A Pilot Study of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy as a Workshop Intervention for Body Dissatisfaction and Disordered Eating Attitudes

Body image dissatisfaction is a source of significant distress among non-eating-disordered women, but because it is subclinical it is generally not treated. It remains stable throughout adulthood, and has proven resistant to many prevention interventions. This study presents a pilot test of a practical alternative: a 1-day Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) workshop targeting body dissatisfaction and disordered eating attitudes. Women with body dissatisfaction (N = 73) were randomly assigned to the workshop or to a wait list. Participants in both conditions also completed appetite awareness self-monitoring of hunger and satiety. After a brief 2-week follow-up, wait-list participants were also offered the workshop. Eating attitudes, body anxiety, and preoccupation with eating, weight, and shape improved in both arms of the study following the workshop. Participants in the ACT group showed significant reductions in body-related anxiety and significant increases in acceptance when compared to the wait-list control condition. ACT presented as a brief workshop intervention may be applicable for a broad range of women experiencing disordered eating attitudes and distress related to eating and body image; however, larger studies with longer follow-ups are needed.     

Therapists' Use of DBT: A Survey Study of Clinical Practice

The purpose of this study was to examine how therapists conduct Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) individual psychotherapy with clients, focusing on clinical factors that could account for decisions regarding modifications of DBT (e.g., client diagnosis, therapist theoretical orientation, and intensity of DBT training). Additionally, the study investigated how therapists integrate DBT into their primary approach to therapy. Greater adherence to the DBT protocol was reported by therapists who described using DBT with a client with a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder. More frequent use of DBT components (i.e., group skills training, consultation teams, and telephone consultation) was reported by therapists who viewed their therapy as being guided by an applied behavior analysis/radical behavioral theoretical orientation and by therapists who had received intensive DBT training. Most therapists reported using DBT skills in their non-DBT work, with non-cognitive-behavioral therapists more likely to introduce mindfulness skills.     

Group CBT for Externalizing Disorders in Urban Schools: Effect of Training Strategy on Treatment Fidelity and Child Outcomes

Public schools are an ideal setting for the delivery of mental health services to children. Unfortunately, services provided in schools, and more so in urban schools, have been found to lead to little or no significant clinical improvements. Studies with urban school children seldom report on the effects of clinician training on treatment fidelity and child outcomes. This study examines the differential effects of two levels of school-based counselor training: training workshop with basic consultation (C) vs. training workshop plus enhanced consultation (C +) on treatment fidelity and child outcomes. Fourteen school staff members (counselors) were randomly assigned to C or C +. Counselors implemented a group cognitive behavioral therapy protocol (Coping Power Program, CPP) for children with or at risk for externalizing behavior disorders. Independent coders coded each CPP session for content and process fidelity. Changes in outcomes from pre to post were assessed via a parent psychiatric interview and interviewer-rated severity of illness and global impairment. Counselors in C + delivered CPP with significantly higher levels of content and process fidelity compared to counselors in C. Both C and C + resulted in significant improvement in interviewer-rated impairment; the conditions did not differ from each other with regard to impairment. Groups did not differ with regard to pre- to- posttreatment changes in diagnostic severity level. School-based behavioral health staff in urban schools are able to implement interventions with fidelity and clinical effectiveness when provided with ongoing consultation. Enhanced consultation resulted in higher fidelity. Enhanced consultation did not result in better student outcomes compared to basic consultation. Implications for resource allocation decisions with staff training in EBP are discussed.     

a model for training workshops and labs

This article describes a model for designing workshops and laboratories for training people in helping skills. The model functions to assist planners in creating learning experiences that maximize retention and transfer to counselors' own work as trainers. The three levels of the model focus on meeting participant needs for acquiring (a) personal awareness and a theory base, (b) individual communication skills, and (c) selected professional competencies. Best results are obtained when workshop leaders follow an integrative principle of design that requires each activity to meet participant needs associated with at least two of the three levels of the model.     

