The articles are the result of a 13-year collaborative partnership between DePaul University and Oxford House, Inc, a community-based organization (CBO), to routinely assess this recovery model via multiple methods of data collection. The book is divided into three sections. The first section contains two articles that examine the collaborative research process between DePaul University and Oxford House. Specifically, these chapters address how the two partners have cultivated and maintained an effective action research partnership and how the attitudes of community members impact participatory research with Oxford Houses. The second section includes four chapters that focus on the Oxford House recovery model. In particular, chapters explore the how the physical environment of Oxford Houses impact substance abuse recovery and the influence of public policy on the differential expansion of self-run recovery settings for men versus women. The economic costs of Oxford House inpatient treatment and incarceration are considered and Oxford House Neighborhoods in the United States and Australia are compared. The third section presents six articles that explore various aspects of substance abuse recovery, such as how gender and ethnicity impact stress and coping during substance abuse recovery and the impact of structural social supports on adult substance abuse and recovery attempts. An analysis of the medical care need and utilization is presented for individuals in substance abuse recovery homes and sources of abstinent social networks for African-American Oxford House residents are explored. Finally, two chapters focus on women and children living within a substance abuse recovery communal setting. Tables, figures, references, index