Operational Psychology Post-9/11: A Decade of Evolution

Operational psychology continues to expand at a rapid rate. Over the course of the last decade, it has emerged from relative obscurity and developed into an exciting, and somewhat controversial, professional subdiscipline within psychology. As the community of operational psychologists has increased and matured, it has reached a tipping point, creating the need for practice guidelines, training programs, and a greater emphasis on operationally relevant empirical research. The starting point for these developments is an integrative definition of operational psychology. In this article, we revisit previous definitions, relevant research literature, and recent developments in this specialty. We propose a definition that emphasizes consultation to an operational decision maker concerning issues of national security and defense.     

Psychometric Properties of the Parenting Sense of Competence Scale in Treatment-Seeking Post-9/11 Veterans

Although evidence suggests deployment-related stress impacts parenting, few measures of parenting competency have been validated in returning post-9/11 veterans. As part of clinical care in a multidisciplinary clinic serving veterans and military families, 178 treatment-seeking OEF/OIF/OND veterans completed measures including the 16-item Parenting Sense of Competence Scale (PSOC), a widely-used measure of parental efficacy and satisfaction; the Family Assessment Device—general functioning subscale; and the depression, anxiety, and stress scale. Utilizing data from an IRB-approved de-identified data repository, we examined the psychometrics and factor structure of the PSOC. According to a proposed clinical cut-off, 10?% of our clinical sample of veterans exhibited low self-confidence in parenting. A confirmatory factor analysis of the 2-factor structure introducing correlated error terms between items 3 and 9, and between items 10 and 11, revealed to be a satisfactory fit to the data (Χ ² /df?=?1.57, RMSEA?=?0.056 [90?% CI 0.039–0.073]; CFI?=?0.928; TLI?=?0.914; SRMR?=?0.055). In addition, the PSOC exhibited good convergent validity with measures of parental distress (r?=??.22, p?<?0.01 with anxiety symptoms, and r?=??.33, p?<?.001 with depressive symptoms) and family functioning (r?=??.53, p?<?.0001), very good temporal stability (r?=?.81, p?<?.0.0001), and excellent internal consistency (α?=?.85). The PSOC exhibited satisfactory psychometric properties in treatment-seeking veterans and may be used by clinicians and researchers to assess parenting sense of competence, including satisfaction and sense of efficacy, in this population.     

9/11 as a new temporal phase for Islam

Since the bombing of the twin towers, ‘Islam’ as a cultural narrative has entered a new temporal phase which in many ways signifies the re-imagining of a religion through the visual imagery of 9/11 and the global events which have unfolded since the apocalyptic images were first witnessed by the world. The distant proximity of 9/11 and the relocation of the perceived Islamic ‘resurgent atavism’ within the heartlands of power in Western soil constitute the formation of a new sociological imagination of Islam and 9/11 as a new liminal temporality. The association of the religion with a new category of risks in urban sites and the constant state of insecurity in seemingly secure spaces represents a new narrative phase of geo-politics in which the locus of this re-imagining mediated through ICTs, is one that happens not just in faraway places but within the ‘ontological securities’ of Western modernity, posing a liquid threat which is impervious to territorially bounded spheres.     

Reactions to 9/11 as a function of terror management and perspective taking

The authors used terror management theory to investigate people's reactions to the terrorist attacks of 09/11/01. According to the theory, people have a primary need to eliminate or reduce existential terror in response to such horrific events as 9/11. The authors obtained people's reactions to 9/11, an event in which the threat to one's existence was more authentic than those of previous events that were imagined. The authors of the present study collected data two weeks after 9/11 from young adults on a large university campus in the U.S. Midwest. The authors asked participants about their proximal and distal reactions to 9/11 and their reasons or motives for those reactions. The results indicated that the vast majority of participants' proximal reactions to 9/11 were shock and/or disbelief, whereas their distal reactions included performing altruistic or prosocial behavior, searching for meaning or value in life, seeking or sharing information, spending time in talking to others, and making bigoted remarks about Arab Muslims. The main finding was that interpersonal communication is an important means of eliminating or reducing existential terror.     

When a Small Group Turned Large: An Existential Encounter on 11/9 as an Enactment of 9/11

This paper was drafted in late November and mid-December 2001, two to three months after 9/11/01, in the weeks following the Opening Plenary of the Eastern Group Psychotherapy Society's Annual Conference held on 11/9/01. It was written from the position of observer-discussant-participant and impromptu large group facilitator, with the aim of reviewing and drawing meaning from what transpired during the Conference's opening plenary, which focused on existential issues in group psychotherapy. The plenary was chaired by Dr. Bernard Frankel and was comprised of a short talk, demonstration group, discussants' responses, and audience reaction. The emphasis in this review is on the process, content, and synchronous impingement of a real-life event on a remarkable demonstration group. Being in the group demonstration on 11/9 so closely paralleled being in the world of 9/11 that a small group turned into a large group.     

