Strengthening doctoral supervision in a Doctor of Psychology (DPsych) Specialisation in Child and Adolescent Psychology

Supervision differs in PhD and DPsych contexts. PhD supervision focuses on students' pursuit of a career in academia, with the emphasis on research. In a DPsych framework, the focus of supervision is to assist students, who are experienced practitioners in a professional field, to complete a structured course and a research component. The aim of the article is to reflect on the application of supervision principles, models, metaphors and supervisory styles within a DPsych context. This article presents a case illustration of supervision in a DPsych programme (with specialisation in child and adolescence, or DPsych Child) presented at the University of the Free State in South Africa. Supervision focuses on developing the DPsych students' doctoral identity so that they, as scientist-practitioners, could contribute ultimately to the professional context of child psychology and apply theoretical knowledge to complex challenges. The article proposes that research on supervision processes and practices within a DPsych Child context could complement explorations into the value of the implementation of the scientist-practitioner model and thus augment quality assurance of the DPsych programme.     

School Psychology: Training Individuals for One of the Best Kept Secrets in Professional Psychology

Abstract

School psychology training at the doctoral level is discussed. Given the increasing diversity in the schools as well as the varied education and mental health needs of the population, school psychology training is necessarily broad, involving traditional skills such as assessment, intervention, consultation, and counseling, all of which are taught within a context of a changing school population with changing needs. Because there is compulsory education, school psychologists’ interface with a broad cross-section of individual children, their parents, and their teachers. Moreover, school psychological practice is not limited to schools, as doctoral school psychologists are health service providers; many of these individuals work in other settings for which they are trained to provide services. The complexities and challenges of training school psychologists within this broad agenda effectively across domains are discussed.     

Predicting the evolution of counseling psychology in the United States: results from a Delphi poll of academic training directors

What might the field of counseling psychology in the United States of America look like 10 years from now? In a Delphi Poll, an expert panel, consisting of 28 training directors from APA-accredited counseling psychology programs, made predictions regarding the future of counseling psychology 10 years from now in relation to three domains (core features, research and training, and professional training) and 32 specific areas within those domains. The strongest core feature of counseling psychology was viewed as a continuing commitment to issues of diversity (M = 4.64, SD = .63); the research and training theme predicted to attract the most attention in the next 10 years was a commitment to evidence-based practice (M = 4.71, SD = 1.20); and the professional training theme predicted to gain the greatest focus was attention to professional competence (M = 4.43, SD = .65). Results were compared with a previous Delphi Poll conducted in 2001, and recommendations are outlined for future research designed to contribute to the ongoing development of the field of counseling psychology.     

Impact of substance abuse and child maltreatment training on service utilization in a rural setting

Substance abuse and child maltreatment have been recognized as co-morbid problems encountered in families presenting in the child protective services (CPS) system. Nonetheless, utilization rates of substance abuse treatment services have generally lagged well behind what the research would suggest are prevalence rates for substance abuse disorders in this population, suggesting problems in recognition and referral practices among CPS workers. In response to this, 25 training programs were funded by the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect. This study reports data from one program. Trainees indicated a high level of satisfaction and demonstrated significant knowledge gains. More importantly, utilization of substance abuse services increased significantly across time in a multi-county region receiving training relative to a comparison region receiving none. The gain was limited, suggesting that while increased knowledge may translate into increased service utilization, additional barriers to accessing needed services must also be addressed.     

Race,Sex and Class in Psychology: Vision of Hope for a Fair and Just South Africa

This opinion piece analyzes the current state of affairs in South African psychology from a philosophical point of view and suggests that the profession is in need of reformative thinking. It also gives a historical background to the current situation in society and the profession. Firstly, I argue that psychology in South Africa is currently in a moral dilemma. Secondly, I suggest that an attempt should be made to sketch a preferred scenario by presenting a moral point of view aimed at developing a post-conventional consciousness. Finally, I provide a broad outline of the steps that could be taken in developing a theory of implementation to achieve the preferred scenario in South African psychology. I argue that a feasible theory of implementation should include a discourse of justification as well as a discourse of application.     

Interdisciplinary research and interprofessional collaborative care in a memory clinic for rural and northern residents of western Canada: Unique training ground for clinical psychology graduate students

Abstract: In Canada, interprofessional education (IPE) and interdisciplinary health research initiatives are beginning to transform the academic health sciences, including graduate training programs for clinical psychologists. In response to mandates and directives from national health policy and research funding bodies, academic training programs are re‐structuring course offerings, practicum training experiences, and research activities to better prepare students for their future roles within interdisciplinary research groups and collaborative patient‐centred clinical teams. As an example of this transformative movement in IPE, described herein are the recent training initiatives in the Graduate Program in Clinical Psychology at the University of Saskatchewan, and the role of clinical neuropsychology in an innovative interprofessional rural and remote memory clinic.     

