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Attitudes of Psychologists in Australia towards evidence‐based practice in psychology

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Australian Psychologist

Published online on

Abstract

--- - |2+ Objective In the Australian context, literature searches did not identify any empirical research of Australian psychologists exploring their knowledge of, and attitudes towards, evidence‐based practice in psychology (EBPP). This study aimed to investigate whether psychologists in Australia understood the EBPP model, their attitudes towards EBPP, and the individual differences that affect attitudes towards EBPP. Method A cross‐sectional design study using an online survey was completed by 113 psychologists, aged between 23 and 78 years. The participants completed a set of questionnaires assessing their understanding of the EBPP model and their attitudes towards implementing the model in practice. Results Descriptive analysis showed that 60% of the psychologists were able to define EBPP, with women showing a greater positive attitude towards EBPP. Psychologists with 4 years or less of academic training endorsed stronger positive attitudes than those psychologists’ with more than 5 years academic training. Psychologists with more years of professional experience were found to be associated with more negative attitudes towards EBPP. Conclusions This is the first Australian study exploring psychologist's understanding of and attitudes towards the model. The findings suggest that further research is required to examine the impact of training, years of practice, and individual differences towards attitudes. - Australian Psychologist, EarlyView.