Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Search research articles

Related Experiment Videos

Atheists, agnostics and Alcoholics Anonymous.

J Scott Tonigan¹, W R Miller, Carol Schermer

¹Center on Alcoholism, Substance Abuse and Addictions, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque 87106, USA. jtonigan@unm.edu

Journal of Studies on Alcohol

|October 17, 2002

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Culturally centering alcohol use assessments: insight from indigenous adults with lived and living experience.

Frontiers in public health·2026

Same author

A Real-World Target Trial Emulation of Eteplirsen, Casimersen, and Golodirsen to Evaluate Survival Among Patients with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

Advances in therapy·2026

Same author

Examining early adherence measures as predictors of subsequent adherence in an intensive longitudinal study of individuals in mutual help groups: One day at a time.

Alcohol, clinical & experimental research·2024

Same author

Relative and Interactive Associations of Psychosocial Intervention and Alcoholics Anonymous Attendance With Alcohol Use Disorder Outcomes.

Journal of studies on alcohol and drugs·2023

Same author

A randomized pilot trial of brief family-involved treatment for alcohol use disorder: Treatment engagement and outcomes.

Psychology of addictive behaviors : journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors·2023

Same author

Percentage of Heavy Drinking Days Following Psilocybin-Assisted Psychotherapy vs Placebo in the Treatment of Adult Patients With Alcohol Use Disorder: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

JAMA psychiatry·2022

While God belief doesn't impact Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) benefits, atheists and agnostics attend AA less. Clinicians should recognize this reticence when encouraging AA participation.

Area of Science:

Addiction research
Psychology of religion

Background:

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) emphasizes spiritual practices.
Previous research on the role of spiritual beliefs in AA affiliation shows mixed results.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the role of client God belief in predicting AA attendance and benefit.
To examine if atheists and agnostics differ in AA attendance and outcomes compared to spiritual or religious clients.

Main Methods:

Longitudinal analysis of 1,526 participants from Project MATCH outpatient and aftercare samples.
Assessed client God beliefs, AA attendance, and alcohol use using Form 90, Religious Behaviors and Background, and the Alcoholics Anonymous Inventory at 3-month intervals.

Main Results:

Related Experiment Videos

12-Step treatment promoted shifts in God beliefs; atheist and agnostic clients attended AA less frequently.

AA attendance was linked to increased abstinence and reduced drinking intensity, irrespective of God belief.

Clients unsure of their God belief reported higher drinking frequency.

Conclusions:

God belief is not crucial for deriving AA-related benefits.
Atheist and agnostic individuals are less likely to initiate and maintain AA attendance.
Clinical recognition of this reticence is important when encouraging AA participation.