La formation dans l’enseignement de la psychologie pour les étudiants de cycle supérieur : les compétences essentielles pour les nouveaux enseignants

What pedagogical skills are necessary for first-time college instructors? Ninety-two faculty (M = 41.3 years old, 68% female, 90.2% white, 91% born in the US) and 64 graduate students (M = 28.3 years old, 83% female, 87.5% white, 81% born in the US) listed the top three skills they believed were essential to instructors’ success in the college classroom. Despite differing levels of classroom teaching experience, graduate students and faculty members prioritized “survival” skills: public speaking, organization, and content mastery. Notable differences did emerge: faculty members were more likely to list reflection on teaching and graduate students were more likely to list classroom management and comfort with technology. Faculty also preferred more informal training methods (e.g., self-reflection, mentorship), whereas graduate students preferred more formal training methods (e.g., practice/experience, seminar/workshop). Recommendations for graduate teacher training programs include a focus on lower as well as higher-level skills and an attempt to incorporate formal and informal training methods.     

A Gender Role Workshop Focused on Sexism,Gender Role Conflict,and the Gender Role Journey

A 6-day gender role workshop for adult men and women, using the phases of the gender role journey, is presented. The workshop's curriculum and process are described, including its assumptions, norms, and media. Movie clips, music, music videos, and academic content were used to promote participants' learning in both the cognitive and affective domains. Systematic follow-up evaluations of participants ( N =84) in three separate workshops are reported using Likert scaled questions. These evaluations assessed participants' personal learning, emotional reactions, and the workshop's overall impact over l-month and 1-and 2-year follow-up periods. Results indicate that participants were affected personally and professionally over the various time periods.     

Preparing young veterans for civilian life: The effects of a workshop on career decision-making difficulties and self-efficacy

The current study mapped the career decision-making difficulties and career decision self-efficacy of 1315 young veterans who participated in a 5-day workshop aimed at facilitating their transition to civilian life. A pre- and post-test comparison showed that participation in the workshop reduced (d = 0.57) the participants' career decision-making difficulties (measured by the CDDQ; Gati, Krausz, & Osipow, 1996) and increased (d = 0.77) their career decision self-efficacy (measured by the CDSE; Taylor & Betz, 1983). A more advanced decision status, as reflected in the participants' Range of Considered Alternatives (Saka & Gati, 2007), was negatively associated with participants' career decision-making difficulties, and positively associated with career decision self-efficacy. However, a more advanced decision status and the perceived effectiveness of the workshop were not associated with the decrease in difficulties and the increase in self-efficacy that resulted from participating in the workshop. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Pre-Retirement Planning on the Campus:

Fourteen subjects, approximately 50-60 years of age, participated in a six-session, pre-retirement planning workshop held on the campus of Thiel College. Topics covered during the twohour, weekly sessions were attitudes toward aging and retirement; financial planning; desirable retirement locations; use of leisure time, hobbies and skills; holistic health; and legal affairs. Information on these topics was obtained through large and small group discussions, resource speakers, and homework assignments. Participants gave high evaluations to most aspects of the workshop. It was concluded that Lutheran college campuses can be good sites for pre-retirement planning workshops and that these workshops can be beneficial to the colleges as well as to the participants. Comparison of this workshop with similar ones and modifications of the workshop are also discussed.     

An Anxiety Sensitivity Reduction Smoking-Cessation Program for Spanish-Speaking Smokers (Argentina)

The present study evaluated a Spanish-language version of an Anxiety Sensitivity Reduction Program for Smoking Cessation among a sample of daily adult smokers from Argentina (n = 6; M_age = 49.4, SD = 15.43) in an open trial methodological design. To be eligible, each participant expressed a current desire to quit smoking and previous difficulties with anxiety/mood symptoms during past quit attempts (e.g., anxiety, stress, depression, irritability). Participants completed a baseline assessment and received eight 90-minute weekly group sessions. The study involved one doctoral-level and two graduate-level therapists. Follow-up visits were scheduled at 1, 2, 4, 8, and 12 weeks post-quit day. Smoking status was confirmed biochemically and via self-report at quit day and each follow-up assessment. The treatment yielded positive results in terms of attendance, positive smoking cessation outcome (5 out of 6 were abstinent at 12-week follow-up), and significant reductions in anxiety sensitivity. The results suggest potential clinical utility among Spanish-speaking smokers for an anxiety-sensitivity smoking cessation program in regard to cessation outcome.     

