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New paper alert: Next up in our line of linguistics and stigma research, we completed a formative study into the self-labeling by individuals in SUD recovery (which labels are used, the settings, and the variation in recovery outcomes among those groups) - a thread! 
The pilot study examined usage of two labels (“addict” and “person with a SUD”). Participants (n = 54) used both labels at high rates (“addict”: 66.67%; “person w/ a SUD”: 38.89%), though mutually exclusive use was lower (“addict” only: 35.19%, “person w/ a SUD” only: 7.5%) - 2/n
Common use settings included mutual-aid recovery meetings, w/ friends & family, & on social media. ANOVA tests found no statistically significant differences b/w label groups for recovery capital, self-esteem, internalized stigma & shame, flourishing, or length in recovery - 3/n
Descriptively, participants using only “person with a SUD” had more positive outcomes, though these individuals also had higher levels of internalized shame. Effect sizes were also high enough to suggest with a large enough sample, sig. effects may be found. 4/n
Results suggest that language may have only marginal impact on individuals in recovery in terms of future or current outcomes, though professionals and the general public should continue to avoid using stigmatizing labels. 5/n
Additionally, many individuals in recovery have the ability to discern context and setting, switching between positive and negative labels as appropriate - a process we have labeled recovery dialects, which is evidence of a level of sophistication among this population. 6/n
Our language work will continue, with future studies on this topic seeking to be of adequate power to detect effects and further characterize this dynamic discernment and label switching, or recovery dialects. 7/n
Thanks to amazing team and co-authors, @Recovery_ABrown @arielle311 and Dr. Brenda Curtis! Coming soon to @APA_Journals Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology. 8/n
Citation: Ashford, R. D., Brown, A. M., Ashford, A., & Curtis, B. (In Press). Recovery Dialects: A Pilot Study of Stigmatizing and Non-Stigmatizing Label Use by Individuals in Recovery from Substance Use Disorders. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology. (finale!)
@ZachWritesStuff / @LeoBeletsky - for changing the narrative!
