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Brief Motivational Interventions to Change Problematic Substance Use

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Social Work Practice in the Addictions

Part of the book series: Contemporary Social Work Practice ((Contemp. Social Work Practice))

Abstract

Motivation to change substance use is hypothesized to play an important role in shaping the decision to decrease substance use. Brief motivational interventions, such as Motivational Interviewing, have been developed to target motivation to change as a way to enhance the likelihood that an individual will reduce their substance use and/or seek out additional addictions treatment. Several recent meta-analyses and empirical reviews highlight the strong existing evidence that brief motivational interventions are effective. Newer research is seeking to expand these approaches into new settings, such as primary care and the Emergency Department, with the goal of reaching more individuals who might benefit from brief interventions. Social workers employed in a number of settings (e.g., substance abuse treatment, mental health or medical settings) are well positioned to identify individuals who could be appropriate for brief motivational interventions, including those that aim to facilitate referral to specialty substance abuse treatment settings. An enhanced knowledge of these approaches could facilitate the broader utilization of brief motivational interventions within clinical practice.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Michelle Sanborn for her help preparing and editing this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Veterans Affairs Healthcare System, VA Serious Mental Illness Treatment Research and Evaluation Center, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Mark A. Ilgen

  2. Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Mark A. Ilgen

  3. School of Social Work, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1350 University Ave., Madison, WI, 53706, USA

    Joseph E. Glass

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  1. Mark A. Ilgen
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Correspondence to Mark A. Ilgen .

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  1. Saint Louis University, 3550 Lindell Boulevard, St. Louis, 63103, Missouri, USA

    Michael G. Vaughn

  2. University of Michigan, 1080 S. University Avenue, Ann Arbor, 48103, Michigan, USA

    Brian E. Perron

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Ilgen, M.A., Glass, J.E. (2012). Brief Motivational Interventions to Change Problematic Substance Use. In: Vaughn, M., Perron, B. (eds) Social Work Practice in the Addictions. Contemporary Social Work Practice. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5357-4_6

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