The value of reflective journaling with advanced piano students

Benefits to using a reflective journal include developing critical awareness and new perspective, problem-solving skills, and independent learning skills. The training of advanced piano students could be enhanced by the addition of journals to assist with their piano practice, specifically when learning new repertoire. Using the model by Plack and colleagues for developing and assessing reflection in reflective journal entries, we examined the journal entries of 18 advanced piano students to explore the development of reflection over a period of four weeks. Results suggest that reflectively trained piano students develop more critical reflection compared to a control group. Reflectively trained students perceive the same benefits to journaling as their counterparts in other disciplines. The most frequently referenced reflective elements include listing practice strategies and expressing feelings about the learning process. The reflective training model used in this study can be implemented by piano teachers and piano students.     

Promoting career preparedness and intrinsic work-goal motivation: RCT intervention

We examined the role of an in-company training program aimed at enhancing employees' intrinsic work-goal motivation by increasing their career preparedness in a randomized field experimental study. The program activities were implemented using an organization-level two-trainer model with trainers from the human resources management and occupational health services. Within-organizations randomly assigned field experimental study (RCT) investigated the impact of the intervention on immediate career preparedness and both immediate and follow-up intrinsic work-goal motivation. A total of 718 eligible individuals filled in and returned the questionnaire in 17 organizations and became voluntary participants. The respondents were randomly assigned to either intervention (N = 369) or control groups (N = 349). Those in the intervention group were invited to group intervention workshops, whereas the control group received printed material covering the information content of the intervention. The participants filled in the work-goal questionnaires before intervention, after the week-long intervention and seven months later. In addition they filled in a career preparedness scale before and after the intervention. The results showed that intervention increased career preparedness which in turn was related to intrinsic work-goal motivation and increased intrinsic work-goal motivation at the follow-up.     

Transfert de la conscience morphologique de l’arabe langue première au français langue seconde au cours des trois premières années d’apprentissage

There is a great deal of evidence to support the role of morphological awareness in reading development. However, towards second language acquisition, transfer of morphological awareness from first to second language (L1 to L2) is still discussed. The underlying question concerns the extent to which morphological awareness is a specific or universal process, and its dependence of linguistic features. The aim of this study is to examine cross-linguistic transfer of morphological awareness from Arabic L1 to French L2 (morphological awareness and word reading) at different level of learning French L2 (F_L2). 106 Tunisian children, whose first language is Arabic, in 1st (n = 29; mean age; 8; 10 years), 2nd (n = 33; mean age; 9; 9 years) or 3rd year (n = 44; mean age; 10; 10 years) of learning F_L2 participated to this study. Their morphological awareness (inflectional or derivational oddity detection tasks) and their performance in word reading (one minute test) were assessed in standard Arabic and French, as well as their vocabulary knowledge in French. A series of fixed-order hierarchical regression analysis was performed on derivational awareness performances, inflectional awareness performances and word reading performances in F_L2, controlling for effects of other important variables (e.g. French vocabulary, French morphological awareness with word reading scores as outcome variable and French inflectional or derivational awareness with French inflectional or derivational awareness scores as outcome variable respectively, Arabic word reading, etc.). Results show significant contributions of L1 morpho-derivational awareness on F_L2 morpho-derivational awareness in 2nd year (12%), and of L1 morphological awareness on reading words F_L2 in 3^rd year (5%). These results confirm the cross-linguistic transfer of morphological awareness, particularly derivational, from L1 to L2 among alphabetic — but orthographically and morphologically distances — languages. They also suggest that such a transfer could be relatively limited. It could appear during learning process after achieving a threshold in F_L2 and before specific L2 skills take place. Thus, beyond the morphological opacity of Arabic (nonlinear morphology) and linguistic distance between Arabic and French, the morphological transfer could appear on rich and important morphological dimension in L1 and suggest dealing with the nature of cross-linguistic abilities in depth.     

