Transcending alcoholic denial.

Denial is a characteristic of alcoholism and other drug addictions that must be appreciated in order to understand the recovery process. The purpose of this field study was to describe the internal processes that alcoholics experience as they transcend denial. Grounded theory methods guided data collection and analysis. The author observed and interviewed 42 patients in an inpatient alcoholism treatment facility, then followed 30 participants over a 3-year period. Using the constant comparison method of data analysis, a basic social process theory of transcending alcoholic denial emerged. The theory has five progressive stages: reacting to the critical event; role disaffiliation; ambiguous anticipation; peer affiliation; and acceptance. The theory also elucidates consequences of unresolved stages.