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Practical Approaches to Alcoholism Psychotherapy pp 163–180Cite as

The Folk Psychotherapy of Alcoholics Anonymous

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Abstract

The sober member of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) offers his/her journey into sobriety as a message of hope to others. The tradition of one drunk helping another came from the spiritual experience of AA’s cofounder, Bill Wilson. In a letter to Dr. Carl Jung, Bill described a vision of a society of alcoholics working together to achieve and maintain sobriety (The AA Grapevine, 1963).

This chapter is based on a portion of a doctoral dissertation submitted to the Graduate School of the University of California, Irvine (June, 1977), under the direction of Douglas K. Chalmers.

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References

  • The AA grapevine. New York: The Alcoholics Anonymous Grapevine, Inc., January, 1963.

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  • The AA way of life, a reader by Bill. New York: Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, 1967.

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  • Alcoholics Anonymous, the story of how many thousands of men and women have recovered from alcoholism. New and revised edition. New York: Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, 1955.

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  • Bateson, G. The cybernetics of self: A theory of alcoholism. Steps to an ecology of mind. New York: Ballantine Books, 1976.

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  • Living sober. New York: Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, 1975.

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  • Madsen, W. The American alcoholic. Springfield, Ill.: Charles C Thomas, 1974.

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  • A member’s-eye view of Alcoholics Anonymous. New York: Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, 1970.

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  • Questions and answers on sponsorship. New York: Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, 1958.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Health Related Professions, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA

    L. A. Alibrandi (Assistant Professor of Addiction Studies)

Authors
  1. L. A. Alibrandi
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Hospital for Joint Diseases and Medical Center, New York, New York, USA

    Sheldon Zimberg M.D. (Director of Psychiatry, Associate Professor of Psychiatry) (Director of Psychiatry, Associate Professor of Psychiatry)

  2. Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York, USA

    Sheldon Zimberg M.D. (Director of Psychiatry, Associate Professor of Psychiatry) (Director of Psychiatry, Associate Professor of Psychiatry)

  3. Talbot House, Putnam County Alcoholism Services, Mahopac, New York, USA

    John Wallace Ph.D. (Director, Psychological Consultant, Guest Investigator) (Director, Psychological Consultant, Guest Investigator)

  4. Hospital for Joint Diseases and Medical Center, USA

    John Wallace Ph.D. (Director, Psychological Consultant, Guest Investigator) (Director, Psychological Consultant, Guest Investigator)

  5. The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, USA

    John Wallace Ph.D. (Director, Psychological Consultant, Guest Investigator) (Director, Psychological Consultant, Guest Investigator)

  6. Charles K. Post Alcoholism Rehabilitation Unit, Central Islip Psychiatric Center, Central Islip, New York, USA

    Sheila B. Blume M.D. (Unit Chief, Co-Director Caribbean Institute on Alcoholism, Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry) (Unit Chief, Co-Director Caribbean Institute on Alcoholism, Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry)

  7. College of the Virgin Islands, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, USA

    Sheila B. Blume M.D. (Unit Chief, Co-Director Caribbean Institute on Alcoholism, Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry) (Unit Chief, Co-Director Caribbean Institute on Alcoholism, Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry)

  8. School of Medicine, State University of New York of Stony Brook, Stony Brook, New York, USA

    Sheila B. Blume M.D. (Unit Chief, Co-Director Caribbean Institute on Alcoholism, Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry) (Unit Chief, Co-Director Caribbean Institute on Alcoholism, Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry)

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© 1978 Plenum Press, New York

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Alibrandi, L.A. (1978). The Folk Psychotherapy of Alcoholics Anonymous. In: Zimberg, S., Wallace, J., Blume, S.B. (eds) Practical Approaches to Alcoholism Psychotherapy. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-7652-5_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-7652-5_10

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4615-7654-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4615-7652-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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