Counseling Commons^™

Psychotherapy Presenting Concerns And Utilization Trends Among Latino-American And International Latino Students In A University Counseling Center, Jessica Ann Kirchhoefer

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines current trends of university counseling center utilization among Latino students at a large, private, western university. We examined counseling center data for Latino (n=1,231) and European American (EA) (n=18,125) students who presented for counseling services from 1996-2013. Latino students were divided into three subgroups, U.S. born Latino students (USB), international Latino students (IB), and Latino students who were born internationally but who are now U.S. citizens (IBUS). These three subgroups were compared with the EA student group on multiple variables; therapy utilization, length of treatment, Outcome Questionnaire (OQ) score at intake, OQ change, therapy usage by gender, …

The Effects Of Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams In Two Middle School Art Classrooms, Kimberly Davis Monson

Theses and Dissertations

Classroom management is a common challenge in middle schools. Class-wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) is a multi-tiered intervention designed to decrease problem behaviors at the classroom level (Wills et al., 2010). It is comprised of evidence-based practices such as teaching classroom expectations, increasing teacher praise, and using positive reinforcement in an interdependent group contingency. CW-FIT has shown promise in a variety of school settings, but it has not been tested in middle school art classrooms. This was initial investigation examining the effects of CW-FIT using a single-subject ABAB design in two middle school art classrooms. Results indicated that class on-task …

Is It Enough? Challenges Generalizing Social Skills Gains Into Community Settings, Taylor William Jackson

Theses and Dissertations

Group social skills training (GSST) is an important intervention approach to help children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to find more success in social engagement and inclusion. However, there is a lack of research using direct behavioral observations, especially in generalization of acquired skills to settings other than the treatment setting. We provided social skills training to 25 adolescents with ASD using a curriculum shown to have positive effects (the UCLA PEERS® curriculum). We also administered the Autism Social Skills Profile (ASSP) and Social Communication Questionnaire – Current (SCQ-Current) to the parents of participants before and after the …

Psychologists’ Self-Perception Of Readiness To Provide Tele-Health Interventions In Counseling Services, Olga Morozan, Christine Chasek

Counseling Faculty Publications

There is an increased interest in using Telehealth in counseling services. However, the counselors still hesitate to embrace the online delivery of psychotherapy, worrying about the difficulties in approaching the crisis intervention and the client’s cyber security issues. This article summarizes the results of a study conducted by a team of researchers from the Tiraspol University and the College of Education and the Department of Counseling at the University of Nebraska at Kearney outlining the attitudes, knowledge and skills of future and current counselors/mental health practitioners essential in providing Telehealth services

Table Of Contents, Christopher A. Sink

Journal of School-Based Counseling Policy and Evaluation

No abstract provided.

Activities And Role Of School-Based Counselors In The Us: A National Survey Of American Counseling Association Members, Kui Y. Fan, John C. Carey, Ian Martin, Lijuan He

Journal of School-Based Counseling Policy and Evaluation

This study was conducted to determine: how a US sample of American Counseling Association (ACA) affiliated school-based counselors viewed their role; the extent to which various activities were practiced; and, how demographic variables (e.g., work setting and professional identity) were related to both perceptions of role and practice. Participants (N = 249) completed the International Survey of School Counselors Activities-US (ISSA-US) online, which measured both perceptions of the appropriateness of 42 activities and whether these activities are reported to be enacted. US counselors had a broad definition of their role and showed a high degree of consensus regarding the appropriateness …

A Personalist Orientation To School-Based Counseling Policy Research, Christopher A. Sink, Robert T. Dice

Journal of School-Based Counseling Policy and Evaluation

No abstract provided.

Paving The Way For Counselling? The Link Between Maltese Psd Model And Counselling, Ruth Falzon, Clarisse Frendo, Maud Muscat

Journal of School-Based Counseling Policy and Evaluation

This study explored whether Personal and Social Development (PSD) teachers, school-based counsellors, and students in Maltese secondary schools perceived processing experiences as empowering to seek counselling, if and when needed. The study investigated if processing techniques within PSD methodology helped develop self-awareness. The research builds on the concept of ethical advertising - opportunity to inform and help clients arrive at courses of actions beneficial for themselves. The literature review discusses processing in the PSD Maltese model, comparing processing with overall counselling experiences. Data were collected through two questionnaires, one for professionals and one for 15 and 16-year-olds completing secondary school …

Commentary: The Challenges And Future Directions Of School Based Counselling In Nigeria, Agatha Ojeme

