This book is written by a New York City clinican who has worked with hundreds of crack cocaine patients individually and in group contexts. Drawing on her firsthand experience, Dr Barbara Wallace presents a practical treatment approach that was developed for crack patients but is generally applicable to chemical dependency problems. The first half of the book explains the social, biological and psychological factors in crack addiction and the various barriers to treatment and reviews clinically relevant theoretical issues. The second half of the book presents specific clinical techniques for assessment and treatment. After describing the treatments that work and those that hold promise, Dr. Wallace details techniques for the assessment phase, including elements of an effective clinical interview and strategies for engaging the ambivalent crack addict in treatment. The author also recommends techniques to help crack patients avoid relapse, examines the process of relapse in crack patients and explains the need for a multifaceted strategy to address the multideterminants of relapse.