Beyond Role-Playing

Abstract

Approaches utilized in preparing actors are similar to developing empathy. This article defines empathy as a state and a trait and examines the use of theater exercises in the development of empathy. Theoretical, practical, and research bases for utilizing theater exercises are presented. A small study using theater exercises designed to develop empathy is described. While quantitative analysis did not reveal significant results, qualitative results indicated high salience for a participating counselor education class and need for further research.     

Learning to be mindful of difference: teaching systemic skills in cross‐cultural encounters

In this paper the author shares some of his experiences of teaching in areas of ‘race’ and culture to mainly white middle‐class family therapy and clinical psychology trainees. He presents a framework for a systemic teaching session on working interculturally. Specific exercises are described that trainers can use to design a new session or incorporate into existing ones. It is meant to increase the cultural awareness and sensitivity of trainees with limited experience of cross‐cultural therapeutic work.     

ART AS A THERAPEUTIC MODALITY FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH ALCOHOL-RELATED PROBLEMS IN A MILIEU SETTING

Alcoholism is a biopsychosocial illness that requires treatment on nearly every level of life. Disordained brain functioning, reflected in maladaptations in thinking, feeling, relating and producing, diminish spontaneity and creativity. The authors have utilized a series of art and awareness experiential exercises that challenge the person's creative, analytic and integrative abilities. These exercises were modified from other sources or created by the authors with emphasis placed on reducing anxiety and resistances so frequently encountered in alcoholism treatment. A typical art experience session, along with theoretical assumptions, client characteristics, and specific exercises are described.     

Narrative identity: writing the self in career learning

We propose that writing can be employed to foster the kind of career learning required in the twenty-first century. The article offers insights into how writing exercises and approaches can be applied to help students construct their career stories in a way that allows them to engage in a dialogical learning process and work in a self-directed way. Creative, expressive and reflective writing practices are described and parallels are drawn between these and existing practices and theories in narrative career counselling. Key exercises in graduate courses for writing for personal development are discussed and a theoretical explanation is given as to why a particular order of approaches and exercises works best to promote career learning.     

Structured role assignment and other techniques for facilitating process in adolescent psychotherapy groups

The application of various types of techniques for structuring the interchange and feedback process in adolescent psychotherapy groups is described. Techniques include random assignment of "roles" for each member during sessions, "parent hot seat" exercises, group goal booklets, and negotiation exercises. These have proved helpful in ensuring effective group participation, providing practice in social skills and verbalization of feelings, and in the development of other specific mastery skills.     

Ricoeur’s <Emphasis Type="Italic">askēsis</Emphasis>: textual and gymnastic exercises for self-transformation

This essay examines what the philosophy of Paul Ricoeur can contribute to current debates on the role of spiritual exercise, or askēsis, in philosophical life. The influential work of Pierre Hadot and Michel Foucault has sparked a widespread interest in the ancient model of philosophy, variously described as a way of life, art of living, or care of the self. Ricoeur’s potential contribution to this conversation has been overlooked, largely because he does not discuss these themes explicitly or often. However, Ricoeur’s early phenomenology of embodiment in The Voluntary and the Involuntary offers valuable insights regarding the exercises of self-transformation. After a brief survey of Ricoeur’s concept of askēsis, this essay draws on Ricoeur to demonstrate the merits of physical exercise, or gymnastic, in ethical and spiritual formation. Gymnastic, Ricoeur shows, can be a form of spiritual exercise. The final section of the paper then makes a similarly counterintuitive claim: namely, that reading is an embodied practice that can facilitate the ethical formation of the lived body.     

Microcomputer-based tutorials for teaching statistics

A set of computational and exploratory exercises is described for teaching and remediation in undergraduate statistics. The materials consist of an ensemble of BASIC programs written for the use of a variety of popular microcomputers and a system-independent workbook.     

Experiential Exercises in MFT Training: Gender, Power, and Diversity

An experiential exercise that is used to empower Marriage and Family Therapy students and systematically introduce students to feminist themes is described. Faculty in the university's theatre department recruit their students to serve as client families. Role-play exercises with theatre students based on vignettes developed by clinical faculty increases realism and includes other training benefits. This approach is consistent with a feminist model of training and supervision.     

