Where Does It Begin? Community-Based Therapists’ Intentions for Treating Non-comorbid Youth

This study examined patterns and predictors of 79 public sector therapists’ practice element (PE) intentions for treating hypothetical single problem area youth with either anxiety or disruptive behavior problems. Analyses of intention profiles suggested that PE intentions varied by diagnosis and included both a majority of practices derived from the evidence base (PDEBs) and a large number of practices with minimal evidence support (PMESs) for each problem area. Hierarchical multiple regression results indicated the only significant predictor of higher PDEB intentions for both problem areas was reporting more PMES intentions. Implications for community-based research and implementation efforts are discussed.