Journal of School-Based Counseling Policy and Evaluation

The purpose of this paper is to examine the challenges of school-based counselling and its future direction in Nigeria. In this endeavour, the author discusses the following possible challenges militating against the smooth running of effective school-based counselling services to include inadequate counselling materials and work tools, deployment of school counsellors to perform non-counselling duties, insufficient training of professional counsellors, lack of clarification of the role of school counsellors, school principals’ low collaboration with school counsellors amongst others. The paper also focused on ways and means of improving school-based counselling services to include enactment of proper policy intervention, putting in …

A Qualitative Examination Of College Disability Services For Students With Traumatic Brain Injuries, Susan C. Davies, Michael R. Crenshaw, Elana R. Bernstein

Counselor Education and Human Services Faculty Publications

Adolescents and young adults are at relatively high risk for sustaining traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). These injuries can result in persistent disabilities, including a range of cognitive, physical, and social-emotional deficits that can be particularly challenging for college age students. This qualitative study explored disability services for college students with TBIs through interviews with directors of 18 college Offices of Disability Services (ODS). Respondents provided general information regarding their service model, the most common disabilities served, as well as the number of students with TBI served, and more specific information pertaining to services for students with TBI. Results indicated ODS …

Skinning The Cat: How Mandatory Psychiatric Evaluations For Animal Cruelty Offenders Can Prevent Future Violence, Ashley Kunz

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

In 2017, the Texas legislature amended Texas Penal Code § 42.092, which governs acts of cruelty against non-livestock animals. The statute in its current form makes torturing, killing, or seriously injuring a non-livestock animal a third degree felony, while less serious offenses carry either a state jail felony or a Class A misdemeanor charge.

While a step in the right direction, Texas law is not comprehensive in that it fails to address a significant aspect of animal cruelty offenses: mental illness. For over fifteen years, Texas Family Code § 54.0407 has required psychiatric counseling for juveniles convicted of cruelty to …

The Effect Of The Precision Request On Compliance In An Elementary Classroom For Students With Emotional Behavior Disorders, Marcie Carol Calder

Theses and Dissertations

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of the Precision Request as a behavior intervention on the compliance behavior of students in a self-contained class for students with emotional-behavioral disorders. The Precision Request is an intervention commonly used by teachers to decrease noncompliance. The study took place in an elementary school behavior unit classroom. The participants included one special education teacher and the eight students in his class. A single subject reversal design was used to track student percentage of compliance, latency to compliance, as well as teacher use of praise and reductive consequences as part of the Precision …

Latino Immigrant Children’S Perspectives On Homesickness In Bilingual Picture Books, Kelly Beus Thorpe

Theses and Dissertations

When Latino children immigrate to the United States, they encounter challenges and opportunities associated with immigration (Alba & Foner, 2015; Arbona et al., 2010). Although there were nearly 2.5 million foreign-born children living in the United States in 2016 (U.S. CensusBureau, 2016), little is known about these children’s perspectives on immigration, particularly their perspectives on homesickness. The current research study investigated Latino immigrant children’s perspectives on homesickness and bilingual picture books containing stories of homesick Latino immigrant children. The children’s experiences were compared with current theories ofacculturative stress.Through semi-structured interviews using the hermeneutic method, the researchers interviewed 12 Latino children, …

Ethnoracial Comparisons In Psychotherapy Outcomes Among Native Hawaiian And Pacific Islander College Students, Jared Isaac Cline

Theses and Dissertations

Variables such as stigma, weak ethnic identity, and cultural mistrust have been linked to the underutilization of therapy amongst ethnic minority populations. As such, ethnic minority populations may reach a higher threshold of distress-including areas such as anxiety and depression-before seeking professional help. While there is substantial research documenting ethnic differences among various ethnic minority populations (e.g., African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanics) very little research has been conducted exploring differences among individuals from Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) backgrounds. For the current study, we explored differences in distress upon intake as well as the change in anxiety and depression …

Sexual Violence Prevention Education For Individuals With Intellectual Disabilities: The Social Validity And Effect Of Disability Impact On Parent Perception, Katherine Mizue Willden

Theses and Dissertations

Children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities are sexually abused or assaulted at a rate seven times greater than those without disabilities (Shapiro, 2018). There is a lack of education and prevention programs specifically for this vulnerable population. The purpose of this study was to explore parental perceptions about the need for sexual violence prevention education, based on their child's disability type, severity, and communication level. A 33-item online survey was completed by parents of children with intellectual disabilities (n=61). The majority of parents valued the social validity of providing sexual violence prevention education. A child's disability type did not impact …

Self-Control Training For Parents Of Children With Autism And Related Disabilities In Albania, Amanda Jane Petersen