Guidelines for Cognitive Behavioral Training Within Doctoral Psychology Programs in the United States: Report of the Inter-Organizational Task Force on Cognitive and Behavioral Psychology Doctoral Education

The Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies initiated an interorganizational task force to develop guidelines for integrated education and training in cognitive and behavioral psychology at the doctoral level in the United States. Fifteen task force members representing 16 professional associations participated in a yearlong series of conferences, and developed a consensus on optimal doctoral education and training in cognitive and behavioral psychology. The recommendations assume solid foundational training that is typical within applied psychology areas such as clinical and counseling psychology programs located in the United States. This article details the background, assumptions, and resulting recommendations specific to doctoral education and training in cognitive and behavioral psychology, including competencies expected in the areas of ethics, research, and practice.     

The relationship between parental physical availability and child sexual,physical and emotional abuse: a study among a sample of university students in South Africa

The relationship between perceived parental physical availability and child sexual, physical and emotional abuse was investigated. The sample comprised 722 undergraduate students of psychology at the University of the North, South Africa. Participants filled in a retrospective self-rated questionnaire in a classroom setting. The questionnaire asked about perceived parental physical availability during childhood, and childhood sexual, physical and emotional abuse. Logistic regression analysis showed that, among all the participants, the factors "the participant not living with the natural (biological) mother until he or she was at least 16 years old" and "have ever had a stepfather or adoptive father until he or she was at least 16 years old" predicted child sexual abuse; and "have ever had a stepfather or adoptive father until he or she was at least 16 years old" predicted child emotional abuse. None of the other aspects of parental availability considered predicted child physical abuse. Mental health and social workers, educators and law enforcement agencies dealing with prevention and protection against child abuse should take note of the above identified predictors while designing programs for the eradication of child sexual, physical and emotional abuse.     

孝的多维心理结构：取向之异与古今之变

孝的内在结构具有多面性, 但以往孝的量表存在信效度不高、掺入研究者主观意图、遗漏重要因素等弊端。研究通过经典文本改编和被试自由生成而编制条目, 通过因素分析与效标分析等方法考察孝的结构( 总样本量 = 1725), 发现孝包含尊敬安乐父母、服从父母、和颜对待父母、守身不辱父母、陪伴父母、扬名以显父母、思慕父母、不干涉父母、劝谏父母, 九因素结构具有良好的信效度。不同因素与效标变量(家庭自我概念、家庭弹性、父母教养方式、亲子边界不当、自立人格、服从倾向)具有不同的关联模式。这些发现反映出儒学论孝的敬慕之别、敬顺之变。此外讨论了不同因素的古今变迁。     

Development of child autonomy in eating and toilet training: One- to three-year-old Japanese and French children

This study analyses the interface between children's culture and their development as they learn to perform the daily activities of eating and toileting in culturally appropriate ways. Thirty-three Japanese and 36 French children 12-31 months of age and adults' interventions were observed in public day care centres in Tokyo and in Paris. Within the same time frame, a survey was conducted among the adults (parents and nursery staff) to examine their developmental expectations for children. Observations reveal differences between children's learning in the two countries. Toilet training begins at a later age in Japan and is learned more quickly, whereas learning to eat alone begins earlier than in France but is acquired at a slower pace. The analysis of the surveys shows some discrepancy between adults' conceptions and actual interactions. In both countries, the developmental decrease in physical intervention corresponded with the progress of the child, but adult interventions and strategies varied according to the different cultures. The presence of Japanese adults is greater than those in France, but this does not mean that they intervene physically more often. Finally, instrumental independence begins slightly earlier in Japan.     

Reflections on becoming a psychologist: Professional development experiences of students in a South African psychology graduate program

This study sought to describe student psychologists’ experiences of their professional preparation activities in which they used reflective journals. The students (n =7; female = 71%, black = 86%) were enrolled in a masters training program in the clinical and the counselling psychology programmes at a reputable University in South Africa. Over a period of the ten months of their first academic year, they completed reflective journals on aspects of their professional practice preparation. The reflective journals were thematically analysed to depict how the students framed their experiences. Findings yielded four themes that defined the students’ emerging professional identities: positive feelings about the profession, commitment to high standards of practice, concerns about high work loading, and a sense of learning community. Reflective practice capabilities appear important for early professional identity development from pre-service psychology practice education.     

Assessing the Clinical Competence of Psychology Students Through Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs): Student and Staff Views

Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) are a well‐known, reliable, and valid assessment method used across the healthcare sector. In the present study, we applied OSCEs in three units within professional postgraduate psychology courses, with the broad aims of identifying staff and student perceptions of the assessment. At the conclusion of each OSCE, staff and students completed a feedback questionnaire that contained both scaled and open‐ended questions. Results suggest that clinical psychology OSCEs can be stressful for students, but are also well regarded. Both staff and students felt that the OSCEs were realistic, valid, and aligned well with professional practice. Students reported differences in the way in which they prepared for the OSCEs compared with a written exam or other form of assessment, while staff noted that models of OSCE development must be flexible, to adequately assess the objectives of individual units. Further, because they can be a costly exercise, OSCEs need to be applied judiciously within the tertiary sector.     

