Selected Projects: Research and Evaluation

Survey of Counselors’ Attitudes Toward Incentive Programs; Kimberly Kirby, Ph.D.
Contingency management (CM) programs that provide incentives to patients for demonstrated drug abstinence are not widely used in community treatment programs despite abundant empirical evidence that use of incentives is associated with better treatment outcomes. The Provider Survey of Incentives (PSI), a 44-item survey, was developed, validated, and administered to 383 treatment providers to assess positive and negative beliefs regarding tangible and social incentives. Positive beliefs were more prevalent among respondents (67%) with 54% favorably inclined to adding a tangible CM program to their treatment programs. The most prevalent objections to incentive programs were cost, failure to address underlying problems of addiction, and failure to address multiple behaviors. Social incentives were viewed more favorably than tangible incentives and both were viewed more positively by providers who were supervisors, had advanced degrees, had more addictions experience, and had previous experience with tangible incentives. This research supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the Pennsylvania Department of Health has implications for improving the dissemination of CM, an empirically-demonstrated treatment strategy. View article

Family Training for Concerned Significant Others of Drug and Alcohol Users; Kimberly Kirby, Ph.D. In this NIDA-funded study, family members and significant others seeking help regarding an adult loved one using drugs or drinking too much were randomly assigned to one of the three family training models. Family training counselors provided guidance and personalized referrals. The results are being evaluated for change in rates of treatment seeking and retention, and family member life improvement and intervention satisfaction. A similar project is planned focused on assisting parents and guardians concerned about their adolescent with a drug or alcohol problem – particularly adolescents who are resistant to treatment, either refusing to show or dropping out before making gains.

Treatment Administrators’ Views of Empirically-Supported Drug AbuseTreatments; Lois Benishek, Ph.D.
Financial concerns and limited resources for staff training are barriers to introduction of empirically supported drug abuse treatments (ESTs), according to this survey of clinical administrators conducted with funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The survey was designed to 1) assess administrators’ knowledge of and attitudes toward ESTs versus treatments with little empirical support (ie, 12-step programs), 2) assess change in attitudes and willingness to implement ESTs after introduction of educational material, 3) investigate the extent to which administrators’ characteristics are associated with changes in their attitudes and willingness to implement ESTs, and (d) understand perceived barriers to and methods for integrating ESTs into existing outpatient treatment programs.. Administrator subjects were surveyed prior to and after reading information about five treatments with varying levels of empirical support: contingency management (CM); relapse prevention, motivational interviewing, 12-step, and verbal confrontation. Preliminary results suggest that 1) information is associated with changes in beliefs about some interventions (CM) but not others (12-step), 2) demographic characteristics can be predictors in changes in administrators’ beliefs, and 3) financial concerns and limited resources for staff training are frequently reported barriers to implementing ESTs.