Abstinent-contingent housing and treatment retention among crack-cocaine-dependent homeless persons.

This study investigated Behavioral Day Treatment attendance in relation to treatment outcome among homeless persons dependent on crack-cocaine. Participants (N = 141) were 72.3% male and 82.7% African American. Days attended, activities attended, and follow-up rates over a 12-month period were positively affected by the more attractive treatment of providing immediate, rent-free, abstinent-contingent housing during a 2-month Behavioral Day Treatment program. Results replicated previous findings that abstinence is a function of treatment attendance and more treatment is associated with greater abstinence. The loss of predictive power at long-term follow-up, limitations of a retrospective design, need to identify most predictive therapeutic activity types, and potential influence of mental disorders were discussed. Analytical techniques used in this study allows for the planning, predictability, and measurement of drug abuse treatment success as a function of service utilization.