The flexible application of a manualized treatment for PTSD symptoms and functional impairment related to the 9/11 World Trade Center attack

The purpose of this treatment effectiveness study was to evaluate the flexible application of a manualized cognitive behavioral treatment (CBT) for PTSD and related symptoms in survivors of the 9/11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Treatment delivery ranged from 12 to 25 sessions; therapist experience ranged from no prior training to extensive training in CBT; and training and supervision of clinicians in the treatment manual was considerably less than that required in a randomized clinical trial (RCT). Paired t-tests demonstrated significant pre-post reductions in symptoms of PTSD and depression for the flexible application of the treatment. A benchmarking analysis revealed that the moderate-to-large effect sizes found for these variables were similar to those obtained in an RCT of the same treatment. Furthermore, effect sizes on measures of outcomes particularly relevant to this population of mass violence survivors such as functional impairment, use of alcohol and drugs to cope, and use of social support to cope, were also medium to large.     

The Role of the Occupational Therapist as a Community Consultant

Concern for health development has been in the forefront of occupational therapy practice and training for many years. However, consultation in this area to community agencies and grass roots programs is a relatively new endeavor for occupational therapists. This article describes community consultation in a demonstration project emphasizing the concept of preventive mental health. Steps in establishing the consultation role are discussed using the theoretical constructs of systems consultation. Discussion of the educational objectives for field training in community mental health, community experience during the field training, and the supervisory and communication networks essential to such a program are presented as a model in developing the role of the occupational therapist as a community consultant.     

Consumerism and the Post-9/11 Paranoia: Michel Foucault on Power,Resistance, and Critical Thought

This paper intends to closely examine Michel Foucault’s take on power, resistance, and critical thought in the modern state, using the market-driven consumer economy and the paranoia-induced post-9/11 national security rhetoric as background. It will argue that on both domains, knowledge as similitude comes to be represented as part of the repressive configuration in the order of things. In retracing the technology of discipline where the individual unknowingly participates in his latent subjugation, the author thinks that critical thought—one that diverts power away from the center to the peripheries is the only effective way of resistance against forms of social control and domination.     

Strengthening Resilience in a Risky World: It's All About Relationships

SUMMARY

Building on Judith Jordan's earlier work on relational resilience, this paper challenges the commonly held view that resilience is a unique form of individual “toughness” endowed to a lucky few and suggests that resilience can be strengthened in all people through participation in growth-fostering relationships. The author reviews the research describing individual, internal characteristics associated with resilience and explores the relational aspects of these characteristics. A case example illustrates that efforts promoting relational development help people grow through and beyond experiences of hardship and adversity. In addition, the author proposes specific ways resilience can be strengthened through engagement in relationships that enhance one's intellectual development, sense of worth, sense of competence, sense of empowerment, and, most importantly, sense of connection.     

Recall of 9/11/01 as an Indicator of Cognitive Functioning in the Elderly

The purpose of this study was to assess the relationship between the recall of a highly salient remote event, the terrorist attack in New York City on 9/11/01, and general cognitive functioning in the elderly. A heterogeneous group (n = 93) of persons ≥65 years of age (M = 76.5, SD = 6.4), from both community and hospital settings, were asked to describe as much as they could remember about the events of 9/11/01 in New York City. The number of correct factual details, affective or emotional responses, and incorrect details were recorded. Ten multiple choice questions were then administered to assess recognition of the 9/11 events (M = 9.1 items correct, SD = 1.2). The mini mental state exam (MMSE) was also administered (M = 26.3, SD = 3.4). Participants generated a mean of 4.8 (SD = 3) correct factual details about 9/11, 1.1 affective/emotional responses (SD = 1.1), and 0.22 incorrect recollections (SD = 0.46). Significant correlations (p &;lt; .01) were found between correct details recalled and the MMSE (0.42), education (0.37), and age (?0.31). A significant negative correlation (p &;lt; .01) was found between incorrect details recalled and MMSE scores (?0.38). Female participants generated significantly more affective responses than males (M = 1.3 vs. 0.51; p &;lt; .001) but recall of correct details was equivalent. The recall of 9/11 events, approximately 18 months after the incident, appears related to general mental status, education, and age. Responses to this question may be helpful in assessing the mental status of the elderly. In addition, now that objective memory data has been established, recall of this event by other samples of seniors can be monitored over time to determine the cognitive processes related to the storage and retrieval of this unique and tragic event.     

Asian American families' collectivistic coping strategies in response to 9/11

Our study investigated the use of individualistic and collectivistic coping strategies among Asian American family members of victims of the World Trade Center (WTC) attacks on September 11th, 2001. Interviews were conducted with 11 Asian Americans who had lost a member of their family in the WTC attacks. Using the Discovery-Oriented Research analysis (Mahrer, 1988), results indicated that Asian Americans utilized the following collectivistic coping methods to deal with their losses: individualistic coping, familial coping, intracultural coping, relational universality, forbearance, fatalism/ spirituality, and indigenous healing methods. Additionally, our research found that cultural stigmata, privacy issues, and lack of culturally responsive counselors were factors in participants not utilizing available mental health services. Implications for culturally appropriate services, counseling, and research are discussed.     

