Assessing therapist reservations about exposure therapy for anxiety disorders: The Therapist Beliefs about Exposure Scale
RIS ID
106362
Abstract
Exposure therapy is underutilized in the treatment of pathological anxiety and is often delivered in a suboptimal manner. Negative beliefs about exposure appear common among therapists and may pose a barrier to its dissemination. To permit reliable and valid assessment of such beliefs, we constructed the 21-item Therapist Beliefs about Exposure Scale (TBES) and examined its reliability and validity in three samples of practicing clinicians. The TBES demonstrated a clear single-factor structure, excellent internal consistency (αs. = .90-.96), and exceptionally high six-month test-retest reliability (r= .89). Negative beliefs about exposure therapy were associated with therapist demographic characteristics, negative reactions to a series of exposure therapy case vignettes, and the cautious delivery of exposure therapy in the treatment of a hypothetical client with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Lastly, TBES scores decreased markedly following a didactic workshop on exposure therapy. The present findings support the reliability and validity of the TBES.
Publication Details
Deacon, B. J., Farrell, N. R., Kemp, J. J., Dixon, L. J., Sy, J. T., Zhang, A. R. & McGrath, P. B. (2013). Assessing therapist reservations about exposure therapy for anxiety disorders: The Therapist Beliefs about Exposure Scale. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 27 (8), 772-780.