Evaluation of a Mental Skills Training Program for Musicians

This study explored the effects of a 9-week music-specific mental skills training program delivered to students at a music conservatoire in England (n = 14). Pre- and post-testing involved a battery of questionnaires, public performances, and participant feedback. In comparison with a control group (n = 9), the experimental group demonstrated significant changes in their views toward practice activities and specific practicing behaviors, a significant increase in self-efficacy for performing, and an increase in imagery vividness. Comments from participants in the experimental group revealed greater levels of self-awareness, confidence, facilitative views toward and heightened control over anxiety, and healthier perspectives toward music-making.     

Training and Mobilizing Volunteers for Emergency Response and Long-Term Support

Abstract

This article offers guidelines for the screening, assignment, and ongoing training of volunteers for active outreach, which are based on the experience of the Israel Crisis Management Center's countrywide volunteer network. Given ongoing support, volunteers can provide the vital immediate and long-term support that is particularly important to vulnerable populations. Issues in training include: (a) responding to loss and trauma, (b) collaboration, and (c) cultural sensitivity. Ways to minimize burnout through nurturing a sense of belonging, connectedness, and meaning are discussed. The unique contribution and need for special support of volunteer trauma survivors who are models of post-traumatic growth is described.     

An Evaluation of a Helping Skills Training Program for Intern Psychometrists

This study reports on the effectiveness of a helping skills training program for intern psychometrists. A randomized pretest–posttest comparison group design was used to evaluate the training program. Participants (N = 22; 82% = female, and Afrikaans-speaking = 95%) were selected from the psychometrist-in-training program from a tertiary institution. Three helping skills development measuring instruments were administered before and after the training program. Data were quantitatively analysed to examine training effects on empathy, respect and genuineness, as well as the participants’ ability to respond to content and personalise meaning. At the conclusion of the training, participants appeared to have evidently developed a heightened sense of purpose in life.     

A Relationship Skills Training Program for College Students

An eight-session Relationship Skills Training program was developed for college students who have difficulty in meeting others and establishing close personal relationships. The major components of each session (i.e., introduction, cognitive restructuring, skills training, and homework) are described and results of the initial offering of the program are presented.     

Basic Counseling Skills Training Program for Juvenile Court Workers

Participants in a week-long counseling skills training seminar evidenced significant changes in certain behavior categories as measured by the FIRO-B.     

伦理委员会继续培训项目和质量管理

伦理委员会的继续培训是伦理委员会能力建设的重要任务.通过对WHO/TD华山伦理培训中心培训项目的介绍,从建立标准化培训模块和课程、注重培训前准备和培训后的评估过程、师资队伍建设等方面来探讨如何在培训过程中进行质量管理,使得伦理委员会通过高质量的培训来提高对伦理原则的理解和在实践中运用的能力.     

A Stress Management Training Program for Low Income Women

No abstract available for this article.     

Evaluation of a Spiritually Based Child Maltreatment Prevention Training Program

The authors empirically evaluated a spiritually based 1‐day child maltreatment training program. Pretest, posttest, and follow‐up results indicated that participants' recognition of hypothetical maltreatment did not increase after training. Furthermore, although participants decreased their use of items known to dissuade decisions to report, they were less likely to report maltreatment posttraining and 1 month later. Focus group data revealed that participants felt more knowledgeable but insufficiently prepared to respond to maltreatment and that they needed opportunities to practice what they had learned. Suggestions for clergy, pastoral counselors, and mental health professionals working within spiritual communities are provided to inform curriculum advancements.     

Enhancing Digital Fluency through a Training Program for Creative Problem Solving Using Computer Programming

The purpose of this paper is to propose a training program for creative problem solving based on computer programming. The proposed program will encourage students to solve real‐life problems through a creative thinking spiral related to cognitive skills with computer programming. With the goal of enhancing digital fluency through this proposed training program, we investigated its effects. Two sets of experiments were performed in which 119 typical students and 30 younger, gifted students participated. Two synthetic creative problem solving tests, which had a high correlation with logical ability, scientific problem solving ability and divergent thinking ability, were developed to measure creative problem solving ability. We provided the treatment group with a paper‐based booklet with relevant problems developed specifically for that group. ANCOVA statistical procedures were used to analyze the pre‐ and post‐synthetic creative problem solving tests. The findings of our study are as follows: with typical students, the originality of the treatment group outperformed the control group, a result that was compatible with previous research. With gifted students, the fluency of the treatment group outperformed the control group, and overall creative problem solving ability was enhanced. Remarkably, fluency increased significantly, a notable difference from the results of prior studies. In conclusion, we inferred that, given the definition of digital fluency, if creative problem solving ability is enhanced by a training program for creative problem solving based on computer programming, digital fluency will ultimately be improved. In this paper, we discuss the result of fluency enhancement that contradicts prior research. We suggest that this training program could be a new learning environment for the students who have grown up with digital media.     

