Showing papers on "Psychological intervention published in 1983"

Religiosity and Mental Health: A Critical Reevaluation and Meta-Analysis

Abstract: For many decades, lassitude and malaise hae afflieled the relationship btiween psychology and religion. Intemt and actioity in this rtlalionship are now being renewed, and old controoersies with ntID terms are resurfacing. This article rroiews the extensioe empirical literature on the topic and shows that rtligiosity is a compla phenomenon with numerouscorrtlates and consequencesthat defy simple inttrprtialions. A meta-analysis of 24 pertinent studies rroealed no support for the preconception that religiousness is necessarily correlated with psychopathology; but it also showed only slightly positioe corrtlates of rtligion. Sociological and psychiatric reports were more faoorable to religion. The data's ambiguities compare with those ambiguities that formerly charaelerized psychotherapy research. Beller specification of concepts and methods of measuring rtligiosity are alleoiating this problem. which suggests that ambiguous results ref/eel a multidimensional phenomenon that has mixed posit iDe and negatioe aspects. Aoeraging such dioerse factors generally yields unimpressioe findings. whereas using specificity promises clearer and more powerful results. Clinical education. practice, and research nud rroision so that professionals will be beller informed of the eoidence. more open to the study of such oariables. and more efficacious in their work with persons who approach life from a rtligious perspeelioe. In a recent article on psychotherapy and religious values, I indicated that a renascence of psychological interest in religion is occurring (Bergin, 1980a, 1980b). Value assumptions underlying clinical approaches are often considered alien by a large proportion of the population in treatment, who endorse more traditional religious perspectives. I argued that religion should be considered more systematically in personality theories and therapeutic interventions. Responses to these themes were numerous, divergent, and vigorous. The topic is not "dead," as was once lamented (Beit-Hallahmi, 1974), and a new National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) bibliography on the subject is now available (Summerlin, 1980). The present review considers the assertion by critics (Ellis, 1980; Walls, 1980) that religiosity is antithectical to emotional health and rationality, a view widely held in the clinical professions. Ellis (1980) stated this position bluntly and honestly:

Developmental-behavioral pediatrics

Abstract: Part I: Patterns of Variation Over Time. The Development of Behavior. Pregnancy, Birth and the First Days of Life. Infancy and Toddler Years. The Preschool Years. Middle Childhood. Adolescent Development and Behavior: Implications for the Primary Care Physician. Evolving Parenthood: A Developmental Perspective. The Development of Behavioral Individuality. Effects of Gender on Development and Behavior. Part Ii: Millieux and Circumstances. Culture and Ethnicity. Variations in Family Composition. Brothers and Sisters. Adoption and Foster Family Care. Critical Life Events: Sibling Births, Separations, And Deaths in the Family. Separation, Divorce, And Remarriage. Family Function and Dysfunction. The Neighborhood: Poverty, Affluence, Geographic Mobility, And Violence. Electronic Media. Disasters. Schools as Millieux. Child Care. Part Iii: Biological Influences. Genes, Behavior and Development. Chromosomal Disorders. Down Syndrome: Care of the Child and Family. Congenital Anomalies. Stresses and Interventions in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Central Nervous System Disorders. Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection in Children. Effects of Nutrition on Development and Behavior. Toxins. Part Iv: General Medical Illness Effects. Acute Minor Illness. Hospitalization, Surgery, And Medical Procedures. Early Health Crises and Vulnerable Children. Chronic Illness. Life Threatening and Terminal Illness in Childhood. Part V: Outcomes During Childhood. Recurrent Pains in Childhood. Colic: Prolonged or Excessive Crying in Young Infants. Child and Adolescent Obesity. Disordered Eating Behaviors: Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome, And Rumination Disorder. Common Issues in Feeding. Failure to Thrive. Enuresis. Encopresis. Sleep Disorders. Repetitive Behaviors. Body Image: Developmental and Distortion. Gross Motor Dysfunction: Evaluation and Management. Development of Sexuality and Its Problems. Aggressive Behavior and Delinquency. Substance Use, Abuse, And Dependence. Developmental Implications of Violence in Youth. Attention and Dysfunctions of Attention. Neurodevelopmental Variation and Dysfunction Among School-Aged Children. Social Ability and Inability. Maladaptation to School. Mental Retardation. Hearing Impairment. Visual Impairment and Blindness. Cerebral Palsy. Autism Spectrum Disorders. The Child with Multiple Disabilities. Emotional Problems in Children with Serious Developmental Disabilities. Disorders of Speech and Language. Major Psychiatric Disorders in Childhood and Adolescence. The Gifted Child. Part Vi: Assessing and Describing Variation. The Interview. Pediatric Assessment of Behavioral Adjustment and Behavioral Style. Developmental Screening: Infants, Toddlers, And Preschoolers. Developmental Assessment of the School Age Child. Intelligence: Concepts, Theories Controversies. Educational Assessment. Psychological Testing. Neuropsychological Assessment of Children. Diagnostic Studies of the Central Nervous System. Comprehensive Formulation of Assessment. Part Vii: The Enhancement of Development and Adaptation. Pediatric Counselling. Psychotherapy with Children. Child Behavior Management. Special Education Services for Children with Disabilities. Early Intervention Services. The Arts Therapies. Pediatric Psychopharmacology. The Emergency Room Management of Behavioral Crises. Alternative Therapies. Pediatric Self-Regulation. Referral Processes. Part Viii: Legal and Ethical Issues. Legal Issues. Legislation for the Education of Children with Disabilities. The Right to Be Different.

