Use of evidence-based practice resources and empirically supported treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder among university counseling center psychologists

In the present study, an attempt was made to determine the degree to which psychologists at college and university counseling centers (UCCs) utilized empirically supported treatments with their posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) clients. In addition, an attempt was made to determine how frequently UCC psychologists utilized a number of evidence-based practice resources with a wide range of clients. The Trauma Practices Questionnaire (Craig & Sprang, 2009, 2010; Sprang & Craig, 2007), the author-generated Treatment Approaches Routinely Utilized with PTSD Clients Questionnaire, the Evidence-Based Practice Questionnaire (modeled after a survey by Mullen & Bacon, 2006), and the author-generated Demographic and Professional Information Questionnaire were administered on an Internet survey website to participants recruited through advertising on a social networking website or contacted via email. One hundred and ten participants, including 83 women and 27 men , were included in the final results. A repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Least Significant Difference post-hoc tests showed significant differences between psychologists' utilization of cognitive therapy (CT), behavioral therapy (BD, and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy (EMDR) with PTSD clients. A chi-square goodness of fit test showed that the majority of psychologists did not regularly utilize exposure therapy with their PTSD clients. In addition, a chi-square goodness of fit test indicated that the majority of psychologists rarely utilized treatment manuals with a wide range of clients. Lastly, chisquare goodness of fit tests showed that a significant proportion of psychologists did not refer to the practice guidelines from the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS) when treating PTSD clients, but that a much higher percentage of psychologists had utilized at least one set of practice guidelines over the course of their career.

Dissertation/Thesis

English

Morgen Joray Juel

Juel, M. J. (2014). Use of evidence-based practice resources and empirically supported treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder among university counseling center psychologists. Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: The Sciences and Engineering, 74(7-B)(E)