Strategies for Training Counselors in Evidence-Based Treatments

Evidence-based treatments (EBTs) for substance abuse and dependence have demonstrated superiority over treatment as usual when applied with strict fidelity in controlled clinical trials. Effective counselor training is critical if substance abuse programs are to realize these interventions’ full potential to enhance client outcomes in community practice. Although few empirical evaluations of training in EBTs have been conducted to date, the existing data warrant tentative conclusions concerning the appropriate roles and effectiveness of workshops, clinical supervision, distance learning, and blended learning. Among several outstanding research issues are questions of benchmarks for counselors’ performance in training and the relationships between such performance and clients’ substance abuse outcomes.