The effects of autonomous difficulty selection on engagement,motivation, and learning in a motion-controlled video game task

This experiment investigated the relationship between motivation, engagement, and learning in a video game task. Previous studies have shown increased autonomy during practice leads to superior retention of motor skills, but it is not clear why this benefit occurs. Some studies suggest this benefit arises from increased motivation during practice; others suggest the benefit arises from better information processing. Sixty novice participants were randomly assigned to a self-controlled group, who chose the progression of difficulty during practice, or to a yoked group, who experienced the same difficulty progression but did not have choice. At the end of practice, participants completed surveys measuring intrinsic motivation and engagement. One week later, participants returned for a series of retention tests at three different difficulty levels. RM-ANCOVA (controlling for pre-test) showed that the self-controlled group had improved retention compared to the yoked group, on average, β = 46.78, 95% CI = [2.68, 90.87], p = 0.04, but this difference was only statistically significant on the moderate difficulty post-test (p = 0.004). The self-controlled group also showed greater intrinsic motivation during practice, t(58) = 2.61, p = 0.01. However, there was no evidence that individual differences in engagement (p = 0.20) or motivation (p = 0.87) were associated with learning, which was the relationship this experiment was powered to detect. These data are inconsistent with strictly motivational accounts of how autonomy benefits learning, instead suggesting the benefits of autonomy may be mediated through other mechanisms. For instance, within the information processing framework, the learning benefits may emerge from learners appropriately adjusting difficulty to maintain an appropriate level of challenge (i.e., maintaining the relationship between task demands and cognitive resources).     

A Parent-Teen Collaborative Treatment Model for Academically Impaired High School Students With ADHD

The current study pilots a low-intensity behavioral intervention for parents and high school students with ADHD that promotes parent-teen collaboration at home and in session (Supporting Teens’ Academic Needs Daily-Group; STAND-G). Twenty-three high school students with ADHD and their parents were randomly assigned to receive an 8-week behavioral treatment beginning in October, January, or March. Weekly data were collected from students’ online grade books for 37 weeks of the school year to monitor changes in academic functioning through baseline, posttreatment, and follow-up phases. Students who had not yet received the treatment served as a control group for students who completed treatment. Qualitative and quantitative ratings of satisfaction, improvement, and parent implementation of home-based behavioral strategies were collected. Results indicated parent and teen satisfaction with STAND-G, parent compliance with intervention strategies, and a range of parent-rated therapeutic benefits (i.e., organization and time-management skills, academic conscientiousness, parent-teen communication, adolescent autonomy). Findings for the objective grade book data were mixed, with Group 2 (January), but not Group 1 (October), displaying identifiable acute improvements relative to control students. However, both groups evaluated at follow-up displayed meaningful improvements in the percentage of work turned in up to 2 months out of treatment. With these results in mind, we discuss the importance of tailoring interventions to the lives of high school students with ADHD and the future of treatment development and delivery for this often underserved population.     

Life and times ofthe israel association for family therapy

Abstract

Given the critical role that workshops play in the education and continuing education of marriage and family therapists, it is essential that attention be turned to evaluating these events. This paper reports on a preliminary investigation into how selected presenter and participant factors influence workshop evaluations. The results suggest that workshop participants generally concur on ratings of workshops, but that their ages and AAMFT membership status influence their ratings of conferences taken as a whole. In addition, presenters were found to have an unexpectedly accurate sense of how their workshops were rated. Future research directions are suggested.     

Generalization of skills between operant control and discrimination of EEG alpha

While biofeedback is often said to increase self-control of physiological states by increasing awareness of their subjective correlates, relatively few studies have analyzed the relationship between control (standard biofeedback) and awareness (a discrimination paradigm). We hypothesized that the two skills would generalize and facilitate each other for 8–12 Hz EEG amplitude (alpha). Participants were given 7 sessions of training to either control or discriminate Pz alpha followed by 3 sessions of the other paradigm. Another group was given 7 sessions with time divided equally between the two types of training. The control-training first group showed significant generalization of skills to the discrimination task. However, the reverse was not true, and the combined task group did no better in either task than the other two groups. These results provide ambivalent support for the role of awareness in biofeedback, and suggest possible improvements in the discrimination paradigm.     

Prevention programme for eating disturbances in adolescents. Is their effect on body image maintained at 30 months later?

