Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), worldwide organization dedicated to the treatment of alcoholics; founded 1935 by two alcoholics, one a New York broker, the other an Ohio physician. They developed a 12-step program that has made coping with alcoholism possible for countless people. It includes psychological principles that have long been used in the reorganization of personality. The organization functions through local groups that have no constitutions, officers, or dues. Anyone with a drinking problem may become a member. There are presently over 99,000 local groups in the United States; worldwide membership is approximately 2 million. Other groups patterned on AA include Narcotics Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous, and Gamblers Anonymous.

Voluntary fellowship of people suffering from alcoholism who seek to become and stay sober through mutual self-help by meeting in local, independent groups to share their common experience. Anonymity, confidentiality, and understanding of alcoholism as a disease free members to speak frankly. Many consider AA to be the most successful method of coping with alcoholism; participation raises the chances of success of other treatments. Its 12 steps to recovery include acknowledgment of the problem, faith in a “higher power” as understood by each individual, self-examination, and a desire to change for the better and to help others recover. Begun in 1935 by two alcoholics, AA has grown to some 2 million members worldwide. Similar organizations for abusers of other substances and for habitual gamblers and debtors are based on its principles.

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