Assessing the acceptability of behavioral interventions used in classrooms

Abstract: This study examined components of teacher judgements that an intervention is either acceptable or unacceptable. A total of 180 preservice and student teachers were asked to evaluate the acceptability of six different interventions. The evaluations of acceptability were assessed using a 20–item rating scale. A factor analysis of the rating scale yielded one major dimension, a general acceptability factor, and four secondary dimensions of intervention acceptability: risk to the target child, amount of teacher time required, effects of the intervention on other children, and amount of teacher skill required. Results are discussed in terms of designing interventions that are both effective and usable by classroom teachers.

A meta-analytic analysis of effects of psychoeducational interventions on length of postsurgical hospital stay.

Abstract: Forty-nine studies of the relationships between brief psychoeducational interventions and the length of postsurgical hospitalization are reviewed using meta-analysis. Results show that interventions reduce hospital stay about 1 1/4 days and that reduction does not depend on whether the studies were published or not, whether the discharging physician was aware of the patient's experimental condition, or whether studies were lacking in internal validity. The interventions' effects on length of hospital stay are distinctly smaller in more recent studies, with analysis suggesting current treatments incorporate fewer components than earlier studies. Lesser effects are also found when the treatment is compared with a placebo-treatment group rather than a usual-care control group. This may be because placebo procedures often include educational and socially supportive components that constitute part of the psychoeducational interventions under review. The present study, providing a more stable foundation than previously available, supports the belief that brief psychoeducational interventions may be cost effective with surgical patients of many kinds because the length of hospital stay is reduced.

Motivational interviewing with problem drinkers

Abstract: Motivational interviewing is an approach based upon principles of experimental social psychology, applying processes such as attribution, cognitive dissonance, and self-efficacy. Motivation is conceptualized not as a personality trait but as an interpersonal process. The model deemphasizes labeling and places heavy emphasis on individual responsibility and internal attribution of change. Cognitive dissonance is created by contrasting the ongoing problem behavior with salient awareness of the behavior's negative consequences. Empathic processes from the methods of Carl Rogers, social psychological principles of motivation, and objective assessment feedback are employed to channel this dissonance toward a behavior change solution, avoiding the “short circuits” of low self-esteem, low self-efficacy, and denial. This motivational process is understood within a larger developmental model of change in which contemplation and determination are important early steps which can be influenced by therapist interventions. A schematic diagram of the motivational process and a six-step sequence for implementing motivational interviewing are suggested.

