Christopher Cronin
Recovery Resource Council (RRC) is one of the largest and most comprehensive non-profit mental and behavioral healthcare providers in North Texas. Accredited by the Joint Commission in Behavioral Health and licensed by the State of Texas as an Outpatient Treatment Center, RRC strives to promote wellness and recovery through a variety of services and programming. An important component of RRC programming is providing free counseling services to hundreds of U.S. veterans annually. While RRC observes great success for veterans who complete counseling, attendance can be a major obstacle. Veterans who approach RRC for individual counseling services and consent to participate will be randomly assigned to the treatment or control group. The control group will receive counseling as usual. The treatment group will receive $500 gift card payments upon completing their 6th, 12th, and 18th counseling sessions, i.e., $1,500 in gift cards for completing all 18 sessions, the usual prescribed length of therapy. Our primary focus is to examine the impact of the financial incentives on therapy attendance and attrition. In addition, the investigators will estimate the impact on mental health using mental health inventories collected over the course of therapy sessions.
Study enrollment will occur starting in September 2023 and will continue through 2026. Veterans who are referred to RRC are subject to an eligibility screening via phone, during which time they must ensure that they are 18 years of age or older, hold veteran status, are deemed not suicidal by RRC staff, and will participate in individual counseling. Eligible veterans are then assigned an intake session time, during which they show any requested documentation, complete the standard RRC intake form, complete an initial mental health assessment, and go through the informed consent process with RR…
Inclusion Criteria: * Voluntarily agree to participation requirements outlined in the informed consent form * 18 years of age or older * Holds veteran status * Possesses and is willing to share SSN * Possesses and is willing to share an active email address * Individual is not screened out by RRC - i.e., RRC would agree to provide services independent of the research study * Is participating in individual counseling Exclusion Criteria: * Individuals who are not interested in participating * Individuals who do not consent * Individuals posing a significant suicide risk
The intervention is offering a $500 gift card as an incentive for completing 6 counseling sessions to eligible individuals randomized into the treatment group. Another $500 gift card will be given after completing 12 counseling sessions, and another $500 gift card will be given after completing 18 counseling sessions.