Our study addresses an alternative explanation put forth by Lowman and Le Fauve on the lack of significant racial differences noted in previous studies of treatment outcomes (Lowman and Le Fauve, 2003). They suggest that the similarity of treatment outcomes may be artifacts of the research process. As noted earlier, researchers have pointed out that while clinical trials have clear advantages in terms of rigorous evaluation of treatment effectiveness, they also have limitations. Specifically, the use of exclusionary criteria for defining participation in research trials may inadvertently restrict study samples to more highly motivated individuals, and thus participants in clinical trials may respond to alcoholism treatment in similar ways irregardless of their race/ethnicity (Taylor, 2003). The fact that our observational study identified relationships similar to those in randomized trials suggests that it might not be the sample selection process but rather the treatment and recovery process that accounts for comparable alcohol outcomes across race.