Theses and Dissertations

Self-control can be defined as the ability to select a larger, later reward over a smaller, sooner reward. This ability, also known as gratification delay, has been highly correlated with academic competence and success. Studies that examine gratification delay have identified strategies that have been observed to increase the delay time to reward. This study examined the extent to which parents of children with Autism or a related disability could be trained to teach these strategies. Participants were seven mothers who were all ethnic Albanian. The results indicated that these mothers were able to teach the three strategies they were …

School Psychologists’ Perceptions Of Selecting Divorce-Themed Books For Elementary-Aged Children Experiencing Parental Divorce, Tarryn Elizabeth Roberts

Theses and Dissertations

Divorce is a common event in the United States; an estimated 50% of marriages end in divorce. With so many divorces each year, a substantial number of children are impacted. Divorce can have negative effects socially, behaviorally, emotionally, and academically, in both the short term and the long term. Bibliotherapy is a therapeutic tool centered on the use of books and stories to assist in the understanding and expression of an event. Bibliotherapy has been shown to be effective for children who have experienced similar traumatic events such as loss. Research suggests that bibliotherapy could be a flexible, cost efficient, …

Wanting It All: Designing And Developing A Sustainable Life Of Meaning And Purpose Through Reflective Practice, Janell Burley Hofmann

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

This synthesis presents an integration of the coursework in the Master of Arts in Critical and Creative Thinking at The University of Massachusetts Boston. Here the symptoms and realities of personal and professional burnout and exhaustion will be examined through the lens of well-being, while scaffolding the emergence of the higher ideal towards the sustainable cultivation of purpose and meaning. Tools, strategies and design structures are shared to promote and practice sustainability through Reflective Practice. This includes Reflective Questioning, Developing and Mapping of Value Components and Visual Tools to understand and apply Critical and Creative Thinking. The author’s personal narrative …

Job Transitioning Experiences Of Blue-Collar Employees After Federal Downsizing, Eduardo Hurtado

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

Downsizing, realignment, and closure of military bases have forced many low-skilled, blue-collar federal employees into involuntary job loss and job transition. The impact of involuntary job loss on blue-collar workers has been linked to stress and other adverse psychological effects. There is gap in the literature regarding the lived experiences of federal blue-collar employees following downsizing of military bases. The purpose of this qualitative, interpretive phenomenological study was to examine lived experiences of job loss and job transition for federal blue-collar employees following downsizing of military bases. Schlossberg’s transition theory provided a conceptual framework for the study. Ten ex-federal blue-collar …

Promoting Resilience In Economically Disadvantaged Adolescents Through School-Based Expressive Arts Groups, Bailey Knox

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Since 2013, the majority of students served by the public school system in the United States have been considered “low-income” by the federal government. The stressors associated with low socioeconomic status significantly increase risk for social, emotional and behavioral challenges at all age levels, but can be particularly damaging to adolescents coping with heightened stress levels related to the intense multi-dimensional changes that define this developmental period. As the correlation between economic disadvantage and negative socio-emotional and academic outcomes is increasingly evidenced, schools have begun to recognize their responsibility for providing preventative mental health care to high-risk students. Over the …

Empowering The Plus Size Body Using Dance As Therapy, Ashley Sampson

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

In Western society, having the “ideal” body image and size is a societal issue. It is advertised throughout media outlets that the “ideal” body is what should be desired, and any other body type is “abnormal”. This capstone thesis focused on the effectiveness of dance as therapy and changing the perspectives of all body types, to support and empower all bodies including plus-sized bodies. The use of individual interviews, in an open dialogue model, with a select few members (3) of Soul thru Sole, including the CEO of the dance company; which focuses on empowering women no matter their age, …

Dmt And “The Man Box:” Provoking Change And Encouraging Authentic Living, An Arts-Based Project, Steven Reynolds

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

This thesis explores the mind-body experience through an arts-based research approach to examine, and redefine the emotional capacity and usefulness of males through societal determinants that limits and hinders men from living their authentic selves. Through the lens of a metaphoric “Man Box” 112 men participated in a workshop recreating their personal narratives of socialization through, style of dress, coping mechanisms, belief systems and who they should be as men through society's standards. In the “Man Box,” male bonding, and emotional feelings are discouraged, while the objectification of women, material property and physical/emotional strength are encouraged. This research investigates the …

How Internalized And Externalized Behaviors In Adolescents Impact Academic Achievement In Faith-Based Institutions, Subira Brown, Chioma Tait, Jade Callahan, Deyana Cox

