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Tobacco intervention practices of licensed psychologists
Author(s) -
Leffingwell Thad R.,
Babitzke Alison C.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
journal of clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.124
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1097-4679
pISSN - 0021-9762
DOI - 10.1002/jclp.20234
Subject(s) - psychology , psychological intervention , guideline , intervention (counseling) , mental health , public health , interpersonal communication , brief intervention , best practice , nursing , medicine , psychiatry , social psychology , pathology , management , economics
Tobacco dependence is a serious public health concern. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has issued a practice guideline of best practices to encourage all health care providers to intervene with tobacco‐dependent individuals they encounter. Psychologists may be ideally suited to implement brief tobacco interventions due to their expertise in behavior change strategies and interpersonal counseling skills. This study sought to investigate current tobacco assessment and intervention practices and perceptions of responsibility for tobacco intervention among a regional sample of licensed, practicing psychologists. Results suggest that a majority of psychologists fall far short of the ideal best practices recommended in the practice guideline, and many are unaware of the availability of the guidelines. Further, psychologists in this study perceived tobacco intervention to be a greater responsibility of physicians and other health care providers than of psychologists and other mental health professionals. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 62: 313–323, 2006.