Mechanisms of implementation: An appraisal of causal pathways presented at the 5th biennial Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) conference

Background Implementation mechanisms are defined as processes or events through which implementation strategies operate to affect one or more implementation outcomes. Understanding the mechanisms through which implementation strategies work is critical to understanding how and why implementation efforts are successful, and to matching, tailoring, and optimizing implementation strategies. This study examined the content of abstracts included in the program for the 2019 Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) conference to characterize the presence of data related to implementation strategy mechanisms and their larger causal pathways. Methods Trained coders reviewed all 205 accepted abstracts and extracted information regarding discrete implementation strategies, determinants of implementation, implementation mechanisms, service outcomes, and implementation outcomes. Theoretical articles were omitted from further analyses due to their inability to offer data related to implementation mechanisms. Results Of the 151 empirical studies included, only 11 (7.28%) reported studying mechanisms. Mechanisms were examined in projects utilizing 14 different implementation strategies. We were able to construct implementation causal pathways for just two implementation strategies, “assess for readiness and identify determinants,” representing information pulled from four different abstracts, and “create a learning collaborative,” with data pulled from just one abstract. Conclusions These findings indicate that, at least based on SIRC conference abstracts, the empirical investigation of implementation mechanisms remains understudied, highlighting the need for focused research on the study of mechanisms. Plain Language Summary Understanding the mechanisms through which implementation strategies work is critical to understanding how and why implementation efforts are successful. The study of implementation mechanisms may be used to optimize implementation strategy decisions. Investigations to date have not established causal pathways linking implementation strategies, mechanisms, barriers, and outcomes. This study examined abstracts included in the program for the 2019 Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) conference. Trained coders reviewed all 205 accepted abstracts and extracted information to characterize the presence of data related to implementation strategy causal pathways. A minority of abstracts reported studying mechanisms. We were able to construct implementation causal pathways for just two implementation strategies, representing information pulled from five different abstracts all together. This highlights the need for focused research on the study of mechanisms.