Gaudiano, B. A. (2011). A review of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and recommendations for continued scientific advancement. The Scientific Review of Mental Health Practice, 8, 5-22.
Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is a novel acceptance/mindfulness-based behavioral psychotherapy that has generated much clinical and research interest in recent years. It has been argued that ACT and other newer acceptance/mindfulness approaches represent a “third wave” of behavior therapy, expanding upon the initial success of classic behavior therapy and improving upon the purported weaknesses of the “second” wave represented by traditional cognitive therapy. With its rising popularity, though, some have begun to question the quality of outcome research on ACT. The current article presents a brief overview of ACT and recommendations for future research and dissemination efforts to continue to clarify the scientific status of the approach.