Group Interventions with Perfectionistic Thinking.

Abstract: The cognitive pattern of perfectionistic thinking is described and its development discussed. The stages and strategies of a group intervention for this pattern are described.

Interactions Between Drug and Psychosocial Therapy in Schizophrenia

Abstract: Research on the interactions between drug and psychosocial interventions in the community management of schizophrenia is related to a stress/vulnerability conception of this disorder. Earlier findings that psychosocial treatments were not efficacious in the community management of schizophrenia are contrasted with promising recent data from psychosocial treatments aimed at reducing environmental stressors and promoting interpersonal competence. Family interventions and social skills training may contribute significantly to the clinical and social outcomes achieved by optimal pharmacotherapy.

Prevention of children's psychosocial disorders: myth and substance

Abstract: A critical appraisal of primary prevention of children9s psychosocial disorders indicates that our knowledge on this topic is limited and that there are few interventions of proven value. Nevertheless, there are possibilities for effective prevention. Myths associated with unwarranted claims for the value of prevention are reviewed in terms of unproven assumptions that: (1) prevention cuts costs; (2) prevention in childhood will improve adult health; (3) improved living standards will reduce mental illness; (4) sensible interventions can only be beneficial; (5) providing people with information leads to preventive action; (6) the main issue in prevention is implementing what we know; (7) the best approach is to tackle the basic cause; and (8) the crucial issue is to identify that one basic cause. Principles of causation are discussed and a model of causative influences is used to consider potentially effective primary prevention policies with respect to those directed at (a) individual predisposition; (b) ecologic factors; (c) influences on opportunity and situation; and (d) current stresses and strengths. It is concluded that a good deal is known about risk factors and the areas in which primary prevention might be effective, but that less is known concerning precisely how to intervene in order to bring about the desired results. There is a potential for effective primary prevention but, so far, it remains largely unrealized.

Coping with predictable crises of diabetes.

Abstract: Although the role of emotional and psychosocial factors in diabetes is generally appreciated, most health care professionals, diabetic patients, and families of patients have no clear model that clarifies the nature of psychosocial variables and provides defined principles for effective treatment and preventative interventions. A multivariate clinical model for coping with predictable crises of diabetes is presented. The model is based on the constructs of crisis, coping, and social support as well as a developmental and life course perspective. The psychosocial tasks to be addressed in coping with crises, in general, as well as strategies of coping are defined and discussed. The specific predictable crises of diabetes are described with reference to the demands and sources of stress inherent in the critical situations and the associated strategies for coping with them. Special attention is given to coping with the initial diagnosis and onset of the disease, the role of health care professionals, and developmental issues in coping with diabetes.

Utilizing tenets of inoculation theory to develop and evaluate a preventive alcohol education intervention.

Abstract: With the advent of the Surgeon General's Report, Healthy People, a renewed interest in and concern for the health-risky practices of the school aged has emerged. Moreover, because the mortality rates for the 15 to 24 year age group continues to increase while the mortality rates for every other age group continues to decline, a school health education imperative has become prevention-based interventions. The experimental, prevention-based alcohol education program reported here describes one such intervention directed at 9th grade students. The program was grounded on the principles of Inoculation Theory and evaluated using a Solomon Four-Group Design. Results indicate that the formulation of preventive alcohol education programs utilizing Inoculation Theory in a school setting is both feasible and productive in achieving designated objectives. Longitudinal assessment of the subjects with regard to their alcohol-related behavior is continuing throughout their high school careers. Language: en

Psychopathology, prevention, and the just society.

Abstract: The problem of defining mental disorders is examined and models to explain emotional disturbances are considered. Arguments against a sickness explanation are advanced, and definitions of mental health are reviewed. All of these concerns lead into a discussion of primary prevention. Sources of opposition to prevention efforts include those persons committed to organic models, to one-to-one intervention, and those who oppose social change efforts as inappropriate for mental health workers. An agenda for community change is proposed.

