A Therapeutic Community is a Secure Base, Allowing Growth Which Continues Beyond Treatment: A Discussion on Therapeutic Communities as an Attachment Model Using Lived-Experience Voices Captured in the Medium of Podcasts

This collaborative autoethnography examines the experiences of former therapeutic community (TC) residents to ascertain whether residential TCs are attachment paradigms. Uniquely, podcasts, in which former TC residents discuss their lived experiences, were examined for attachment theory themes. Reflexive thematic analysis identified three themes experienced in TCs: relationships; culture of enquiry; and secure base. This article argues that the culture of enquiry performs an attachment function. The exploration of these themes demonstrates that TCs can be attachment models, mitigating previous disruptive attachments, resulting in growth which continues beyond treatment. We recommend that TCs foster attachment-based practices by ensuring that attachment theory is part of staff and resident learning. A limitation is the consideration of adult inpatient TCs from a female-only perspective. To capture more varied lived-experience perspectives, we recommend further qualitative ethnographic research on attachment and containment extended to other TC types and incorporating male perspectives. In this collaborative autoethnography, to address the limitations of unaffiliated lived-experience research, it was necessary to adopt a creative methodology, including the analysis of existing podcasts in which authors were guests, avoiding the need for ethical approval. This unique methodology could be adopted by other lived-experience researchers.