Attitudes and Perceptions of Behavioral Health Clinicians on Electronic Health Record Adoption: Overcoming Obstacles to Improve Acceptance and Utilization Attitudes and Perceptions of Behavioral Health Clinicians on Electronic Health Record Adoption: Overcoming Obstacles to Improve Acceptance and Utilization by Stephen Odom, PhD, and Kristen Willeumier, PhD Abstract The dynamics and progress of the integration of the electronic health record (EHR) into healthcare disciplines have been described and examined using theories related to technology adoption. Previous studies have examined healthcare clinician resistance to the EHR in primary care, hospital, and urgent care medical settings, but few studies have been completed that pertain specifically to behavioral healthcare clinicians. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships that may exist between behavioral healthcare clinicians’ perceptions of usefulness and ease of use of EHRs and demographic variables regarding adoption of EHRs. The Physician’s Survey Questionnaire (PSQ) was utilized as the survey instrument, which was administered to 95 licensed marriage and family therapists in California. Regression analyses were performed to test the relationship between the therapists’ personal characteristics, their perceived ease of use and usefulness of EHRs, and their attitudes toward adoption of EHRs. The findings of the study suggest that (1) older clinicians are less likely to perceive EHRs as useful in their professional practice and that (2) perceived ease of use and usefulness of EHRs are positively associated with attitudes toward adoption of EHRs. These findings indicate that to improve the adoption of EHRs among behavioral health clinicians, the EHR needs to be viewed as useful. Interpretation of the results and suggestions for future research are offered. Keywords: electronic health record; health information technology; adoption; resistance; behavioral health Introduction Over the past 25 years, the use of electronic health records (EHRs) has been emphasized in the medical community, with federal regulations strongly recommending or mandating their use. Most recently, the Obama administration introduced the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health legislation, with the federal government committing $27 billion in resources and support for the adoption and meaningful use of EHRs. 1, 2 While government agencies have made significant efforts to provide the support required to integrate EHRs as standard practice within the medical community, the rate of adoption of EHRs in the behavioral healthcare community has been lower. This has occurred because behavioral health providers are not eligible for the meaningful use incentives, making these providers less inclined to adopt this technology in their practice.