The Evidence-based Practice Attitude Scale-36 (EBPAS-36): a brief and pragmatic measure of attitudes to evidence-based practice validated in US and Norwegian samples

Abstract

BackgroundShort and valid instruments for measuring factors facilitating or hindering implementation efforts are called for. This article describes (1) the adaptation of a shorter version of the Evidence-based Practice Attitude Scale (EBPAS-50 items), and (2) the psychometric properties of the shortened version in both US and Norwegian data.MethodsThe US participants were mental health service providers (N = 418) recruited from clinics providing mental health services in San Diego County, California. The Norwegian participants were psychologists, psychiatric nurses, and psychology students (N = 838) recruited from the Norwegian Psychological Association and the Norwegian Nurses Organization. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) approach was used.ResultsThe reduction resulted in 36 items named EBPAS-36, and the original 12 factor model was maintained. The EBPAS-36 had acceptable model fit, as indicated by a low degree of misspecification errors in both the US (RMSEA = .045 (CI90% .040–.049); SRMR = .05) and the Norwegian data (RMSEA = .052 (CI90% .047–.056, SRMR = .07). Incremental model fit was fair in the US (CFI = .93, TLI = .91) and in the Norwegian samples (CFI = .91, TLI = .89). The internal consistency (Cronbach’s α) in the US and the Norwegian samples were good for the total EBPAS-36 score (.79 and .86, respectively) and were ranged from adequate to excellent for the subscales (US .60–.91 and Norway .61–.92).ConclusionsThe EBPAS-36 has adequate psychometric properties both in US and Norwegian samples, hence indicating cross-cultural validity. It is a brief, pragmatic, and more user-friendly instrument than the EBPAS-50, yet maintains a broad scope by retaining the original 12 measurement domains.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13012-017-0573-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Confirmatory factor analysis of the Evidence-Based Practice Attitudes Scale with school-based behavioral health consultants

“…Through work in community-based mental health settings, the Evidence-Based Practice Attitudes Scale (EBPAS) was developed to include four subscales that capture distinct yet interrelated constructs: (1) willingness to adopt EBPs given their intuitive appeal ; (2) willingness to adopt new practices if required ; (3) general openness toward new or innovative practices; and (4) perceived divergence of usual practice with academically developed or research-based practices [ 4 ]. Since the original study [ 4 ], the EBPAS has been used extensively in research across different implementation contexts and providers [ 10 – 12 ]. One of the most comprehensive validation studies to date involved administering the EBPAS to over 1000 mental health providers from 100 different community-based organizations across 26 states in the USA [ 8 ].…”

“…The research on the EBPAS has focused exclusively on providers, albeit across multiple contexts [ 10 – 12 ], with limited to no research examining whether the construct validity of the measure holds for other implementation stakeholders, such as consultants or intermediaries. Further, it is likely that a consultant’s attitudes toward evidence-based practice would be associated with consultant-relevant variables linked to provider-level implementation outcomes.…”

Attitudes toward evidence-based practices, occupational stress and work-related social support among health care providers in China: A SEM analysis

“…In addition, the Cronbach α for the Divergence Subscale of the EBPAS was low. The EBPAS has been recently expanded to 36-item version with 12 domains [ 63 ]. Further studies should be conducted to examine the measures of divergence in Chinese culture and also determine whether the new EBPAS domains may be related to organizational and individual characteristics of health care workers in China.…”

Improving Mental Health Care for Unaccompanied Young Refugees Through A Stepped Care Approach Versus Usual Care+: Study Protocol of A Cluster Randomized Controlled Hybrid Effectiveness Implementation Trial

“…The items form 3 subscales corresponding to compassion satisfaction (α = .89-.91), burnout (α = .74-.80) and secondary traumatic stress (α = .86-.89) [47].The Evidence-Based Practice Attitude Scale (EBPAS-36) is a 36-item questionnaire derived from the EBPAS-50. It assesses the attitudes of mental health providers towards the adoption of evidence-based practice[48]. The measure has been well validated[48].…”

“…It assesses the attitudes of mental health providers towards the adoption of evidence-based practice[48]. The measure has been well validated[48].…”