Dear ACBS Community. As President of ACBS I am proud to tell you that, as of today, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy now has more than 1,000 randomized controlled trials on ACT or its components! Originating from every region of the globe and focused on almost every conceivable human issue, these more than 1,000 RCTs on ACT are changing the face of behavioral science and steadily moving us in the direction of the ACBS vision: the alleviation of human suffering and the advancement of human well-being through research and practice grounded in contextual behavioral science.
Congratulations to the entire CBS research community for reaching this amazing milestone!
If you visit the RCT webpage on the ACBS website, I think you will be impressed with the rates of new research, averaging a new RCT every 3 days; with the breadth of research in mental health, behavioral health, and social wellness and justice areas; and with the quality peaks of ACT research, that now include very large studies appearing in some of the foremost journals on the planet. I also think you will be impressed with the frequent involvement of diverse communities and cultures that are often ignored or under-represented by the 80% of the world’s scientific literature that studies Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic populations (such WEIRD populations represent only 12% of humanity. Click here for a list of ACT studies in LAMIC countries).
Our pride in this achievement does not mean mere study counts can serve as a quality measure of ACT or its impact. We need to look at meta-analyses and systematic reviews, and the opinions of respected agencies (the World Health Organization; the UK NICE guidelines; American Psychological Association; Australian Psychological Society, etc.). Processes of change are important, as is qualitative research, and intensive idiographic studies.
1,000 ACT randomized controlled trials is an amazing achievement that took decades of hard work by thousands of professionals – researchers and practitioners alike. Today is a day to pause and to say “thank you” to every one of them.
Maria Karekla, Ph.D.
President, ACBS