Parent Training for Childhood Anxiety Disorders: The SPACE Program

Anxiety disorders are the most prevalent disorders of childhood and adolescence. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxiety poses a challenge for clinicians as it requires active client participation, and many children either decline or do not adequately comply with treatment. In addition, even after treatment with CBT, up to 50% of children remain symptomatic, and many still meet diagnostic criteria. Parent-directed clinical work has been advocated as a potential enhancer of treatment outcomes, and exclusively parent-based interventions might replace child treatment when the child is reluctant. However, parent involvement has yet to be shown to significantly improve outcomes, relative to child-only therapy. Studies so far have focused mainly on including parents in children’s therapy, training parents as lay therapists, or teaching parenting skills. Parent training focused on parental behaviors specific to childhood anxiety, such as family accommodation, may be more effective. In this treatment development report we present the theoretical foundation, structure, and strategies of a novel parent-based intervention for childhood anxiety disorders. We will also present the results of an open trial of the treatment, with an emphasis on feasibility, acceptability, and initial outcomes. Participants in the trial were parents of 10 children, aged 9 to 13. Children had declined individual child treatment. Multiple excerpts from the treatment manual are included with the hope of “bringing the treatment to life” and conveying a rich sense of the therapeutic process. Parents participated in 10 weekly sessions. Significant improvement was reported in child anxiety and family accommodation as well as in the child’s motivation for individual treatment. No parents dropped out and satisfaction was high. The SPACE Program (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) is a novel, manualized parent-based intervention that is feasible and acceptable and may be effective in improving childhood anxiety.     

Creating Options: A Career Development Training Program for Minorities

The lack of minority counselors in the field of career planning and placement often leaves minority students without the option of seeing a counselor of the same race. This article describes a training program designed to introduce minority staff to the field of career planning and placement as a possible career choice. The program goals, recruitment and selection strategies, training design, and implications for other institutions are discussed.     

The Facilitation of Children's Social Interaction by a Picture-Cue Training Program

A social-interaction training procedure employing picture cues (photographs of play materials in their settings), prompts, and reinforcement was investigated to determine its effcct on subject-peer and subject-teacher interaction. The picture cues were designed to facilitate social interaction between three socially deficient language-delayed 4- to 6-year-old children and their respective classroom peers. One target child was deaf, one was unusually aggressive, and one was an elective mute. The picture-cue technique was designed to minimize reacher involvement: it allowed onc child to invite another to interact by displaying a picture of the interaction desired. Despite the children's differences, appropriate social interaction increased dramatically over each child's bascline rate during the Picture-Cue Conditions, required less tcacher time than traditionaI prompting procedures, and increased the functional aspect of naturally maintaining contingencies. This result may have been influenced by prompting procedures used in earlier conditions. The results indicate that picture cues facilitate communication and allow independent social interaction, and thus are functional and efficient mediating devices.     

The Life Skills Training Program as a Health Promotion Strategy:

Life skills training can be considered an essential kind of school health promotion effort. In this article, the theoretical foundations of the Life Skills Training Program are described. Then, the components of the intervention program are presented, including: (1) cognitive component; (2) decision making component; (3) techniques for coping with anxiety; (4) social skills training component; and (5) self-improvement component. Selected evaluation studies of the Life Skills Training Program are summarized to show effects on student health risk factors. Finally, general implications of school health promotion are discussed.     

Reemployment Training for Displaced Automobile Workers: Program Description and Evaluation

The author describes a reemployment training program developed by Oakland University to assist displaced automobile workers in overcoming their grief resulting from job loss and in successfully assessing and marketing their transferable skills.     

Family Therapy Training: Program and Outcome

A family therapy training program has been conducted for staff of mental health agencies located throughout Pennsylvania. This paper is a report on the content and results of the four-year-old training program. Three hundred practitioners have been trained in family therapy. The program has also led to the development of a core group of 64 family therapy trainers. There has been an associated delivery of more family-oriented mental health services throughout the Commonwealth.