There are over 600 identified forms of psychotherapy, many of which have little or no research to validate them.

Energy psychology, of which EFT is the most-used modality, is both evidence-based and in the top 10% in terms of published research for psychotherapy modalities.

In the English-speaking world, research into EFT has been led in the first instance in the USA by David Feinstein PhD, later joined by Dawson Church PhD and latterly Professor Peta Stapleton PhD of Bond University, Goldcoast, Australia. For more detailed information about all 300+ scientific research papers now available, you can visit any of their websites¹ or the research sections of the websites belonging to the two main EFT Professional Organisations². This article is intended only as an overview and short read.

Research Hierarchy

There is a hierarchy of types of papers that are allocated most respect and credibility in scientific academia and define “evidence-based” medicine. At the top of the hierarchy are meta-analysis and systematic review. This is because they are based on the results of multiple smaller studies and as such should provide best evidence. For these types of research to even be attempted, there need to already have been published and peer reviewed multiple other specifically relevant studies, usually from the next level in the hierarchy, randomised controlled trials (RCT).

Meta-Analyses

Meta analyses have been published for the following topics³:

• Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (x2)
• Emotional Freedom Techniques for Treating Post Traumatic Stress Disorder: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
• Treatment of Psychological Distress
• EFT for the Treatment of Depression
• EFT for the Treatment of Depressive Symptoms
• EFT for Anxiety
• The Impact of EFT on Anxiety, Depression and Anticipatory Grief in People with Depression
• Interventions to Reduce Burnout and Improve the Mental Health of Nurses during the Covid-19 Pandemic
• Is Tapping on Acupoints and Active Ingredient in EFT.
• Psychological Treatments for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Adults: Network Meta Analysis (NMA)*
• Psychological and Psychosocial Treatments for Children and Young People with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: Network Meta Analysis (NMA)*
  
  * The two NMAs were commissioned in the UK by NICE in connection with the 2018 review of the NICE Clinical Guideline for PTSD where EFT is categorised as a “combined somatic and cognitive therapy”. EFT is listed in the results section as second most effective therapy reviewed.

Systematic Reviews & Review Papers

Here is a selection of titles/topics⁴ for which reviews have been published. There are too many in total to list them all here:

• Emotional Freedom Techniques to Treat Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Veterans: Review of the Evidence, Survey of Practitioners, and Proposed Clinical Guidelines
• Efficacy of Acupoint Tapping in Treating Trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
• Emotional Freedom Techniques to Treat Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Veterans: Review of the Evidence, Survey of Practitioners, and Proposed Clinical Guidelines
• Efficacy of 15 Emerging Interventions for the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
• The Manual Stimulation of Acupuncture Points in the Treatment of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: A Review of Clinical Emotional Freedom Techniques
• Is Tapping on Acupuncture Points an Active Ingredient in Emotional Freedom Techniques? A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Comparative Studies
• Emotional Freedom Techniques for Anxiety: A Systematic Review With Meta-analysis
• Integrating the Manual Stimulation of Acupuncture Points into Psychotherapy: A Systematic Review with Clinical Recommendations
• EFT for the Treatment of Depression
• Complementary Therapies to Reduce Levels of Stress, Anxiety and Depression
• Clinical EFT as an evidence-based practice for the treatment of psychological and physiological conditions
• Effects of eHealth Interventions on Stress Reduction and Mental Health Promotion in Healthcare Professionals: A Systematic Review
• Interventional Strategies to Reduce Test Anxiety Among Nursing Students: A Systematic Review
• Organizational and Individual Interventions for Managing Work-Related Stress in Healthcare Professionals: A Systematic Review
• The Effectiveness of Emotional Freedom Techniques on Public Speaking Anxiety in University Students: An Integrated Review
• The Effectiveness of E-Healthcare Interventions for Mental Health of Nurses: A PRISMA-Compliant Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials
• The Effect of Emotional Freedom Techniques for Reducing Anxiety in Open Wound Patients: Literature Review
• Interventional Studies on Nurses’ Mental Health in the COVID- 19 Pandemic
• Uses of Energy Psychology Following Catastrophic Events
• Clinical EFT as an Evidence-Based Practice for the Treatment of Psychological and Physiological Conditions: A Systematic Review
• The Effect of Using Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) on Reducing Anxiety Levels in Patients
• Emotional Freedom Technique to Prevent Preeclampsia: Literature Review
• Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) for Students’ Mental Health: A Systematic Review
• Potential of Emotional Freedom Techniques to Improve Mood and Quality of Life in Older Adults
• EFT for Stress and Anxiety Management for students and staff in school settings
• The Effectiveness of Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) for Improving The Physical, Mental, and Emotional Health of People with Chronic Diseases and/or Mental Health Conditions: A Systematic Review Protocol

Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs)

The next level of hierarchy is randomised controlled trials, ideally double-blinded. RCT means that there are two or more groups within the study (at the least a treatment group and a control group). Participants are randomly assigned to a group. A trial is double-blinded when neither the participants nor the researcher know who is in which group at the time of carrying out the trials. Although trials of sham EFT (using sham acupuncture points for control group), with the information available to anyone online, it is effectively impossible to double- or even single-blind a trial of EFT. Double-blinding was designed for medication trials, where, for example, dummy pills can be made that look idential to the drug being tested.

We can immediately see from this how and why drug treatments have the upper hand in evidence-based medicine. The evidence gathering system just doesn’t work so well for other treatments. However, EFT nevertheless continues to build a very promising research base, with every new trial consistently reporting statistically significant reductions in symptoms.

From just a handful of published papers in 2005, the total now stands well over 300 and constantly increasing. There are too many RCTs to list here but the long lists of meta-analyses and systematic reviews above give a flavour as many of these are reviews and analyses of some of the RCTs.

Replicated Research (Cortisol Reduction)

EFT Research is still in comparative infancy. However, increasingly, there is a move to replicate earlier studies. When a subsequent study successfully replicates the findings of an original study, it increases confidence in the original results, suggesting they are likely not due to chance or specific contextual factors. The effect of EFT on salivary cortisol levels was re-examined in 2020 by Stapleton et al⁵, following an initial study by Church, Yount & Brooks (2012)⁶, confirming the significant reduction in levels of this important stress hormone post EFT intervention. There was just one difference in the Stapleton study in that the EFT was delivered within groups. Interestingly, the reduction in cortisol measured in the second study was even greater than in the first, 43.24% (p < .05)

Evidence for EFT for PTSD

The most papers that have been published are for EFT for PTSD. This is hardly surprising, given that the core technique in EFT, the “workhorse of EFT” as EFT Founder Gary Craig once described it to me, is the Tell the Story technique. To use this technique, you need a bothersome specific past event to work on. Sometimes, for other conditions and states, considerable detective work is required to find the originating bothersome past specific event to work on. For PTSD, the result is usually right there, presenting itself for relief through the presenting symptoms such as flashbacks. In some cases, this results in the issue being collapsed within very few sessions, although severe symptoms and cases of complex PTSD must be allowed more sessions. This may be part of the reason for the proliferation and preference of research into PTSD, as well as that PTSD is a dreadful burden; sufferers and their families and clinicians are keen to find solutions and EFT can relieve that burden so quickly and effectively.

For example, the meta analysis of EFT for PTSD (Sebastian & Nelms, 2017)⁷ confirms the measurement Cohen’s D for the effect size of EFT interventions for PTSD as 2.86. Cohen’s D is a measurement used in research for effect size, that is the difference EFT treatment makes in comparison with no treatment. Jacob Cohen suggested the following guidelines for interpretation:

0.2 represents a small effect size, subtle but noticeable

0.5 represents a medium effect size, moderate, visible to the eye

0.8 represents a large effect size that makes a substantial difference.

So an effect size of 2.86 is super large, meaning EFT makes a very substantial difference.

In the UK, NICE has completed network meta analysis (NMA) for EFT for PTSD and found EFT both clinically effective and cost effective. NICE therefore included a recommendation for further research into EFT for PTSD within its 2018 PTSD Guideline review. I have written a separate article about this.⁸

EFT Research Summary for 2024

This is a summary of Peta Stapleton’s video summary⁹ of EFT research trends and papers published in 2024. There was more hospital-based research than in any previous year. Topics for papers published in 2024 include (in no particular order):

• EFT for anxiety in patients with open wounds (any type or cause)
• EFT for nausea in pregnancy
• EFT for postpartum anxiety and depression, including an effect on lactation
• EFT for fear of childbirth, in those who had already undergone one delivery
• EFT for stress levels in stroke patients
• EFT for family caregivers of heart failure patients
• EFT for eyesight
• EFT for test anxiety in paramedical science students (an RCT)
• EFT for psychological distress in paediatric emergency department staff during the Covid pandemic
• EFT online programme for PTSD (96.7% compliance reported in EFT group and large effect sizes)
• EFT for surgery-related fears

Please see also the research-backed article: How EFT Works