Family therapy training on a clinical psychology programme

The report describes the intake interviewing exercise in a family therapy training unit developed for postgraduates in clinical psychology. The teaching method includes pre‐class reading, video modelling, and simulated practice with live feedback. The academic material and other similar practice exercises are contained in the core textbook for this unit.     

Alternate Approaches to Understanding the Psychometric Properties of Assessment Centers: An analysis of the structure and equivalence of exercise ratings

The present study uses an alternate analytical framework to examine the degree to which performance is differentiated by dimensions in assessment center (AC) exercises and whether these performance dimensions are rated on the same scale across exercises. Confirmatory factor analysis likelihood ratio tests supported the presence of three broad latent performance dimensions in each of three AC exercises. Additional tests revealed that five of six manifest performance dimensions were rated on the same psychological scale across exercises. Taken together, our results support a multidimensional interpretation of AC exercises and provide empirical support to the notion that differences in AC performance across exercises reflect true performance, rather than a measurement artifact.     

A Cognitive-Skills Model for Counselor Training and Supervision

This article describes a model for training counselors in cognitive skills that can be used to supplement any systematic training approach to behavioral skills. The four phases of the training model are designed to teach counselor trainees cognitive skills and self-instructional strategies related to (a) attending to and seeking information, (b) forming hypotheses and conceptual models, and (c) intervention planning and self-instruction. Instructional techniques and exercises are described for each training phase.     

A randomized crossover trial to test the effects of positive psychology intervention delivered by text messaging

Positive psychology (PP) interventions delivered through technology have shown encouraging results. In a crossover design, we randomized 60 participants recruited from the community to two weeks of either text messaging-based PP exercises or control exercises, before being crossed over to receive the other condition. Participants were compensated for maintaining high response rates to the texts. Participants reported greater satisfaction and had higher engagement in the program when PP exercises were received first. Overall, PP exercises did not improve moods significantly more than control exercises. However, baseline depressive symptoms significantly moderated the effect of condition on change in depressive symptoms (p < 0.032) and negative affect (p < 0.006), such that regular completion of exercises resulted in better mood outcomes compared to control exercises for those with high depressive symptoms at baseline. Results suggest that completing PP exercises through text messaging can improve moods in those who have elevated depressive symptoms.     

The practice of awareness as a form of psychotherapy

Summary The practice of awareness most clearly defined by Buddhist writers is described. The effect of the practice on thought processes and the views of Jung and of Fromm on such exercises are discussed. There are many resistances both to the idea of doing the exercise and within the exercise. The writer describes his own experience and suggests that the practice may be an important aid to analytical psychotherapy for those in whom the critical analytical type of thinking is highly developed.     

IMPLICATIONS OF TRAIT-ACTIVATION THEORY FOR EVALUATING THE CONSTRUCT VALIDITY OF ASSESSMENT CENTER RATINGS

Assessment centers have often been criticized for lacking evidence supporting the construct validity of dimension ratings. This study examines whether the poor convergence of assessment center ratings is a result of correlating ratings from exercises that differ in the extent that behavior relevant to personality traits can be observed. Using data from a promotional assessment center for law enforcement officers ( n = 79), the convergence of assessment center ratings was evaluated within the context of the five factor model by comparing the average within-dimension correlation of ratings from exercises that allowed for more opportunity to observe trait-relevant behavior to the average of those involving exercises where there was less opportunity. For each personality trait, ratings from exercises judged by experts to be high in trait-activation potential displayed stronger convergence (mean r = .30) than did ratings from exercises that were low in activation potential for that trait (mean r = .15). Implications for evaluating the construct validity of assessment centers are discussed along with future directions for classifying exercises based on situational similarity.     

You are not alone – adolescents’ experiences of participation in a structured skills training group for ADHD

Little is known about how adolescents with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience participating in group therapy, an important factor to consider when developing treatment methods for this age group. This study aimed to explore how adolescents with ADHD experience participating in a structured skills training group program based on dialectical behavioral therapy. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 adolescents (15–18 years of age) with ADHD after participating in a structured skills training group. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and qualitative content analysis were used to analyze the text. The participants emphasized the value of meeting other adolescents with ADHD and the opportunity to exchange experiences, strategies and tips. Participating in the group treatment made the adolescents realize that they were not alone, and feelings of togetherness and an increased acceptance of themselves were described. The participants associated the treatment with elevated knowledge and understanding, for example, about ADHD, their own functioning and helpful strategies. They also described emotional and behavioral changes, such as higher self-esteem, fewer inter-personal conflicts and improved concentration. Activating and experiential exercises were considered important elements of the treatment, and the participants expressed a need for a variation of exercises, as well as more time for practicing skills, discussions and breaks. The results indicate that the group format add an extra value to the treatment and that the use of an active approach throughout the treatment is of importance for this group of patients.     

