Making Treatment Acceptable . . . A Key to Success
Treatment acceptability refers to the degree to which clients accept and agree with a particular treatment model or technique (Kazdin, 1980). Growing empirical and clinical interest in this topic is based on the obvious yet crucial notion that "a treatment that is not used is no treatment at all" (Witt & Elliott, 1985, p. 253). Some treatments might be very effective, but are of no use if clients perceive them as unrealistically demanding (e.g., a daily one-hour exercise routine). The topic of acceptability underscores the notion that the ultimate effectiveness of a therapeutic intervention is influenced by the client?s perception of the intervention. More specifically, acceptability is influenced by the client?s perception of the proposed treatment?s sensibility, practicality, and potential for success. Research has supported that interventions rated by clients as more acceptable are implemented more often than those rated as less acceptable (Reimers et al., 1992).
In addition to its relevance in the therapy context, treatment acceptability is an important consideration in providing "indirect services" such as parent and teacher consultation on school-related problems and organizational consultation. Conoley et al. (1992) found that the rationale used to present an intervention significantly influenced the degree to which it was acceptable to teachers. An intervention presented with a rationale that closely matched the teacher?s perception of the causes and severity of a school problem were significantly more acceptable than the same intervention presented with a rationale that mismatched the teacher?s perception. Empirical findings on acceptability point to the pragmatic benefits of collaborating with (vs. dictating to) clients by accommodating their perceptions when it comes to selecting and developing interventions. Careful consideration of treatment acceptability on the part of practitioners enhances outcomes.
Conoley, C. W., Ivey, D., Conoley, J. C., Scheel, M., & Bishop, R. (1992). Enhancing consultation by matching the consultee's perspectives. Journal of Counseling Development, 69, 546-549.
Kazdin, A. E. (1980). Acceptability of alternative treatments for deviant child behavior. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 13, 259-273.
Reimers, T. M., Wacker, D. P., Cooper, L. J., & DeRaad, A. O. (1992). Acceptability of behavioral treatments for children: Analog and naturalistic evaluations by parents. School Psychology Review, 21, 628-643.
Witt, J. C., & Elliot, S. N. (1985). Acceptability of classroom management strategies. In T. R. Kratochwill (Ed.), Advances in school psychology (Vol. 4, pp. 251-288). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
