The CEBC rated MDFT with the highest possible rating of Well-Supported by Research Evidence in the areas of: alternatives to long-term residential care; behavioral management programs for adolescents in child welfare; disruptive behavior treatment; and substance misuse treatment.
The National Institute of Justice, the research branch of the U.S. Department of Justice, uses rigorous research to determine what works in criminal justice, juvenile justice, and crime victim services. MDFT received the highest available rating, "Effective (More than one study)," on CrimeSolutions.gov.
The Early Intervention Foundation (EIF) is a UK-based organization that promotes programs and policies that help children and young people develop the social and emotional skills they need to succeed. EIF gave MDFT the highest possible evidence rating in the areas of preventing substance misuse, crime, violence, and antisocial behavior.
MDFT is listed as an effective treatment for adolescent drug treatment in two NIDA publications: Principles of Drug Addiction Treatment: A Research Based Guide (the NIDA "Blue Book " on effective treatments) and Principles of Drug Abuse Treatment for Criminal Justice Populations – A Research Based Guide.
The Pew-MacArthur Results First Initiative created the Results First Clearinghouse Database to provide users with an easy way to access and understand the evidence base for programs in social policy areas such as behavioral health, criminal justice, education, and public health. MDFT is listed under the "highest rated" category as a program that had a positive impact based on the most rigorous evidence.
Title IV-E Prevention Clearinghouse reviews programs and services intended to provide enhanced support to children and families and to prevent foster care placement. In reviewing MDFT, they considered only 2 of the 11 MDFT clinical trials and implementation studies. In their review process and categorization system, the Clearinghouse only includes studies comparing models to treatment as usual. The Clearinghouse does not review any research comparing a treatment model to another evidence-based or active intervention. Nine studies in which MDFT was found to be more effective than other strong treatments, including manualized Cognitive Behavior Therapy, high quality residential treatment, and manualized peer group therapy, were not considered, resulting in an incomplete review of MDFT’s effectiveness. If you have any questions regarding this Title IV-E classification, please contact us.
Drug Strategies in a non-profit research organization devoted to identifying and promoting the most effective approaches to substance misuse treatment. MDFT is featured in two publications from Drug Strategies: Treating Teens: A Guide to Adolescent Drug Programs and Bridging the Gap: A Guide to Treatment in the Juvenile Justice System.
The Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, Division 53 of the American Psychological Association, provides independent research reviews for child and adolescent mental health treatment. MDFT is identified as an effective child therapy.
MDFT is listed in the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime's Compilation of Evidence-Based Family Skills Training Programs, the Family-based Treatment Training Package (UNFT), and was named an effective approach in their publication International Standards for the Treatment of Drug Use Disorders.
The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) provides independent evaluations of available scientific evidence on drug treatment to policymakers and practitioners throughout the European Union and its member states. In their evaluation of treatment options for cannabis users, EMCDDA rated just one treatment as beneficial - MDFT. It is the only evidence-supported family-based treatment included in their Best Practice Portal on Treatment Options for Cannabis Users.
The National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP) named MDFT as an effective treatment for implementation in drug courts in their research review on family drug courts.
The Finnish Association for Mental Health (FAMH) chose MDFT for a special project designed to prevent social marginalization among at-risk adolescents. FAMH describes MDFT as "an effective and flexible clinical approach for adolescents experiencing multiple problems" and provided essential program coordination and assistance in MDFT training and implementation in Finland.
The Dutch Youth Institute gave MDFT its highest rating of efficacy based on 'strong evidence' in their database of youth interventions.
Infodrog advocates for effective addiction treatment and risk reduction on behalf of the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health. MDFT is one of just two family therapies evaluated as ‘Successful’ by Infodrog for early treatment intervention.
Gurasotasuna is an initiative of the Basque Department of Employment and Social Policies that connects professionals to family intervention resources. MDFT is included in their list of international, evidence-based programs.
Youth.gov (formerly FindYouthInfo.gov), was created by the Interagency Working Group on Youth Programs (IWGYP), which is composed of representatives from 21 U.S. federal agencies that support programs and services focusing on youth. Youth.gov rated MDFT as Effective in their Program Directory.
The Health Research Board, the government agency responsible for medical research in the Republic of Ireland, found MDFT to be effective in reducing adolescent drug use in an evidence review of interventions for illicit drug use.
The Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness helps military families choose the best evidence-based practices to address a wide range of family and mental health issues. They list MDFT as Effective-RCT, their highest rating of effectiveness.
The Florida Department of Juvenile Justice ranked MDFT an 'Evidence-based Practice' with proven recidivism reduction in their Sourcebook of Delinquency Interventions.
The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) lists MDFT as a validated treatment in its Adolescent-Based Treatment Database. The database provides profiles on interventions that have been empirically validated in juvenile justice settings.
UnidosUS (formerly known as the National Council of La Raza) advocates for Latino families and communities in the United States in the areas of civic engagement, civil rights and immigration, education, workforce and the economy, health, and housing. They identified MDFT as a substance misuse treatment with proven efficacy for Latino youth in their publication, Mental Health Services for Latino Youth: Bridging Culture and Evidence.
The National Dropout Prevention Center (NDPC) promotes programs and practices that contribute to student success and dropout prevention. The NDPC lists MDFT as a Model Program.
The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute at the University of Washington gave MDFT the highest rating of 'evidence-based' in their report, Treating Youth Substance Use: Evidence Based Practices & Their Clinical Significance. The report looked specifically at the treatment of adolescent cannabis use.
The Association for Family Therapy and Systemic Practice described the MDFT research program as "one of the most comprehensive " in their report, The Evidence Base of Family Therapy and Systemic Practice.
The Urban Institute performs research on solving problems in an increasingly urbanized world. They recommend family-based interventions for combatting youth homelessness, and included MDFT on their list of evidence-informed interventions.
The Healthy Capital District Initiative works to increase access to coverage, provides health planning expertise, and supports health prevention programs across the Capital Region of the state of New York. They gave MDFT their highest ranking of "Evidence-Based Practice."
MDFT was carefully evaluated and recognized as a Model Crime Prevention Program by Canada’s National Crime Prevention Centre (NCPC).
The South Carolina Center of Excellence in Evidence-Based Intervention evaluates interventions for youth and family well-being. They included MDFT on their list of evidence-based treatments in their report on interventions for youth with behavioral and substance misuse problems.