Attitudes, Behaviors, and Perceived Barriers towards Providing Nutrition Counseling by Psychologists and Psychology Graduate Students

Background. The APA Guidelines for Prevention in Psychology includes "proper nutrition" counseling as a tool to improve habits of lifestyle due to the link between physical health and emotional well-being and as a focal point for intervention because of its relevance to daily life. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) emphasizes the role of prevention in increasing positive health outcomes. It is well documented that physicians acknowledge the importance of nutrition in the context of physical and mental health, but fail to translate this into actual practice behaviors. It is likely that psychologists experience comparable barriers to implementation. Standards of Accreditation (SoA) in health service psychology---intended to prepare the workforce for practice under the PPACA contain no specific guidelines regarding preparation to address nutrition as a component of graduate training. Despite the emphasis on integrative health care, prevention, the mind-body relationship and psychologists' documented expertise in health behavior change skills, little is known about the extent to which psychologists evaluate and address nutritional status in clinical practice.;Purpose. The purpose of this study was to identify psychologists' and psychology graduate students' practice patterns and attitudes regarding nutrition counseling, the perceived effectiveness of educational and practice strategies in nutrition currently offered in psychology graduate programs and in professional continuing education and professional attitudes about and barriers to implementing these strategies in practice. Information about professionals' and students' attitudes, behaviors, and perceived barriers to acquiring and implementing nutritional knowledge and counseling in the profession can inform decision making in professional education and practice.;Methodology. Data was collected with an online survey utilizing the question framework of Kushner's (1995) study of physicians. The questionnaire assessed psychology graduate students and practicing psychologists' attitudes, behaviors, and perceived barriers towards using nutrition counseling in psychological clinical work.;Results and Conclusions. Thirteen percent of practicing and training psychologists regularly provide nutrition counseling as part of their clinical practice. Both the graduate students and practicing psychologists in this sample report that they received no preparation in graduate school regarding nutrition. The results suggest that there is a need for greater emphasis on nutrition-related education in graduate training. The preparation of psychologists to recognize nutrition concerns and collaborate effectively with other health care providers is likely to be of increasing importance in a healthcare system that emphasizes prevention and inter-professional practice.