361
From DBT Skills Training Handouts and Worksheets, Second Edition  by Marsha M. Linehan. Copyright 2015 by Marsha M. Linehan. Permission 
to photocopy this handout is granted to purchasers of this book for personal use only (see copyright page for details).distress tolerance Handout 19   (Distress Tolerance Worksheet 16)
community r einforcement
community reinforcement means replacing addiction reinforcers  
with abstinence reinforcers.
reinforcin G aBST inence iS c riTical
Reinforcers in your environment play a powerful role in encouraging or discouraging addictive 
behaviors.
To stop addictive behavior, you have to figure out how to make a lifestyle without  your 
addictive behaviors more rewarding than a lifestyle with  your addictive behaviors.
You have to find a way to get behaviors incompatible with addictions to pay off and be 
rewarded by those around you.
Willpower is not  sufficient. If it were, we would all be perfect!
replace aDD icTion reinforcer S WiTh aBST inence reinforcer S
Begin a series of action steps that will increase your chances of accumulating positive events 
to replace addictive behavior.
Search for people to spend time with who aren’t addicted.
Increase the number of enjoyable activities you engage in that do not involve your addiction.
If you cannot decide what people or activities you like, sample a lot of different groups of people and a lot of different activities.
aBST inence Samplin G
Commit to    days off your addiction, and observe the benefits that naturally occur.
Temporarily avoid high-risk addiction triggers, and replace these with competing behaviors to get you through the sampling period.