Mental health social work observed

Abstract: Despite extensive changes in the organisation of social and psychiatric services, there had been no study of mental health social work in the UK since the early 1960s. There was, however, no shortage of ‘received wisdom’ about the perceived failure of social work to provide a service to the mentally disordered. Originally published in 1984, it was to provide some basic information about the practice of social work in this field that the study was conducted on which Mental Health Social Work Observed is based. The authors looked at both long-term work and emergency work in which the use of compulsory powers was requested. In addition to the views of social workers, the opinions of psychiatrists, family practitioners and of the clients themselves were sought in order to gain a full picture of social work in practice. Through their thorough immersion in the field of study and through their experience of social work and of mental health issues, the authors were able to provide a sympathetic and lucid account of the difficulties of mental health social work and of the thorny issue of interprofessional relationships which will ring true to the practitioner. They produced recommendations relevant to social work practice at the time and this book would be found useful to social workers and their managers, to psychiatrists, family practitioners, psychiatric nurses and clinical psychologists. Of particular relevance to the then current changes in the role of the social worker under the new mental health legislation is the authors’ study of mental health emergency work, culminating in a recommended code of practice.

Building Support Networks for the Elderly: Theory and Applications

Abstract: Social Networks An Overview Assessment and Evaluation A Framework for Studying Interventions Clinical Treatment Family Caregiver Enhancement Case Management Neighborhood Helping Volunteer Linking Mutual-Aid/Self-Help Community Empowerment

Child and Adolescent Perceptions of Normal and Atypical Peers.

Abstract: Students at 4 grade levels (grades 4, 6, 8, and 10) evaluated hypothetical male age-mates who were portrayed as normal, hyperactive, antisocial, or mildly mentally retarded The focus was on behavioral characteristics, predicted outcomes, anticipated peer reactions, recommended parental interventions, and diagnostic labels The results indicated that the students made social inferences that extended far beyond the specific behavioral information provided The atypical boys were viewed as substantially more deviant than the normal boy within broad-ranging social, affective, and intellectual domains Future problems were predicted for all 3 atypical boys, and parental interventions were recommended Within this global negative perspective, clear distinctions were drawn among the 3 types of atypicality The mildly retarded boy was viewed as most similar to the normal boys, and the antisocial boy was seen as the most dissimilar Some gender differences and grade trends also emerged, with females and older students generally expressing more benign views of the atypical youths

An analysis of prereferral interventions

Abstract: The interventions used by 105 elementary classroom teachers before referring students for psychoeducational evaluation were examined. Analyses were conducted on: (a) types, combinations, and duration of preferral interventions; (b) individuals spoken with prior to referral; and (c) the relationship between prereferral interventions and reasons for referral. Most interventions appeared to be teacher-directed actions, ones that sometimes were influenced by consultation, most were implemented for an unspecified time period with few measures of observed success or failure. Most teachers used combinations of interventions; few types of interventions were related to the reasons for referral cited by the teachers. These findings are discussed in terms of their implications for the role of prereferral intervention in the referral process, and the role of consultation in the intervention process.

Handbook of family and marital therapy

Abstract: Family and marital therapies are rapidly becoming highly used methods of treatment of mental disorders and are no longer ancillary methods to individual psychotherapy. The last few decades have brought about an increasing awareness of the fact that, excluding organic etiology, practically all mental disorders are caused, fostered, and/or related to faulty interpersonal relations. As a rule, the .earlier in life one is exposed to noxious factors, the more severe is the damage. Thus, early child-parents' and child-siblings' interactions are highly relevant determinants of mental health and mental disorder. Moreover, parents themselves do not live in a vacuum. Their marital interaction significantly contributes to their own mental health or to its decline, and parent-child relationships are greatly influenced by the nature of intraparental relationships. Parental discord, conflicts, and abandonment affect the child's personality development. Thus, family and marital therapy is more than therapy; it is an important contribution to the prevention of mental disorder. The present volume is comprised of three parts. The first, primarily theoretical, analyzes the fundamental aspects of marital and family therapy. The second part describes the various therapeutic techniques and the last deals with several specific issues. It gives me great pleasure to acknowledge my gratitude to my coeditor, Dr. George Stricker. Without his thorough and devoted efforts, this volume could not have come into being. I am also profoundly indebted to our consulting editors, Dr. James Framo, Dr.

