

Currently, there are three major conflicting views on the nature of recovery.  One view states that recovery is the result of a religious conversion experience.  Another holds that recovery is really the process of re-socializing oneself to a community of sober addicts.  A third view maintains that recovery happens when addicts expose and treat the underlying psychological causes of addiction.

The Conversion Experience View

The Re-socialization View

The Psychological View

Arguments between the Views

Each View of recovery has an argument with each of the other Views.  These arguments help us to distinguish the Views from each other, and clarify the values of each View.

Conversion vs. Re-socialization

Re-socialization vs. Psychological

Psychological vs. Conversion

Agreements among the Views

Our division of the recovery culture into three Views is somewhat artificial.  In reality, there are many recovering people whose recovery philosophy represents a mix of two or more of the Views mentioned above…(more)

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