Adventist Human-Subject Researchers Association

The purpose of this literature review is to address how internalized and externalized behaviors in adolescents impact academic achievement in faith-based institutions. This research intends to bring awareness to the prevalence of mental health concerns faced by adolescents, as well as the need for mental health services in the education system. This research will also identify the relationship between internalizing and externalizing behaviors, and academic achievement. Based on the findings, the next steps will be to evaluate the deficits within the Adventist school system and begin developing programs and resources necessary to support the mental health needs of children and …

Affecting Social Change For Transgender And Gender-Expansive Children: Exploring Advocates' Perspectives, Cortny Stark

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

This interpretive case study explored the experience of advocates as they pursue social change for transgender and gender-expansive children (ages 4-12). The aim of the study is to improve current understanding of the process of advocacy for this population, as well as the context in which advocacy efforts occur. Data consisted of hour long interviews, advocacy artifacts as recommended by participants, and the researcher’s field journal. Participants included 12 advocates from a variety of backgrounds and geographic locations within the United States, to include educators, community advocates, and helping professionals. Implications of this study may include increased understanding of the …

Substance Use Helpers: An Exploration Into The Relationship Between Professional Quality Of Life And Posttraumatic Growth, Denise Haggerty

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

There has been limited research on the potential for substance use helpers to have positive experiences as a result of their therapeutic work, previous research on the field of substance use treatment and the impact of working with individuals whom struggle with substance use disorders has been explored. The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship exists between substance use helpers’ professional quality of life (compassion satisfaction, secondary traumatic stress, and burnout) with posttraumatic growth. In addition, this study also sought to determine if a relationship exists between personal and professional characteristics of substance use helpers and …

The Job Interview Self-Presentation Tendencies And Experiences Of Latina Undergraduate Students, Nichole Shada

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In the United States, self-promotion during a job interview is not just common, it is expected (Paulhus, Westlake, Calvez, & Harms, 2013). Job applicants are encouraged to inform potential employers about the qualifications, strengths, and professional accomplishments that make them the best fit for the job, which requires applicants to engage in self-promotion during the job interview. Literature has begun to suggest that sociocultural factors such as gender or culture may influence an individual’s propensity to engage in modesty as opposed to self-promotion in career-related contexts like the job interview. However, few studies have explored how these sociocultural factors interact …

Black Female Graduate Students' Experiences Of Racial Microaggressions At A Southern University, Kendra Elizabeth Shoge

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Researchers have found that microaggressions can cause psychological distress, frustration, avoidance, confusion, resentment, hopelessness, and fear. Previous studies from Southern universities have addressed the adjustment experiences of Black women in graduate programs, obstacles faced by Black women in higher education and strategies to overcome those obstacles, and factors associated with Black student motivation and achievement. Discrimination and racism are factors identified in those studies, however, there is little research on the experiences of Black women in graduate programs and the impact of racial microaggressions on them.

The purpose of this study was to examine Black female graduate students’ experiences of …

Do Booster Emails Improve Learning Transfer Among Parenting Professionals?, Benjamin C. Stout

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Parenting professionals play a key role in helping parents have a positive influence on their children, which is why it is important to ensure that professionals have and use research-based information and materials. Using data from 96 parenting professionals from Utah and Missouri, who completed a 4-hour Strong Parents, Stable Children training, we examined the effects (at 2-months post training) of reflective reminder emails on parenting professionals’ utilization and learning transfer of training materials. Results from independent samples t tests show that participants who received “booster” emails at 1-week and 1-month post training shared some information and some materials with …

The Effect Of A Training Clinic On The Self-Efficacy Of Counselors In Training, Jihene Ayadi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The primary focus of this study was to examine the differences between trainees’ perceived self-efficacy when they graduate from a counseling program that has a community based mental health training clinic versus a program without a training clinic. A web-based survey was developed with the questions from the Counseling Self-Efficacy Inventory (COSE) (Larson et al., 1992) and 45 (N = 45) participants took the survey online. Participants were students enrolled and taking a practicum or internship class in a counseling program with a training clinic (WTC) or in a counseling program without a clinic (WTTC). Mann-Whitney Wilcoxon test, a non-parametric …

Master’S-Level Counseling Students’ Experience Of Expressive Arts Techniques In A Cacrep Multicultural Counseling Course, Cameron Houin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Counseling governing bodies have defined what should be prioritized in multicultural counseling courses, including students’ multicultural knowledge and awareness; however, best practice regarding how to teach these multicultural concepts has largely been left up to the counselor educator. Counselor educators have begun implementing expressive arts techniques in the classroom, but very little literature exists related to using such techniques in a multicultural course in a manner that positively influence counseling students’ multicultural competency.

The purpose of this study was to explore master’s-level counseling students’ experience of expressive arts techniques utilized during their multicultural counseling course. Ten student participants took part …