Mechanisms of Action

As outlined in a published article, the mechanism of action working group aims to promote research in four priority areas: (1) conceptualization - the need for a more comprehensive and integrated theoretical framework for understanding exposure therapy mechanisms, (2) measurement - the need for rigorous psychometric evaluation of existing and new measures of exposure therapy mechanisms, (3) study design/analysis – a call for innovative experimental designs and advanced statistical approaches to test hypothesized change mechanisms, and (4) individual/contextual differences - the need to understand how individual and contextual factors moderate the effects of exposure therapy and its mechanisms of action.