Sounding Boards. Cost containment--imaginary and real.

Abstract: Public-opinion surveys during the past decade have placed cost containment at the head of the nation's health agenda.1 The concept of cost containment as it is currently used implies expenditure reductions, efficiency gains in the use of resources, or a restructuring of health-care delivery in which fewer interventions result in no diminution in health status. Health-policy analysts of different persuasions seek support for the reforms they propose on the grounds that they will contribute to cost containment.2 , 3 The Many Meanings of Cost Containment For heuristic purposes, I will distinguish five major areas in which the concept of cost containment has . . .

Evaluation of psychosocial problems of the homebound cancer patient: I. Methodology and problem frequencies.

Abstract: Psychological problem frequencies of very ill, homebound cancer patients were studied using an instrument entitled "Psychosocial Problem Categories for Homebound Cancer Patients." This instrument contains thirteen major categories of problems and fifty individual problems. A total of 570 patient records were obtained from two visiting nurse agencies in two different counties. Records were rated by a pair of trained raters, with level of interrater reliability being r = 0.96. Intervention frequencies by visiting health care professionals were also assessed. Percentages are based on at least one mention of problem or intervention. The five most frequent problem categories included: 1) Somatic side effects, 30% of total problems, of which pain involved 13% of total problems, 2) Patient mood disturbance, 15% of total problems, 3) Equipment problems, 8% of total problems, 4) Family relationship impairment, 7% of total problems, and 5) Cognitive impairment, 6% of total problems. The three most frequent interventions included: 1) Instructor/reinforcement to patient/family, 22% of total interventions, 2) No intervention for problem, 17% of total interventions, and 3) Counseling/emotional support, 17% of total interventions. Because the assessment instrument showed high interrater reliabilities for the two demographically dissimilar patient populations, it may be adaptable to heterogeneous populations.

The multidimensionality of psychopathology in a community sample.

Abstract: Some researchers have advocated the use of rating scales that measure global constructs such as mental health or psychological distress. Others have advocated the use of discrete diagnostic categories. Using multidimensional scaling, we examine whether there is a single dimension of psychopathology among community respondents or whether there are distinct types. We find that psychopathology is multidimensional: distinct clusters of symptoms including physiological malaise, antisocial attitudes, demoralization, mistrust, and alcoholism appear. We conclude with a synthesis of the two approaches to measuring psychopathology.

Jealousy: Interventions in Couples Therapy

Abstract: Jealousy is a ubiquitous phenomenon that often needs to be addressed in couples therapy. Eleven treatment interventions, with case examples, are discussed, ranging from traditional, direct, straightforward approaches to indirect, paradoxical solutions. Criteria are offered for determining which interventions to use.

A Death in the Family: The Pediatrician's Role

Abstract: The loss of a parent or sibling can have a profound effect on the psychosocial development of the surviving child. The pediatrician, by virtue of his or her longitudinal involvement with children, is in a unique position to provide anticipatory guidance for the family in which such a loss has taken place. This article reviews children's cognitive understanding of death, the distinction between normal and pathologic grief, and the impact of the loss of a parent or sibling on the course of family relations and the development of the children involved. Some of the common problems that may be manifest in children subsequent to such a loss, together with appropriate interventions, are outlined. Most situations can be best handled by the pediatrician, but criteria for seeking psychiatric consultation are provided.