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Who Reads Outcome Research?

Outcome Research Consumption Patterns Among Family Therapists

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Abstract

To explore patterns of outcome research consumption, we conducted a national survey of 313 family therapists currently practicing in the United States. Participants were asked about their reading practices, as well as about attitudes toward and barriers to reading marriage/couple and family therapy (M/CFT) outcome research. Results suggest that most therapists perceive outcome research as at least somewhat important. However, they spend relatively little time reading it: The average is 1.7 h per month. Therapist-identified barriers to reading outcome research articles include access, applicability, quality of writing, and quality of research. Recommendations for addressing some of these barriers are offered.

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Notes

  1. Choices listed on the survey included (1) intervention/techniques, (2) training/supervision, (3) assessment/instruments, (4) theory/models, (5) outcome research, (6) diversity/cultural issues, (7) social justice, and (8) other. Participants were instructed to mark all categories that apply. The choices were based on Feinauer, Pistorius, Erwin, and Alonzo’s (2006) study of topics in three major M/CFT journals from 1992 to 2004. We added “outcome research” instead of “violence, abuse, and incest” to the categories identified by Feinauer and colleagues; additionally, we split the broad category of “ethnic, minority, and crosscultural issues” into two categories--“diversity/cultural issues” and “social justice.”

  2. A large number of participants (19.4%, n = 42) reported zero as their monthly average.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Partners in Social Research, LLC, 41 Litchfield Road, Unionville, CT, 06085, USA

    Iva Košutić

  2. Department of Human Development and Family Studies, University of Connecticut, 843 Bolton Road, U-1117, Storrs, CT, 06269, USA

    Iva Košutić & Stephen Anderson

  3. University of Connecticut and Urban Alliance, Hartford, CT, USA

    Jessica Sanderson

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  1. Iva Košutić
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  2. Jessica Sanderson
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Correspondence to Iva Košutić.

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Košutić, I., Sanderson, J. & Anderson, S. Who Reads Outcome Research?. Contemp Fam Ther 34, 346–361 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-012-9192-8

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