Advanced Counseling and Research Services is a professional, evidence-based counseling firm serving the Lancaster area. We believe our professional and ethical commitment to formal outcomes research is a unique feature that separates us from other providers. Historically, practitioners in the helping services have relied on intuition as a primary method of evaluating the effectiveness of the clinical services they have provided to their clients. In earlier times, such an evaluative approach was all that was available. However, advancements in research strategies and computer technology have provided the opportunity for professionals to utilize more sophisticated methods for evaluating treatment effectiveness. While "clinical opinions" continue to be important in the counseling process, those opinions, when validated with empirical data, provide the most accurate assessment of client progress. Counseling performance by professionals is best demonstrated by verifiable, research-based, counseling outcomes. Anything less simply raises too many questions regarding the effectiveness of the clinical services being offered. Those seeking counseling services deserve the opportunity to select professionals based on verifiable clinical performance rather than on credentials, vague advertisements, or incomplete/inaccurate outcomes research results. Advanced Counseling and Research Services incorporates formal outcomes research into all clinical services provided. This approach to evidence-based counseling allows for an impartial assessment of client progress and a verifiable evaluation of overall clinical program evaluation. Advanced Counseling and Research Services follows established behavioral research guidelines and principles in the design and implementation of its research efforts. We also provide assistance to those seeking to evaluate the outcomes research efforts of other practitioners or agencies in our community.