Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Narrative Inquiry Study Of Adult Female Survivors Of Childhood Sexual Abuse And Their Journey Into Individual Counseling, Alex Houseknecht

Dissertations

The purpose of the narrative inquiry is to investigate the journey of adult female survivors of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) in seeking out and obtaining individual counseling. The goal is to understand why survivors seek individual counseling and how the process of obtaining and utilizing counseling unfolds over time.

This qualitative study is conducted with convenience and criterion sampling selection. The participants used for the study are two adults who identify as female, aged 18 or older, who are survivors of more than one incident of CSA and are current clients of therapists in the investigator’s existing professional network. Additionally, …

Agreement Of Psychiatric Diagnoses Within And Between Groups Of Mental Health Clinicians From Different Disciplines, Wade Mcguire

Dissertations

The development of therapy as a treatment option for mental health problems has led to the creation of different disciplines. Each discipline has developed its own conceptualization of classification and treatment of mental health problems. These conceptualizations have led to different areas of focus for each of the disciplines, specifically counseling, psychology, and social work. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether these areas of focus influence how each discipline diagnoses. For this study, data was collected by having clinicians provide diagnoses for three fictitious clients. The vignettes for the clients were taken from a psychopathology textbook to …

Impact Of Aging Information On The Continuing Education Preferences Of Behavioral Health Clinicians, Nicholas Schmidt

Dissertations

The United States population is aging rapidly and the behavioral health workforce is ill-prepared to meet the concurrent rise in demand for services for older adults. Clinicians specializing in working with older adults make up a very small portion of providers and the majority of service provision falls on general practitioners. The discipline of counseling has emphasized multicultural competencies in training and practice but has not specified standards of competence for work with older adults; little is known about the interests and training preferences of Licensed Professional Counselors (LPCs). This study examined the impact of receiving foundational information about aging …

Development Of A Scale To Measure School Psychologists' Self-Efficacy For Working With Gifted Populations, Brittany Marie Dodds

Dissertations

School psychologists are specialists in educational assessment, consultation, youth mental health, and social-emotional-behavioral development. As a result of their training, school psychologists are positioned to serve students with exceptionalities, including gifted students. However, research indicates that school psychologists' familiarity with gifted issues is lacking and that information regarding school psychologists' self-efficacy for working with this population is nonexistent. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to create a tool to assess school psychologists' self- efficacy for working with gifted populations. The Dodds Inventory of Gifted Self- Efficacy for School Psychologists (DIGS-SP) was developed and administered to 229 practicing school …

Estimating Wasi Iq Scores To Assist In Identifying Elementary School Gifted Students, Debra Garrett Pregler

Dissertations

Identifying gifted students early is important so they may receive adaptations in their learning environment including admittance into gifted programs (Subotnik, Olszweski-Kubilius, & Worrell, 2012). An effective method to increase the likelihood of identifying gifted students is needed (Pfeiffer, 2003). Admission at the elementary level primarily uses the individually-administered intelligence test; yet, the test is only administered to students nominated to the gifted program. The purpose of this study was to determine if individually-administered IQ test scores were related to specific information available to the elementary school counselor to aid in the determination of unidentified gifted elementary school students who …

Increasing The Buy-In And Effectiveness Of A Social And Emotional Learning Class Program In A Single Sex, Urban And Charter High School: Social And Emotional Learning Specialists And Student Perceptions Of Its Implementation., Kizawanda A. Olowe

Dissertations

Social-emotional learning has yet to be implemented in many schools in America. Without adequate social and emotional skills, students struggle to navigate their academic and social environments. Students attending a single-sex, urban charter school participated in focus groups and completed surveys about their perceptions of a social-emotional learning program that was implemented during the 2015–2016 school year. Social-emotional learning facilitators completed surveys and participated in focus groups to ascertain the strengths and weaknesses of the program. Graphs and themes based on the information gathered from the surveys, open-ended questions, and focus groups were used to analyze the data. Both students …

Increasing School Social Worker Supports For Schools In Illinois: Policy Recommendations For Supporting Student Learning And Growth., Kizawanda A. Olowe

