The Therapeutic Effect of Narrative-Oriented Occupational Therapy Group Among Substance Users in Abstinence Treatment: Preliminary Findings from a Quasi-Experimental Study Using a Retrospective Design

The present study retrospectively evaluated a narrative-oriented occupational therapy (OT) program designed for individuals with substance use disorders (SUDs). Individuals with SUDs (mean age = 31.50 years [SD = 6.46]; N = 26; 96.2% males) completed a narrative-oriented OT program (six 1.5-h sessions) across six weeks. Small- to medium-effect improvements were found in stages of change, drug resistance, self-efficacy, self-esteem, social quality of life (QoL), and environment QoL. Narrative-oriented OT helped individuals with SUDs prepare themselves for not using substances (e.g., moving them from pre-contemplation stage to contemplation/action stage). Narrative-oriented OT seems to be feasible and acceptable for future large-scale studies to further examine its effects.