We assessed changes in the body image of Spanish adolescents who participated in a programme aimed at preventing disordered eating, with a 30-month follow-up. 254 girls and 189 boys aged 12–14 were assigned to a control group (n = 201) or one of two possible experimental conditions: media literacy programme (ML, n = 143) and media literacy plus nutrition awareness programme (ML + NUT, n = 99). Body image was assessed with the Body Image Questionnaire (Qüestionari d’Imatge Corporal; QÜIC). Pre-test, post-test, 7- and 30-month follow-up measurements were taken. Linear model analyses were carried out with a 2 × 3 × 3 ANOVA (sex × group × phase), adjusted by the baseline level. At 30-month follow-up, ML and ML + NUT participants showed fewer body problems and more body satisfaction than the control group. There is a need for prevention programmes addressing eating and body image disturbances that involve both boys and girls.     

Improving parent–child interactions through interactive reading workshops

IntroductionMany authors agree on the importance of training parents in early literacy strategies.ObjectiveThis study analyses the effects of an intervention to improve parent–child interactions during reading sessions, using interactive reading techniques.MethodThe design is exploratory and includes a treatment group (n = 22), which benefited from four interactive reading workshops, and a control group (n = 18), which did not benefit from specific training. Both groups read the same books, three times a week, for 10 weeks. The children come from middle socioeconomic backgrounds and attend preschool or kindergarten (grades 1–3).ResultsThe analyses were conducted on the basis of pre- and post-intervention video observations, coded using the Adult–Child Interactive Reading Inventory (ACIRI). Results from an ANCOVA show that parental behavior, and in turn child behavior, improves in post-intervention: parents improve their children's attention to the text and implement literacy strategies, while the children become more involved in the interactions.ConclusionInteractive reading workshops for parents improve the quantity and quality of parent–child interactions when reading books in a natural and playful context.     

THE ABSTRACT SUBLIME: Life as information waiting to be rewritten

We report here on a series of interaction-intensive, interdisciplinary workshops to foster collaboration among those who teach, study, and engage with the public about scientific developments and social change—the New England Workshop on Science and Social Change. We include one line of thinking that fed into the workshops and present an analysis of how they contribute to participants developing their interest and skills in collaboration. Workshop evaluations suggest that people are moved to develop themselves as collaborators when they view an experience or training as transformative. Four R's—respect, risk, revelation, and re-engagement—point to the important conditions for interactions among researchers to be experienced as transformative. Three considerations lie behind the focus on the process side of the workshops, not the specific workshop topics: (1) how best to fill in for readers what they missed out on by not being there; (2) workshops and meetings are a ubiquitous part of the culture of science and technology studies (STS) so it is valuable to examine this aspect of our own culture with a view to promoting positive changes; and (3) in some scientific fields organized multi-person collaborative processes form a highly valorized aspect of the culture of science, so reflection on experiences of participation and collaboration in STS might inform our analyses of fields that emphasize collaboration and group processes. Indeed, the authors' own involvement in the workshops extends our own STS work on actor networks and ‘heterogeneous engineering’, that is, the mobilization of a variety of resources by diverse agents spanning different realms of social action.     

Promoting parent academic expectations predicts improved school outcomes for low-income children entering kindergarten

This study explored patterns of change in the REDI (Research-based Developmentally Informed) Parent program (REDI-P), designed to help parents support child learning at the transition into kindergarten. Participants were 200 prekindergarten children attending Head Start (55% European-American, 26% African American, 19% Latino, 56% male, M_age = 4.45 years, SD = 0.29) and their primary caregivers, who were randomized to a 16-session home-visiting intervention (REDI-P) or a control group. Extending beyond a prior study documenting intervention effects on parenting behaviors and child kindergarten outcomes, this study assessed the impact of REDI-P on parent academic expectations, and then explored the degree to which intervention gains in three areas of parenting (parent-child interactive reading, parent-child conversations, parent academic expectations) predicted child outcomes in kindergarten (controlling for baseline values and a set of child and family characteristics). Results showed that REDI-P promoted significant gains in parent academic expectations, which in turn mediated intervention gains in child emergent literacy skills and self-directed learning. Results suggest a need to attend to the beliefs parents hold about their child's academic potential, as well as their behavioral support for child learning, when designing interventions to enhance the school success of children in low-income families.