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4. USING INTERPRETATIVE PHENOMENOLOGICAL ANALYSIS ® 59
Construction of the addict identity is based on the redefinition of self (and
triggered by the experience of the ,,rock bottom”); thus, one is no longer the
user of the drug (a particular kind of addict) but simply an addict (a particular
kind of person) (Larkin & Griffiths, 2002). Simultaneously, the user self is
replaced by the addict identity in order to understand and explain the strug¬
gles derived from addiction (Rodriguez & Smith, 2014), which promote the
formation of the identity of recovery (Larkin & Griffiths, 2002). In recovery
the addict identity helps to stay vigilant against the constant temptation of
addiction, as it is often suggested in the AA literature: ,,once an addict, always
an addict” (Shinebourne & Smith, 2011a). Therefore, recovery is a lifelong
process, which requires constant work (Larkin & Griffiths, 2002; Laudet,
2007). The addict identity and the identity of recovery are parallel, and have
an important role in the therapy of recovery: one can keep a distance from
the old user self through this ‘double’ identity (Hill & Leeming, 2014; Larkin
& Griffiths, 2002). According to Hill and Leeming (2014), distancing the
unaware user self prevents the user from his or her self being impacted by
this old user self. Thus, the accepted addict identity was rather a sign of
self-awareness than social deviance.
Due to the particular effects of SCs, such as the predominance of negative
experiences and their strong mental influence, the identity work of SC users
may be very difficult. However, little is known about the identity work of SC
users, and how and whether they could fit into the recovery process experi¬
enced by psychoactive drug addicts. In this study we utilized IPA to assess
how self and identity formation is affected by the use of SC.
4.2. METHODS
Based on the methodology of IPA, a purposive sample was recruited (Smith
et al., 2009). The current study was conducted in two drug rehabilitation
centres, that work with a recovery approach, and involved six male patients
(aged 20-27 years) who were self-identified SC users. Before the analysis, they
had been using SCs for at least 2-6 years, and at the time of the study they
had been abstinent for at least 1 month. It was assumed that SCs were the
dominant components of the substance that they smoked.
For this study semi-structured interviews were conducted and transcribed
verbatim. We analysed data using IPA, which works with ‘double hermeneu¬
tics, where the participants try to interpret their experiences, and the re¬
searcher tries to interpret the participants’ interpretation of their experiences
(Smith et al., 2009). The analysis focuses on how the participants perceive
their identity (Smith & Osborn, 2007). During the analysis initial notes or
comments were added upon close reading of the interview transcript and