Chapter Three: Method 3.1 Identification of Research Question The overall research question for this study is stated as follows does the participant construal of pressure influence their entry, retention, and “How completion of drug treatment programmes?” The following objectives to meet the overall question are: How did the treatment contexts with regard to construal of coercion at participants’ Time One (T1) influence outcomes at Time Two (T2)? How did treatment groups differ at T1 with regard to demography, drug misuse history, treatment history, and relevant psychological variables that influenced participant status at T2? How treatment outcomes at T2 were related to drug misuse history, cost of drug use, and confidence in treatment at T1? Were the psychological variables influenced between T1 and T2? 3.1.1 Introduction Coercion, previously introduced in chapter two has been interpreted to explore potential relationships between participant treatment entry, retention and outcome. The study does not have a direct quantitative measure of treatment pressure but seeks to establish a synergy between the qualitative construal of coercion and the psychological measures. The aim of the study is to investigate any potential relationships between coercion and other variables that may influence participant decision making. The focus of the main research question is coercion construal and the variables related to its construal. Relevant psychological and the related variables were discussed from the literature in chapter two, such as stage of change, attributions, mood, treatment readiness and confidence and will be explored further here (Young and Belenko, 2002; Gossop et al, 2006; Perron and Bright, 2008; McSweeney et al, 2008; Oliver et al, 2010 Donmall et al, 2012). In conducting this study, relevant psychological constructs were brought forward from the literature and operationalised in the form of a set of quantitative psychological measures with the intention of providing a context for the interpretation of coercion.
Chapter Three: Method 3.1 Identification of Research Question The overall research question for this study is stated as follows “How does the participant construal of pressure influence their entry, retention, and completion of drug treatment programmes?” The following objectives to meet the overall question are: How did the treatment contexts with regard to participants’ construal of coercion at Time One (T1) influence outcomes at Time Two (T2)? How did treatment groups differ at T1 with regard to demography, drug misuse history, treatment history, and relevant psychological variables that influenced participant status at T2? How treatment outcomes at T2 were related to drug misuse history, cost of drug use, and confidence in treatment at T1? Were the psychological variables influenced between T1 and T2? 3.1.1 Introduction Coercion, previously introduced in chapter two has been interpreted to explore potential relationships between participant treatment entry, retention and outcome. The study does not have a direct quantitative measure of treatment pressure but seeks to establish a synergy between the qualitative construal of coercion and the psychological measures. The aim of the study is to investigate any potential relationships between coercion and other variables that may influence participant decision making. The focus of the main research question is coercion construal and the variables related to its construal. Relevant psychological and the related variables were discussed from the literature in chapter two, such as stage of change, attributions, mood, treatment readiness and confidence and will be explored further here (Young and Belenko, 2002; Gossop et al, 2006; Perron and Bright, 2008; McSweeney et al, 2008; Oliver et al, 2010 Donmall et al, 2012). In conducting this study, relevant psychological constructs were brought forward from the literature and operationalised in the form of a set of quantitative psychological measures with the intention of providing a context for the interpretation of coercion.