Another criticism of translation of research to practice has to do with the ways in which evidence-based practices are promoted. For example, it is frequently argued that there is a lack of guidance on modification: how much alteration of a practice is acceptable in order to tailor it to the particular population being served [14]? There is sometimes resentment that innovations are externally “induced” by the requirements or preferences of funders. This may lead to unenthusiastic, or even ritualistic, implementation [15]. Finally, there are concerns about the ways in which practices get designated as evidence-based. Often funders of prevention efforts have developed official registries of “best,” “evidence-based,” or “promising” practices and incentivized the selection of approved practices for implementation (e.g., http://www.nrepp.samhsa.gov/). A few researchers have criticized the processes and criteria used for identifying programs as effective, arguing that there is considerable room for investigator bias and lack of rigor (e.g., Gorman [16]).
