Deconstructing the Concept of “Special Populations”

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Abstract
As part of the April 2001 “Common Ground, Common Language, Common Goals: Bringing Substance Abuse Practice and Research Together” conference, a panel of treatment provider experts was assembled to discuss the unique treatment needs of “special populations.” The “Special Populations” panel was initially guided by the assumption that clients with unique needs should be considered as distinct homogeneous groups, outside the mainstream. However, as panel members revealed, the heterogeneity of the substance abuse treatment client population suggests that the concept of “special populations” may be inappropriate and that alternative approaches to conceptualizing diversity within the substance abuse treatment client population are needed. The present paper provides background on the use of term “special populations” in the substance abuse field and summarizes discussions that occurred during the “Special Populations” panel regarding the application of this concept to clients in substance abuse treatment.

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