But because EFT is not yet listed in the NREEP, it is not officially considered an evidence-based treatment. Their research may indeed be randomized controlled trials showing that treatments using EFT show statistically significant benefits over controls or similar treatments. Researchers will often refer to EFT Tapping as evidence-based in their publication of findings, so confusion about the term is rampant. Research to date includes at least 50 randomized controlled trials, 40 pre-post outcome studies, and 98% of those 90 studies show effectiveness! In addition, four meta-analyses, five systematic reviews and many hundreds of case studies contribute to the ‘evidence’ that EFT works. Peta Stapleton stated at a conference recently (Spring 2018) that EFT Tapping is in the top 10% of treatments being researched in the field of Energy Psychology. There is a continually-growing number of publications on the effective use of EFT as a treatment for many conditions. The treatment, delivered in sessions, is thought to influence the body’s bioenergy field by tapping on these points, located along ‘energy meridians.’” ( )īecause EFT is based on TFT, works the same way, has been shown to be beneficial, and has been submitted to NREPP for consideration as an evidence-based treatment, it is hoped that it is only a matter of time and funding until it is also officially listed. Practitioners develop tapping sequences for individuals and their specific problems and use a testing and affirmation protocol to apply the treatment with their fingers on specific parts of the body of the person being treated. The Program Description describes TFT: “It is a psychotherapeutic program that uses acupressure (stimulation of acupuncture points by physical touch) to provide relief from psychological distress. NREPP is part of the US government’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).ĮFT’s precursor, Thought Field Therapy (TFT), IS listed by NREPP as an evidence-based treatment for Post-Traumatic Stress symptoms.
However, to be officially called evidence-base, a treatment must be listed in the National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP), a searchable online database of mental health and substance abuse interventions.
And we CAN say that EFT is scientifically valid, and that EFT meets the criteria to be considered evidence-based. Many people, including myself, have amazing stories to tell about how EFT helped with stress, physical pain, phobias, test anxiety, cravings, the list goes on and on. There is no debate about EFT being helpful for many conditions. What does evidence-based mean? According to the Oregon Research Institute, “An evidence-based practice is a practice that has been rigorously evaluated in experimental evaluations – like randomized controlled trials – and shown to make a positive, statistically significant difference in important outcomes. So, this is a brief explanation and some awesome references in a nutshell.
Why does all this matter to you? Because you may be either a practitioner who needs to be able to show the worth and value of what you do, or you may be someone interested in using EFT who is wondering if it has real value. This made me wonder exactly what that term means and why EFT Tapping was not considered worthy of a presentation to workers when I know it would be beneficial to them. Recently a Health and Wellness Program Manager stated that her company could not endorse an Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) Tapping ‘lunch and learn’ because EFT is not evidence-based. We would like to express our appreciation for permission to reprint this excellent artilce written by our colleague, Terry Maluk.