Dissertations

Administrators and board members at the Illinois State Board of Education recommended that schools with certain demographics hire one social worker for every 350 students. The policy has yet to be implemented despite high rates of student poverty, lagging test scores, school bullying, suspensions, and an increased number of school shootings. The Illinois State Board of Education’s social and emotional learning standards guide educators and policy makers to interact and educate each student. School social workers equipped with the necessary skill set provide services, implement district-wide social and emotional learning programs, and work with various stakeholders to monitor progress. A …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of A Character Education Program In A Single-Sex, Urban Charter High School: Learning From Teacher And Student Perceptions Of Its Implementation., Kizawanda A. Olowe

Dissertations

Students who are taught the Illinois State Board of Education’s social and emotional learning standards are granted skills that help them make positive contributions to society. Well-rounded individuals have acquired abilities that allow them to make sound decisions, interact with others, and develop self-awareness skills. Adept individuals who have the skills to teach students strategies that help them to develop an emotional intelligence should implement character education programs using evidence-based strategies. Students who attended a single-sex charter school in an urban area participated in a program evaluation to determine if it was being implemented with fidelity. Students and program implementers …

The Relationship Of Supervision Variables To Counseling Self-Efficacy And Outcome Expectations Among Practicing Psychologists, Gunther L. Schwartz

Dissertations

Purpose of the Study

The primary purpose of this study was to examine whether Psychologists who receive supervision have greater Counseling Self-efficacy and greater Counseling Outcome Expectancy than Psychologists who do not receive supervision. The secondary purpose was to assess the demographic and personal variables that are associated with Counseling Self-efficacy and Counseling Outcome Expectancy, as well as the supervisor factors associated with Counseling Self-efficacy and Counseling Outcome Expectancy.

Method

The Counselor Self-Estimate Inventory (COSE), Counseling Outcome Expectancies Scale (COES) and the Supervision Descriptive Questionnaire (SDQ) were administered to 341 Michigan psychologists who either received supervision (n = 254) or …

Males’ Expectations Of Counseling, Sheryl Kelly

Dissertations

In today’s society, a man upholding masculinity alone is not enough. There is a constant need to “prove” their masculinity. Men’s inability to recognize when they are experiencing stress, strain, and sickness is noted as being due to them being socialized to ignore their feelings (Wilson, n.d.). Although research that addresses the concept of help-seeking has expanded, it continues to be limited in its focus on men. In addition, not much attention has been given to counseling expectations. The purpose of the present study is to expand the current knowledge base on men and their counseling expectations. This study examined …

A Qualitative Study Of Counselors Who Work With Spanish-Speaking Clients: Implications For Counselor Training And Practice, Daniel Rolando Romero

Dissertations

The Spanish-speaking population in the United States is growing. As the population grows, need for competent mental health services may also expand. Counselors are currently underprepared to provide these services (Furman, 2006; Lebrón-Striker, 2012). The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the experiences of counselors who work with Spanish-speaking clients, focusing on their motivations, preparation and work experiences, and recommendations for counselor education.

Two groups were selected for this phenomenological study: Counselors who use interpreters (CWUI) and counselors who do not use interpreters (CWDNUI). Themes that emerged related to motivation included helping others, inspirational and affirmative experiences, vocational …

Counselor Educator Knowledge, Experience, Attitudes And Beliefs Toward Complementary And Alternative Medicine, Jennifer Mills Langeland

Dissertations

Following growing public interest and widespread use, many health professions have begun to explore the attitudes toward, knowledge of and experience with complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) of the various stakeholders within their professions. This foundational information has enabled disciplines such as medicine, nursing, psychology, and marriage and family therapy to take a closer look at how students, patients, clients, and faculty think about and utilize CAM and its relevance to their professions. Surveying the practices and attitudes of stakeholders has been an important starting point for professions undertaking the task of integrating these practices into training programs.

This study …

The Counseling Center As A Healing Community : The Development Of A Model, Talitha Day Fair

Dissertations

In a pluralistic society alternative models for delivery of mental health services are needed to enhance theeffectiveness of professional therapy, to provide appropriate care for persons from various subcultures, and to increase job satisfaction and reduce the level of stress for therapists. This study proposes an alternative modelbased on the concept of a healing community.

Five alternative mental health programs qualifying as healing communities were observed to identify thetherapeutic dynamics in such settings. Communities observed were a self-contained village with mentally handicapped and normal adults, a church that functions as a community, a juvenile center, a self-help group, and a …