Substance abuse in the United States has reached catastrophic proportions. 23.6 million people needed treatment for an illicit drug or alcohol use problem (1). According to the National Association of Social Workers, 60% of all mental health services are carried out by social workers (3). Therefore, social workers are in a critical and unique…

Each year, substance abuse treatment programs in the United States record approximately 150,000 admissions of youths under the age of 18. Nevertheless, little is known about the effectiveness of the types of community-based services typically available to youths and their families. Recognizing the need for better information on the effectiveness…