Impact of Common Rater Variance on Construct Validity of Assessment Center Dimension Judgments

In an assessment center (AC), assessors generally rate an applicant's performance on multiple dimensions in just 1 exercise. This rating procedure introduces common rater variance within exercises but not between exercises. This article hypothesizes that this phenomenon is partly responsible for the consistently reported result that the AC lacks construct validity. Therefore, in this article, the rater effect is standardized on discriminant and convergent validity via a multitrait-multimethod design in which each matrix cell is based on ratings of different assessors. Two independent studies (N = 200, N = 52) showed that, within exercises, correlations decrease when common rater variance is excluded both across exercises (by having assessors rate only 1 exercise) and within exercises (by having assessors rate only 1 dimension per exercise). Implications are discussed in the context of the recent discussion around the appropriateness of the within-exercise versus the within-dimension evaluation method.     

AN EXAMINATION OF IMPRESSION MANAGEMENT USE AND EFFECTIVENESS ACROSS ASSESSMENT CENTER EXERCISES: THE ROLE OF COMPETENCY DEMANDS

We report 2 studies that examine how promotional candidates use verbal and nonverbal impression management (IM) tactics across several structured assessment center exercises that differ in the competency demands they place on candidates. Based on the competency-demand hypothesis ( Shoda, Mischel, & Wright, 1993a, 1993b ), it was predicted that IM use would occur most frequently and have the strongest effects on assessor evaluations in exercises that place greater demands on candidates' interpersonal skills than in exercises that depend primarily on technical skills. In both studies, IM tactics were generally used more frequently and there was more variability in IM use for those exercises requiring candidates to display interpersonal competencies (i.e., the role-plays and mock presentation) relative to the exercise that did not (i.e., the tactical exercise). The relationship between IM use and assessor evaluations was also influenced by the competencies assessed by the exercises, and IM use related to both interpersonal and noninterpersonal ratings of performance.     

The Measurement of Assessment Center Situations: Bem's Template Matching Technique for Examining Exercise Similarity

The present study was concerned with investigating the nature of assessment center exercises. Bem and Funder's (1978) technique of classifying and comparing situations in behavioral terms was applied to the measurement of exercises in an assessment center with ratings reflecting exercise factors. Six assessors created templates for each of the four exercises. Intercorrelations between the mean template ratings suggested that the exercises were not viewed as similar situations. Moreover, some relationship was found between exercise similarity and performance consistency. It is proposed that these differences in exercise content may be responsible for the inability to find cross-situational consistencies in candidate behavior in a typical assessment center. Practical implications and extensions of this study are discussed.     

小学三年级句群教学实验研究

探讨在小学三年级句群教学条件下,样例的不同呈现方式与练习方法对形成有关图式及其技能的影响。同时,考察陈述性知识、认知技能(一般程序性知识)和策略相互间的关系及对被试任务操作的影响效果。研究结果表明：(1)在实验班中,同时呈现两个以上样例并加以归纳,再循序渐进地进行变式练习,有利于图式与技能形成以及类比迁移,且中差生获益较大;(2)在被试的任务操作中,陈述性知识主效应非常显著,其次为认知技能,再次为策略,陈述性知识和认知技能之间存在显著交互作用。     

Pierre Hadot on Habit,Reason, and Spiritual Exercises

This essay is a reappraisal of Pierre Hadot's concept of spiritual exercises in response to recent criticisms of his work. The author argues that contrary to the claims of his critics, Hadot articulates a compelling argument that spiritual exercises that employ imaginative, rhetorical, and cognitive techniques are both necessary for and successful at producing a subject in which reason is integrated into human character. Such exercises are critical for overcoming the effects of habit, as a result of which everyday conduct resists rational control, and Hadot provides a nuanced account of how particular practices affect different aspects of emotion, behavior, and thought. The concept of spiritual exercises remains a viable component of theoretical frameworks for the study of religious ethics, though the author concludes that Hadot's position on habit and its role in ethical practice requires further investigation.