The New SMART Recovery Handbook (4th edition)
By Tom Horvath, PhD
SMART’s 3rd edition Handbook lasted about 12 years. Because SMART is committed to staying current with scientific advances, it was time for an update.
The first update is the title: SMART Recovery 4-Point Program Handbook. SMART now considers itself to offer three programs (or services): 4-Point Program meetings (for individuals with addictive problems), Family and Friends meetings (for their loved ones), and the Multiple Pathways Partnership (for organizations that want to support SMART and the concept of “multiple pathways for change”).
The Handbook simplifies the language of the 3rd edition, removes some acronyms by renaming some tools (also in service of simplifying the language), adds some tools (particularly ones that reflect third wave CBT), emphasizes “unhelpful” rather than “irrational,” and changes the layout to facilitate using the Handbook as a reference book. The appendix lists 15 tools and provides 3 copies of each (from pages 85-142). A participant could complete them from time to time, to keep a record of their change process.
Perhaps the biggest change is the full support of the harm reduction perspective. Although SMART adopted this perspective in May 2022, our publications were slow to include the change. That delay has now been mostly corrected. SMART has become an organization of many documents and publications, so that the complete inclusion of the harm reduction perspective will take additional time.
Some SMART participants and volunteers may have difficulty accepting this change to harm reduction. However, as before, each participant is free to establish their own goals (which can include abstinence), and to pursue them as they see fit. The Handbook also includes a significant discussion of the benefits of abstinence (pages 17-18 especially), without suggesting that it is required. I suspect we will find what we have already seen, that many participants are intending to abstain from some activities or substances, moderate others, and ignore most of the rest!
This new edition also re-emphasizes SMART’s self-empowering approach and the option of using SMART tools and ideas to address the other behavioral problems a participant may be experiencing. Each participant has potentially many decisions to make about how to engage in the process of change (that’s self-empowerment!), and how much change to seek. For some potential participants needing to make so many decisions could be overwhelming. These individuals may prefer an approach with less freedom and more specific requirements.
This 4th edition can serve a range of readers, including someone looking for a wide-ranging approach to change (probably no approach is “complete”), for an understanding of the terms often used in SMART meetings, for an overview of important recent developments in SMART, or for an overview of SMART. If you have a 3rd edition it is worth keeping. However, in my opinion the 4th edition is a significant improvement. A Kindle version of the SMART Recovery Handbook is also expected shortly. I hope that everyone active in SMART obtains a copy, and that every US treatment facility obtains one as a reference book.
Liked this article? You might also be interested in: Annual SMART Recovery Conference Recap 2025