After 9/11 at Ground Zero: The Anxiety-Buffering Effects of Worldview Support on the First Anniversary of 9/11

A field experiment adjacent to the former World Trade Center in New York City on the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks examined the prediction of terror management theory (TMT; Greenberg, Pyszcznyski, & Solomon, 1986) that individuals validate their cultural beliefs when exposed to subtle rather than overt death reminders. Participants (N = 410) who were exposed to a subtle reminder of 9/11 perceived more social consensus for their belief than those who were exposed to an overt one. Consistent with TMT, the pattern was especially strong for participants with the minority belief. The effect abated once the anniversary ended. The implications of this research and future directions are discussed.     

How to Fail as a Therapist: 50 Ways to Lose or Damage Your Patients

Bernard Schwartz & John V. Flowers. (2006). How to Fail as a Therapist: 50 Ways to Lose or Damage Your Patients.     

The Al Qaeda 9/11 instructions: a study in the construction of religious martyrdom

A growing global concern about suicide attacks has led to attempts from various disciplines to understand the psychological profiles of persons willing to commit suicide terrorist attacks. Recent reports have suggested that more powerful explanatory models might be discovered using social psychological concepts, with a shift of focus from the individual to the group within which the individual acts and by which the individual is influenced. This paper attempts to do so by presenting an analysis of the Al Qaeda ‘final instructions’ document, which sheds light on the way members of this group were mobilised towards conducting one of the most devastating assaults in modern history. We discuss the use of religious doctrine and rhetorical devices as a psychological strategy employed by this group to inspire, control and mobilise its members before and during the September 11, 2001, attacks.     

Stress symptoms one year after 9/11/01: a follow-up

This study investigated whether stress symptoms related to attention deficit previously found for a sample (n= 149) of Chicago-area college students 1 to 5 weeks after the September 11th attacks were present in a comparable sample (n = 129) 12 to 14 months later. As hypothesized, the later participants had a significantly lower mean score on the scale, Attention Deficit of the Smith Stress Symptoms Inventory, than a different group of participants tested immediately after the attacks. Mean Attention Deficit scores for groups after one year and immediately before September 11th (n=320) did not differ statistically. Findings are consistent with the interpretation that elevations in scores on Attention Deficit immediately after September 11th were indeed associated with the catastrophic attacks and not artifacts of time of examination. Consistent with previous research with this inventory, disaster-related traumatic stress scores are lower over time, although here no control group was included.     

The World of Work as a Subsystem

When beginning a systems analysis of work and its relationship to employment counseling, at least three issues must be considered. First, the historical and cultural definitions of work; second, the meaning and expectations that each individual attaches to work; and third, the potential impact of employment counseling on the lives of people.     

Dilemmas in military medical ethics since 9/11

The attack on the United States by terrorists on 9/11 and the war with Iraq have raised new ethical questions for the military and for military physicians (Herman 2002; Elshtain 2003). How and when attacks may occur now is less predictable. Planes have been hijacked, and persons dressed as civilians may carry bombs to blow themselves and others up. These dangers pose an increased threat, and, thus, there is a need for new defensive measures. How far these measures should go is, however, greatly open to debate. One of the most difficult ethical question raised for the military and military doctors by these developments is what interrogation methods are permissable when questioning captured terrorists. The licitness of different interrogation practices is, however, only one of the ethical problems potentially encountered by military physicians now having to treat terrorists and POWs. The following discussion presents the major concerns regarding this and other issues.     

The role of the bereavement group in the face of 9/11: a self-psychology perspective

The sudden traumatic loss of a spouse equates to an assault on self and the loss of both an internal and external self-object. Mourning requires compensatory self-objects to help in the restoration of self and in the creation of new self-structure. The catastrophe of 9/11 not only assaulted thousands with unanticipated traumatic loss, but also devastated the usual networks of support. In this light, the bereavement group became a valuable venue for self-restoration and recovery. In her group work with 9/11 corporate and uniformed service widows, the author applies a self-psychology perspective that considers that empathic immersion not only affords safety and stabilization, but the opportunity to have self-object needs met in a process that restores and develops self-structure. She proposes the bereavement group as a cohesive self-object milieu serving mirroring, twinship, and idealizing needs. Drawing upon clinical examples, she illuminates the capacity of the group to establish safety, regulate affect, reduce isolation and shame, rekindle memory, and foster coping skills. As such, the group affords a restoration of the assaulted self, an integration of the loss, and an emerging redefinition of self.     

Heidegger's Brightness as a Responsibility of the Therapist in Existential Family Therapy

The author reflects upon the Heideggerian concepts of thrown-ness, death imagery, arrogance and brightness and their usefulness in existential family therapy. The article describes and illustrates with clinical material the process of helping a couple or family to move from an arrogance response to thrownness and death imagery to the response of brightness as attendants of Being. The responsibilities of the therapist in facilitating such a process are also described.Director of the Worthington Logotherapy Institute, co-director of Lantz and Lantz Counseling Associates, and a professor at The Ohio State University. College of Social Work