Therapist reactions to manual-guided therapies for the treatment of adolescent marijuana users

Treatment researchers are increasingly advocating the use of evidenced-base d treatment manuals. Here we describe therapist reactions to the use of man ual-guided therapies in a multisite, randomized field experiment that evalu ated five outpatient treatment protocols for adolescents who abuse or are d ependent on marijuana. Data are summarized from qualitative interviews with 16 therapists and 3 case managers who provided the treatments. All of thos e interviewed felt that the manuals provided a structure to their therapeut ic work, and the majority felt they were able to address individual patient needs. Therapists' reactions did vary depending on the type of manual they used (e.g., session-based, principle-based, or procedure-based). Recommend ations for the development and use of manual-guided therapies to improve ad olescent substance abuse treatment are discussed.