Symphony of Success: Leader-Practitioner Reciprocity during Evidence-Based Practice Implementation

Area of Science:

• Implementation Science
• Organizational Psychology
• Mental Health Services Research

Background:

• Evidence-based practices (EBPs) require effective implementation strategies.
• Understanding the dynamic interplay between leadership and practitioner behavior is vital for successful EBP adoption.
• Previous research has not fully elucidated the reciprocal nature of implementation leadership and practitioner implementation citizenship behavior.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the bidirectional relationship between implementation leadership and practitioner implementation citizenship behavior.
• To examine how these constructs influence each other over time during the rollout of evidence-based treatments.
• To test the social exchange and followership hypotheses in the context of EBP implementation.

Main Methods:

• A two-wave longitudinal panel study design was employed.
• Data were collected from leaders and practitioners in Norwegian mental health clinics during a national EBP implementation.
• A two-wave cross-lagged panel model was used to analyze data from 72 leaders and 346 practitioners, controlling for covariates.

Main Results:

• Significant positive autoregressive effects indicated stability in both implementation leadership and citizenship behavior over six months.
• Significant cross-lagged effects in both directions demonstrated a reciprocal influence: leadership predicted later citizenship behavior, and citizenship behavior predicted later leadership.
• Findings supported the social exchange and followership hypotheses, confirming a mutually influential relationship.

Conclusions:

• Implementation leadership and practitioner implementation citizenship behavior are reciprocally related.
• Leadership behaviors that foster practitioner engagement are critical for successful EBP implementation.
• Interventions should focus on enhancing leadership skills and promoting mutually beneficial interactions to improve EBP adoption and sustainability.