COBE Town Hall 2018: From Research to Recovery

When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change
- Max Planck
 The origins of flip Theory belong to small group of talented graduate students exploring the question “Why is racial inequality still a problem after decades of research and activism?”. In one of those rare moments of accidental brilliance, someone flipped the question to “How is racial inequality a solution?”. Immediately the way we had been looking at it changed. The resulting discussion of white privilege was powerfully grounded in an entirely new and provocative perspective. I then wondered if I could apply this lesson to my substantive area; Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) and through flipping the traditional research strategy, produce an alternative perspective.
Traditionally and in general, AUD is approached as a problem and a threat to viability. These studies are conducted from an Etic or outsider’s perspective where the investigator determines what is important to study (researcher as expert) and examine samples involving clinical treatment participants (short-term recovery). In contrast, a flipped strategy approaches AUD as a solution that may enhance ones’ ability to survive. To this end, the study explores the lived experience (emic or insider’s perspective) of individuals in long-term recovery to determine what they believe is important to understand (participant as expert).

The findings may surprise you!