Psychotherapy Development Research Center

Mission Statement

Since1994, the Psychotherapy Development Research Center has been dedicated to the development, evaluation, and refinement of psychosocial drug abuse treatments. The Center is the only National Institute on Drug Abuse clinical research center focused exclusively on this area. The Center aims to catalyze innovative and efficacious psychotherapies that have promise for real world implementation within the drug abuse treatment field and to encourage other investigators and national organizations to similarly engage in this effort. The Center consists of a core faculty, component projects, and training. (Go to Organization)

Our center uses a Stage model of psychotherapy development to achieve this mission. (Go to Stage Model) We develop new treatments or applications of existing treatments for drug abuse (Stage I) and test their feasibility and initial treatment efficacy in pilot studies. We also test Stage I treatments found to be empirically promising within randomized controlled trials (Stage II). The second stage also prepares treatments for successful implementation in community treatment settings (Stage III) by producing field-tested treatment manuals, therapist training, supervision and monitoring plans, and guidelines for adapting treatments for special populations. The Stage model has become the major way in which psychotherapy research is conducted within the United States.

We also serve as a regional and national resource to investigators whose aim is to develop empirically supported drug abuse treatments. The Center has a variety of treatment manuals, therapist fidelity measures, and training materials and videotapes available for distribution. (Go to Training) In addition, the Center staff provide research training and consultation on methodological and strategic issues related to psychotherapy research. We aim to encourage other investigators and research organizations to make use of these materials and to conduct their own innovative and well-conducted drug abuse psychotherapy development research.

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