Continuing Education in Professional Psychology: Exploring the Translation of Learning Into Practice

摘要

Continuing education (CE) is designed to support the ongoing education, training, and competence of professional psychologists. Little is known, however, about the specific variables that contribute most to levels of learning or the translation of that learning into actual practice. To explore these issues, a quasi-experimental posttest-only study was conducted with 294 mental health professionals from the 2019 American Psychological Association (APA) convention who completed various CE sessions and workshops. The participants were surveyed 2 months after they completed their CE experiences to assess the extent of their perceived learning and the translation of that learning into practice. MANOVAs, ANOVAs, MANCOVAs, and bivariate correlations were used to explore relationships among CE variables and outcomes of interest. Results demonstrated that, in comparison to shorter CE experiences (1-2 hr), longer CE trainings (half day or full day) and more experiential methods of instruction were viewed as generating higher levels of learning and the translation of that learning into subsequent practice. Additionally, participants who reported experiencing a greater range of instructional methods also reported significantly higher levels of overall learning and subsequent practice applications. Implications and recommendations are discussed in support of enhancing and ensuring the effectiveness of CE programs and maintaining ongoing professional competence. Public Significance Statement This study examines the characteristics of continuing education (CE) programs (e.g., duration, number, and type of instructional methods) related to greater rates of learning and subsequent practice applications. Results suggest that psychologists may benefit from seeking longer CE workshops that provide the opportunity for more substantive training, learning experiences that involve multiple teaching modalities (e.g., case illustrations, clinical exercises, role plays), and CE experiences that focus on more experiential, rather than didactic, learning.