An Assessment of Intervention Fidelity in Published Social Work Intervention Research Studies

Objectives: Intervention fidelity is a critical strategy to help advance the usefulness and integrity of social work research. This study assessed the extent to which a selected sample of published social work intervention researchers reported its intervention protocols. Methods: Six core social work journals were reviewed in this analysis. The authors reviewed every scholarly article within each journal published from 2009 through 2013 (N = 1,380). A total of N = 32 (2.3%) published intervention research articles met the inclusion criteria. All N = 32 studies were evaluated using 11 criteria developed by the research team related to assessing the study's treatment fidelity. Results: The finding suggests that although attention to treatment fidelity in social work research has increased, methodological inconsistencies still remain. Conclusion: Effective social work research of an intended intervention is largely dependent on the intervention's fidelity. Implications for social work practice and research are discussed.