How to find evidence-based treatment for your child
Minds in Bloom directories for finding science-backed treatments for specific conditions, and finding a therapist qualified to deliver that treatment.
Therapy is not one-size-fits-all: There are different types of therapy that have been shown to be effective for treating different conditions. Just because one treatment is “evidence-based” for a certain issue doesn’t mean it will help for other conditions. Some of the treatments that are science-backed for treating anxiety are not necessarily helpful or evidence-based for treating disruptive behavior. And likewise, a therapist who is trained to treat depression is not necessarily equipped to treat ADHD.
We want to make it easier for parents to navigate finding the right treatment and therapist for their child, so we’ve created some directories.
Condition directory
First is our condition directory — parents can use this table to look up the evidence-based treatments for each disorder. For example, disruptive behavior has two evidence-based treatments: parent child interaction therapy, and dialectical behavior therapy. If your child is struggling and you don’t know what condition they might have, you can also use the “symptoms” column to match symptoms to disorders, though note that the best idea is to find a psychologist who can do a thorough assessment and diagnostic workup to see what condition, if any, your child has.
Access the condition directory:
Treatment directory
Second is our treatment directory — parents can use this table to learn more about each evidence-based treatment. For each treatment, we list acronyms commonly used to describe this treatment, and whether the treatment is appropriate for kids, teens, or both. We also include a link to a directory for finding therapists trained in this treatment. We’ve also listed some “green flags” — things that indicate that a therapist who says they do a specific treatment are well qualified to treat your child.
Access the treatment directory:
We will be updating these directories regularly — please let us know if you have specific questions or things you’d like to see included.
Also check out this list of overall green flags that are relevant to therapists for all treatments and conditions.
✅ Green flags that a therapist has an evidence-based background:
Having a doctorate in clinical psychology (PhD or PsyD), which can be an indication of the therapist’s ability to a) do evidence-based assessment to get to the root of you or your child’s concerns, and b) provide a strong, customized evidence-based treatment plan for your child.
Therapists who only treat youth (rather than lifespan or therapists who say they specialize in treating youth, teens, and adults)
Therapists who name a handful of specific conditions they treat (e.g., obsessive compulsive disorder, depression, ADHD). Most evidence-based therapists have an area of focus; it is not a good sign for a therapist to say they treat all conditions under the sun.
Therapists who state they have training or are certified in some of the treatments listed above. Again, most evidence-based therapists have specialized training in a handful of treatments. It’s not a good sign for a therapist to say that they know 20 different evidence-based treatments, because it signals that the training in any one treatment may not be that thorough (this often goes hand-in-hand with having a self-described “eclectic” style, which typically means mixing and matching from a bunch of types of treatments but not delivering the treatments as they were designed).
Having American Board of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology certification (the therapist having the letters “ABCCAP” after their name)
Having American Board of Behavioral & Cognitive Psychology certification (the therapist having the letters “ABPP” after their name)
To find evidence-based treatments for youth with symptoms, concerns, and diagnoses not covered yet, check out Effective Child Therapy.