Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsWhat Is the CRAFT Approach?Uses for the CRAFT MethodHistoryWhen Is CRAFT Used?How to Use CRAFTImpact of CRAFTPotential Pitfalls
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
What Is the CRAFT Approach?
Uses for the CRAFT Method
History
When Is CRAFT Used?
How to Use CRAFT
Impact of CRAFT
Potential Pitfalls
The CRAFT approach to substance abuse intervention teaches family members how to support and communicate with someone who has a substance use problem. This approach focuses on using positive reinforcement to combat substance use problems and encourage steps toward sobriety and recovery.
At a GlanceCRAFT can help family members support a loved one with a substance problem without relying on confrontation or shame. Instead, loved ones focus on rewarding positive behaviors to help guide behavior change with empathy and care. Let’s take a closer look at how the CRAFT approach works and how it can benefits families and individuals with substance use disorders.
At a Glance
CRAFT can help family members support a loved one with a substance problem without relying on confrontation or shame. Instead, loved ones focus on rewarding positive behaviors to help guide behavior change with empathy and care. Let’s take a closer look at how the CRAFT approach works and how it can benefits families and individuals with substance use disorders.
Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT) is intended to help family members of addicts learn how to steer their loved one away from substance abuse. It is a great method for someone that’s refusing treatment or refusing to admit they are no longer in control of how much they consume.
Instead of an old-schoolinterventionwhere the family and friends get together and ask the person to enroll in a rehabilitation program, the CRAFT method encourages close significant others (which the program calls CSOs) to reward their loved one when they choose sobriety or show control.
John C. Umhau, MD, addiction specialistThe CRAFT method is much more scientific [than old intervention techniques]. It’s based on the idea you reinforce good behavior, and you don’t reinforce bad behavior.
John C. Umhau, MD, addiction specialist
The CRAFT method is much more scientific [than old intervention techniques]. It’s based on the idea you reinforce good behavior, and you don’t reinforce bad behavior.
Another critical aspect of this method is that itencourages familiesto step back and allow bad consequences to happen when the person consumes.
While the goal is to get the persondealing with an addictionin your life to admit they have a problem and get help, the CRAFT method also helps the loved ones prioritize their mental health and improve their happiness.
What Is Addiction?
CRAFT was designed as an intervention for people with substance use problems. The goal is to help increase how often people with addiction engage in treatment.
While the goal is to get people into treatment, CRAFT’s target population is the family members of people who misuse drugs and alcohol.
History of the CRAFT Method
Since CRA therapy determined that a person’s community and surroundings can have a lot to do with how often they engage in substance abuse, Meyers and Miller thought it would be helpful to get the person’s community involved in helping them change.
When Is the CRAFT Method Used?
When you realize that the persondealing with addictionin your life is at risk of hurting themselves and others, it’s time to consider the CRAFT method. Dr. Umhau encourages people to remember that the CRAFT method is not an intervention.
“In an intervention, everyone kind of gangs up [on the person who is abusing substances] and tells them to go into treatment,” says Umhau. “Well, what if they never do get treatment and they’re mad at you, and they just lose contact with the family?”
The CRAFT method exercises much more control and allows family members to start exercisingpositive reinforcementwhen they realize there’s a problem.
How to Use the CRAFT Method
By positive reinforcement, the CRAFT method means recognizing the person who is abusing substances when they don’t drink or consume. This could mean that you do or say something nice for them.
More specifically, the CRAFT method encourages these practices:
DSM 5 Criteria for Substance Use Disorders
Impact of the CRAFT Method
In trials, the CRAFT Method has proven to be effective at getting people who are dealing with an addiction to admit that they have a problem and seek therapy.
When concerned family members signed up to take on the CRAFT method under clinical supervision to determine the program’s effectiveness, 62%of the group ended up getting their loved ones into treatment.
For comparison, only around 37% of substance users who had loved ones who participated in Al-Anon and Nar-Anon interventions went on to seek treatment.
A 2020 systematic review published in the journal Addiction found that CRAFT was twice as effective as the control and comparison groups. Individual and group sessions were linked to the highest treatment entry rates at 77% and 86%, respectively.
It’s also worth noting that it may take some time. In the studies above, the family members were monitored for six months before moving onto phase two, when theperson who is abusing substancesactually starts to get help. This is important to keep in mind so that you don’t get discouraged, but know that it can be effective with consistency.
Potential Pitfalls of the CRAFT Method
One of the hardest parts about the CRAFT method is that family members must learn to let their loved one fail. This could mean that the person feels really sick, misses days of work, or misses out on important family moments. They may also feelanger or resentmenttoward the family as a result.
The CRAFT program wants family members to let the person struggling with addiction see the harm they’re causing themselves and others. This can impact families, especially if the family counts on the person to work and follow through with their responsibilities.
Training with CRAFT-certified therapists can be more expensive, and some of them focus entirely on this one method of treatment. When looking for a therapist for your loved one or the impacted family members, search through their website to see what training and methodologies they’ve studied.
It may even be helpful to know if they’re aware of the CRAFT method and other treatment plans like theSinclair Method, which Dr. Umhau practices.
Keep in Mind
There is no single treatment option that is right for everyone. If you have a family member with a substance use problem, research your options and consider talking to a therapist to help determine which method might be right for your family and situation. CRAFT can be a great choice for many people, but you may find that support groups like Al-Anon and Nar-Anon can also be beneficial.
Online Addiction Counseling
5 Sources
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American Psychological Association.Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT).
Nayoski N, Hodgins DC.The efficacy of individual community reinforcement and family training (Craft) for concerned significant others of problem gamblers.JGI. 2016;(33):189. doi:10.4309/jgi.2016.33.11
Archer M, Harwood H, Stevelink S, Rafferty L, Greenberg N.Community reinforcement and family training and rates of treatment entry: a systematic review.Addiction. 2020;115(6):1024-1037. doi:10.1111/add.14901
Find a CRAFT certified therapist near you.Meyers, R. J., Miller, W. R., Hill, D. E., & Tonigan, J. S. (1998). Community reinforcement and family training (CRAFT): engaging unmotivated drug users in treatment.Journal of Substance Abuse,10(3), 291–308. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0899-3289(99)00003-6
Find a CRAFT certified therapist near you.
Meyers, R. J., Miller, W. R., Hill, D. E., & Tonigan, J. S. (1998). Community reinforcement and family training (CRAFT): engaging unmotivated drug users in treatment.Journal of Substance Abuse,10(3), 291–308. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0899-3289(99)00003-6
Meet Our Review Board
Share Feedback
Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit
Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit
What is your feedback?
