Development and Validation of the Telepsychology Facilitators Scale: A National Study

Abstract

This study developed and validated the Telepsychology Facilitators Scale (TFS), a novel measure that uses the theory of reasoned action and technology acceptance model as frameworks to assess factors that influence psychologists’ openness to using telepsychology. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, an online sample of N=2,619 psychologists completed initial items considered for the TFS, along with a measure assessing their actual use of telepsychology. The sample was split in half, with a preliminary exploratory factor analysis (EFA) ultimately revealing an 11-item scale with three distinct subscales (Positive Attitudes, Facilitating Infrastructure, and Organizational Support). Higher scores on each subscale positively correlated with psychologists’ percent of patient treatment conducted with telepsychology. This subscale structure was subsequently supported via confirmatory factory analysis (CFA) with the other half of the sample, revealing adequate model fit and similar convergent validity. The TFS may help the field assess the potential barriers and drivers of telepsychology use among psychologists and be used to inform future organizational and policy efforts to increase telepsychology implementation and use across health service settings.