The Association of Certified Rehabilitation Counselors' Attitudes Toward Counseling Individuals with Substance Use Disorders with Their Frequency and Perceived Confidence of Providing Substance Abuse Screenings and Referrals

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the nature and extent of a nationally representative random sample of Certified Rehabilitation Counselors' (CRCs') attitudes toward counseling individuals with SUDs and their frequency and perceived confidence of providing substance abuse screenings and referrals. The study (a) explores attitudes of CRCs regarding counseling individuals with substance abuse disorders (SUDs); (b) examines whether CRCs' attitudes toward counseling individuals with SUDs are associated with their frequency in providing substance abuse screenings and referrals for individuals with SUDs; (c) determines if CRCs' attitudes toward counseling individuals with SUDs are associated with their perceived confidence in providing substance abuse screenings and referrals for individuals with SUDs.

The independent variables were subscales of the Drug and Drug Problems Perceptions Questionnaire (DDPPQ) used to investigate CRCs' attitudes toward counseling individuals who have problems with drug use and the Alcohol and Alcohol Problems Perceptions Questionnaire-Revised (AAPPQ-R) used to explore attitudes toward counseling individuals who have problems with alcohol use. The dependent variables were frequency questions and perceived confidence statements from the Alcohol and Other Drugs Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor Survey (AOD-VRC) used to measure the frequency and perceived confidence of providing substance abuse screenings and referrals.

The study participants were 764 CRCs who were direct service providers from multiple employment settings. Participants were recruited from an online survey sent to a national random selection of CRCs obtained from Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (CRCC) database.

Results indicated that this sample of CRCs have somewhat positive attitudes toward counseling individuals with SUDs. Results from this sample of CRCs show that there are associations between CRCs' attitudes toward counseling individuals with drug use problems and alcohol use problems with perceived confidence in providing substance abuse screenings and referrals, but not with frequency of providing substance abuse interventions. Applied implications, limitations of the study, and future research suggestions were discussed.