Substance use disorders (SUDs) constitute a significant and widespread public health concern, impacting millions of individuals and families. Recovery homes provide a safe, substance-free living environment that addresses the critical need for housing among people with SUDs. Recovery homes are grounded in the social model of recovery, which centers mutual support from peers and the value of shared lived experience. Residents have dual roles as both recipients and providers of help. There is considerable variability among homes in terms of the number of occupants and physical design. Some homes have a small number of residents who occupy a single-family home, while others house 30 occupants or more in an apartment building. Some homes are located in suburban areas, while others are in densely populated areas. This heterogeneity in the built environment highlights the need to better understand how environmental contexts of recovery homes shape the recovery process. This project aims to explore patterns of support exchange among residents and how these patterns are linked to features of the built and natural environments, such as housing design, shared space configurations, and neighborhood characteristics.
This project is funded by the Office of the Vice President for Research, Scholarship and Creative Endeavors, The University of Texas at Austin, and is led by multiple principal investigators at The University of Texas at Austin. In addition to Dr. Conway, the other principal investigators are Dr. Sae Hwang Han (Department of Human Development and Family Sciences) and Dr. Miriam Solis (School of Architecture).