Vocational Personality Traits in Counselor Education and School Psychology Students

We assessed the vocational personality of 104 graduate students in school counseling, mental health counseling, and school psychology programs using Holland's ( 1997 ) theory of personality and career choice. The correlational findings confirmed the importance of vocational personality traits in relation to the academic performance of graduate students. Among the Self‐Directed Search–Revised vocational personality types, the Investigative type emerged as a consistent predictor of performance on all sections of the Graduate Record Examination. The participants from 3 graduate programs predominantly identified Social as their primary vocational personality type, with variability in the secondary and tertiary code positions. The student group with the highest degree of congruence, defined as the degree of fit between one's personality and the environment, had the highest graduate grade point average, indicating the relationship between the degree of congruence and achievement. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.     

Burnout in School Psychology

This study examined levels of bumout and relationships between burnout and selected personality characteristics and role expectations in a sample of school psychologists employed as practitioners in school settings. The results indicated that personality variables related significantly to burnout over and above demographic and work condition variables. Higher levels of burnout were associated with tendencies to be high in competitiveness and egocentricity and low in conscientiousness and extraversion. Professionals who reported higher levels of burnout indicated greater dissatisfaction with their professional roles, preferring to devote more time to consultation and counseling activities. The implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Identifying Critical Cross-Cultural School Psychology Competencies

The purpose of this study was to identify critical cross-cultural competencies for school psychologists. This study used a Delphi procedure to bring together the expertise of a national sample of cross-cultural experts, including school psychology practitioners, faculty, and supervisors/administrators of whom 62% represented a racial/ethnic minority group member. To identify the competencies, we conducted an extensive literature search about cross-cultural school psychology competencies then used a questionnaire to ask expert panelists to rate the importance of the literature based competencies and to delineate additional competencies not represented in the integrated literature but based on expert opinion. The literature yielded 185 competencies and the panelists generated 75 additional competencies. Following the second questionnaire round, 102 competencies were identified as critical cross-cultural competencies. The 102 competencies cover 14 major domains of professional activities and practices for school psychologists (e.g., Academic Interventions, Assessment, Consultation, Counseling, Culture, Language, Laws and Regulations, Organizational Skills, Professional Characteristics, Report Writing, Research Methods, Theoretical Paradigms, Working with Interpreters, and Working with Parents). Implications for research and training are discussed.     

学校心理学发展的国际现状

该文系统考察了学校心理学发展的国际现状。具体探究了学校心理学的国际背景、起源及现状;国际上学校心理学的组织和认证、学校心理学家的培养;揭示了当前国际上学校心理学遇到的一些问题;最后,指出了学校心理学未来发展的国际趋势。     

国外学校心理学的发展及其启示

本文首先考察了国外学校心理学的发展历史和现状,并对国外学校心理学的发展趋势作出了预测。接着从我国中小学生及大学生的心理健康现状及我回学校心理服务现状两方面分析了建立我国学校心理学的条件。最后,对如何建立建设我国学校心理学提出了建议。     

Precursors of Vocational Psychology in Ancient Civilizations

The authors examine philosophical theories produced by two ancient civilizations (Eastern Mediterranean and Chinese) for applications to an applied psychology of work and conclude that they possessed recognizably “modern” elements of an effective vocational psychology.     

A School Psychologist's Self-Study Guide to Sport Psychology

SUMMARY

School psychologists may find the field of sport psychology beneficial to them in extending their skills and effectiveness. As trained psychologists, they are likely to already have some of the knowledge and skills necessary for working in the area of sport psychology. However, without additional training, this may not be sufficient for ethical and effective practice. This article enumerates the necessary knowledge and skills for working in sport psychology according to APA's recent proficiency standards. It then details a plethora of available resources and methods for entering into the domain of sport psychology. The article emphasizes self-study while continuing to practice ethically within the ‘boundaries of one's competence.’     

Child Saving and the Emergence of Vocational Psychology

Vocational psychology emerged at the beginning of the 20th in a context of social and political change known as the “progressive era.” A popular progressive theme was “child saving,” a movement that expressed concern for the physical, educational, emotional, and social well-being of children and adolescents. Vocational guidance was one manifestation of this and served as the foundation for the emergence first of vocational psychology and later of counseling psychology. The concern for and care of youth was gradually replaced by the professionalization of psychology that over time has changed the focus and direction of vocational psychology.     

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.