A Telecommunication Model to Teach Facilitators to Deliver Acceptance and Commitment Training

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Behavioral Science
• Telehealth

Background:

• Telecommunication training reduces barriers to professional development, increasing access to interventions.
• Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT) is an empirically supported intervention with limited facilitator training research via telecommunication.
• Novice facilitators require effective training to deliver specialized interventions like ACT.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of telecommunication-based behavioral skills training for novice facilitators delivering ACT.
• To assess the feasibility of training facilitators to support caregivers of individuals with neurodevelopmental disabilities.

Main Methods:

• Concurrent multiple-baseline designs across 4 participants in two parts.
• Quantitative data collection on facilitator fidelity and confidence.
• Assessment at baseline, post-training, and 1-month follow-up.

Main Results:

• Preliminary support for the efficacy of telecommunication-based behavioral skills training for ACT facilitators.
• Telecommunication training maintained or increased efficiency compared to traditional methods.
• Increased facilitator confidence and fidelity in delivering ACT.

Conclusions:

• Behavioral skills training via telecommunication is a viable method for training ACT facilitators.
• This approach can build capacity to expand ACT accessibility.
• Telecommunication training offers a scalable solution for disseminating evidence-based interventions.