Participatory action research: towards (non-ideal) epistemic justice in a university in South Africa

ABSTRACT

The paper explores the possibilities for promoting epistemic justice in a South African university setting through a participatory action-based photovoice research project in which university researchers worked alongside undergraduate students with no prior experience of doing research. The student voices are employed to understand how learning as capability development and agency expansion can advance epistemic justice in a university setting of hierarchical relationships that make participatory action research challenging. The paper considers how, in this project, spaces of epistemic democracy intersected with the expansion of multidimensional functionings, resulting in more epistemic justice for the student-researchers. The paper considers the possibilities for change through a participatory project toward promoting epistemic justice at the individual level. It also explores some criticisms of the limits of such individual development in the face of structural challenges.     

Narrating survival and change in Guatemala and South Africa: the politics of representation and a liberatory community psychology

Peace accords and international interventions have contributed to the suspension of armed conflict and the censuring of repressive regimes in many parts of the world. Some governments and their opposition parties have agreed to the establishment of commissions or other bodies designed to create historical records of the violations of human rights and foster conditions that facilitate reparatory and reconciliatory processes. This paper explores selected roles that community psychologists have played in this process of remembering the past and constructing new identities towards creating a more just future. With reference to two community groups (in Guatemala and South Africa) we show how efforts to speak out about one's own experiences of political and military repression involve complex representational politics that go beyond the simple binary opposition of silencing versus giving voice. The Guatemalan group consisted of Mayan Ixil women who, together with the first author, used participatory action research and the PhotoVoice technique to produce a book about their past and present struggles. The South African group, working within the ambit of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and in collaboration with the third author and others, explored ways of speaking about their roles in apartheid and post-apartheid society. Although both these initiatives can be seen as moments in on-going struggles to overcome externally-imposed repressive practices that censor the voices of marginalized communities, they also serve to dispel overly romanticized notions of univocal communities now liberated to express themselves in an unmediated and unequivocal fashion. The paper discusses how each group of women instead entered into subtly nuanced relationships with community psychologists involving a continual interplay between the authenticity of their self-representational accounts and the requirements of the discursive technologies into which they were being inducted and the material conditions within their sites of struggle. In both cases the group's agenda also evolved over time, so that what emerged was not so much a particular account of themselves, or even the development of a particular voice for speaking about themselves, but an unfolding process—for the groups and for the community psychologists who accompanied them—of becoming active players in the postmodern, mediated world of self-representational politics and social struggle.     

Psychometric Properties of the Short Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SSRQ) in a South African Context

Self-regulation (SR), an important construct within the psychological well-being context, involves the ability to monitor behaviour, to contrast it with reference values and to introduce adjustments where necessary. A lack of validated measures of SR in the South African context has contributed to the current caveat in our knowledge of the potential importance of this construct. This investigation aimed to establish the utility of the Short Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SSRQ; Carey, Neal & Collins, 2004) in a South African context. This short version of the original Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SRQ; Brown, Miller & Lawendowski, 1999) was completed by a group of 385 undergraduate psychology students. Factor analysis produced 7 factors, all of which showed significant positive correlations with other measures of psychological well-being. This first step toward establishing the importance of SR in non-Western cultures reflected positively on the potential use of the SSRQ in large epidemiological studies.     

Evolution of the wealth gap in child development and mediating pathways: Evidence from a longitudinal study in Bogota,Colombia

Large gaps in cognition and language on the Bayley‐III between the top and bottom household wealth quartiles in 1,330 children aged 6–42 months in a representative sample of low‐ and middle‐income families in Bogota were previously shown. Maternal education and the home environment mediated these wealth effects, whereas height‐for‐age mediated a small amount of the language deficit only. At ages 6–8 years, we relocated 72% of the children and assessed their IQ on the WISC‐V, school achievement, and behavior to investigate the evolution of the wealth gaps and potential mediators. The wealth gap in IQ at 6–8 years was significantly larger than that in a factor combining Bayley‐III language and cognition at 6–42 months; whereas the gap in achievement was larger but not significantly. Moreover, in cross‐sectional analysis, the IQ gap increased from 6 to 8 years reaching over 1 SD. In contrast, the gap in behavior was not significant in either childhood stage. Parental education and early home environment remained major mediators of the wealth gap in IQ and achievement at 6–8 years; later home environment and attending private education also had an effect; and early height‐for‐age was no longer significant. The home environment partly mediated the effect of parental education on wealth. All mediators combined explained most of the variance in the wealth gap; the remaining gaps being not significant. Results highlight the importance of the early home environment and suggest that interventions focusing on that should have long‐term benefits. Also, continued intervention through to 8 years may be desirable. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at https://youtu.be/_U53iXNww3I .     

Tele‐web Psychology in Rural South Australia: The Logistics of Setting Up a Remote University Clinic Staffed by Clinical Psychologists in Training

There is a significant shortage of clinical psychology services in rural and remote Australia. It is proposed that tele‐web psychology may provide one potential solution to this inequity in health provision. A tele‐web psychology project was developed through a partnership between a university and country health service setting in rural South Australia. Tele‐web psychology was conducted by Provisional Psychologists on their first clinical placement, with patients attending sessions in a community mental health team hub in a regional centre north of Adelaide. This article describes the logistics of setting up a collaborative tele‐web psychology service and makes recommendations on how to expedite the success of this type of venture.