Recovery and Relapse: Social Determinants of Turning Points Among People Who Use Opioids

• In Event: Lightning Talk: Communities, Neighborhoods, and Crime

Abstract

Interviews with 27 people in treatment for opioid use disorder revealed that initiation of opioid use, cessation of use, and relapse are all heavily dependent on opportunities presented by friends and acquaintances in individuals’ lives. This paper explores the utility of a combination of the life course perspective with routine activities theory to explain variation in patterns of opioid use over time.

Author

• Barbara Costello, University of Rhode Island