TRAINING TEAM PERFORMANCE-RELATED ASSERTIVENESS

The present paper extends the existing literature on assertiveness in a way that supports industrial training as well as the selection of individuals for team positions. Data are reported from three studies that examined determinants of team performance-related assertiveness. First, data from 149 college students demonstrated that assertiveness consists of multiple dimensions which were not all related to performance in a team decision-making task. Second, data obtained from 225 business students indicated that correlations among self-report measures and peer ratings of the same assertive responses assigned by intact team members varied according to the interpersonal context (i.e., personal, stranger, work related) in which scale items were framed. Third, data from 60 college students suggested that team performance-related assertiveness has a significant skill component. Whereas both attitudinally focused and skill-based training improved attitudes toward team member assertiveness, practice and feedback were essential to producing behavioral effects. Implications for selection and team training are discussed.     

Forgiveness: A dynamic,theological and therapeutic analysis

This essay attempts to explicate the concept of forgiveness first from a psychodynamic, phenomenological point of view to ascertain how it is achieved, and the pitfalls one encounters in working toward forgiveness. This understanding is then related to and expanded by Christian theology, and then fed into the context of the psychotherapeutic relationship.     

Embodying analysis: the body and the therapeutic process

This paper considers the transfer of somatic effects from patient to analyst, which gives rise to embodied countertransference, functioning as an organ of primitive communication. By means of processes of projective identification, the analyst experiences somatic disturbances within himself or herself that are connected to the split‐off complexes of the analysand. The analysty’s own attempt at mind‐body integration ushers the patient towards a progressive understanding and acceptance of his or her inner suffering. Such experiences of psychic contagion between patient and analyst are related to Jung’s ‘psychology of the transference’ and the idea of the ‘subtle body’ as an unconscious shared area. The re‐attribution of meaning to pre‐verbal psychic experiences within the ‘embodied reverie’ of the analyst enables the analytic dyad to reach the archetypal energies and structuring power of the collective unconscious. A detailed case example is presented of how the emergence of the vitalizing connection between the psyche and the soma, severed through traumatic early relations with parents or carers, allows the instinctual impulse of the Self to manifest, thereby reactivating the process of individuation.     

The therapeutic alliance–A conceptual analysis

The role and function of the therapeutic alliance in psychotherapy has increasingly been the focus of clinicians' and researchers' interests over the last decade. Alliance concepts have, however, been criticized for lack of conceptual clarity. The paper presents a generic model as a heuristic means for clarifying the conceptual meaning of the therapeutic alliance. The model distinguishes between the personal relationship aspect, and the collaborative, task-related aspect of the alliance, with therapist, patient, and common contributions to each of these aspects. The model is compared to other alliance conceptualizations, and its implications for alliance theory and research are discussed. A content analysis of four widely used alliance scales in relation to the model shows the scales to represent conceptually different, yet overlapping constructs. It is argued that the componential nature of the therapeutic alliance will render difficult any interpretation of findings regarding the relationship between alliance and outcome in traditional process-outcome research. More complex research strategies guided by theory are called for, if the therapeutic alliance should remain a vital field of research.     

PYRAMIDAL PARENT TRAINING BY PEERS

This study replicated a pyramidal model of parent training by peers and compared its effects with training by a professional with 26 parents of children with disabilities. A multiple probe design across 3 tiers of parents showed that both types of training produced acquisition, maintenance, and to varying extents, generalization of parents' teaching skills, with concomitant increases in the children's performance in most cases. Improvements were comparable for parents trained by a professional or by peers, and for parents who did and did not serve as peer trainers.     

TRAINING OF PERIPHERAL VISUAL ACUITY

An experiment was performed to investigate whether the duration of exposure and the size of the test objects are factors critical for obtaining a training effect in peripheral visual acuity. Contrary to previous results it is shown that considerable improvement may be obtained even under conditions of flash stimulation, provided that the test object used for training is sufficiently small to be just discriminable. The results are interpreted in terms of shifts in the maximum momentary level of attention from the central to the peripheral area of the visual field.     

Cultural difference and the therapeutic alliance: an evidence-based analysis

The research on positive psychotherapy outcome consistently indicates that the quality of the alliance is important across different models of psychotherapy (D. E. Orlinsky, M. H. Ronnestad, & U. Willutzki, 2004; B. E. Wampold, 2000). Social psychological research has documented how "unintentional bias" can produce barriers to university admissions, employment, and advancement of well-qualified members of ethnic minority groups (J. F. Dovidio, S. L. Gaertner, K. Kawakami, & G. Hodson, 2002). Neuroscience is further confirming social psychological responses associated with race (J. L. Eberhard, 2005). Unintentional bias identified in social psychological research may be part of the psychotherapist/client interaction, interfere with the therapeutic alliance, and partly account for the high dropout rates and underutilization of psychotherapeutic services by people of color. The purpose of this article is to provide an evidence-based analysis of how psychologists in practice may unintentionally interfere with development of quality alliances with culturally different clients or patients and thus contribute to the barriers to effective multicultural counseling and psychotherapy. Principles from the American Psychological Association's (2003) multicultural guidelines and a review of relevant research are applied in suggesting strategies to reduce bias and to develop culturally appropriate skills in psychological practices.     

INTRODUCING NEW METHODS FOR CONDUCTING TRAINING EVALUATION AND FOR LINKING TRAINING EVALUATION TO PROGRAM REDESIGN

While training has been conceptualized as a continually evolving process, the existing literature fails to provide adequate strategies for linking training evaluation to training needs reassessment and program redesign. This article presents two studies which describe methodologies developed for a police recruit training program to address these deficiencies in the literature. In Study 1, Lawshe's (1975) Content Validity Ratio (CVR) approach was used to establish the job relatedness of the content of the training program. Results supported the job relatedness of the training program as the average CVR value was 27 ( p < 05; N = 105). In study 2, a new methodology, the Matching Technique, was used to directly compare current training emphasis with training needs. Results demonstrated a close match of emphasis and training needs for the training program. One content area of relative training deficiency was further examined to illustrate the power of the Matching Technique for identifying areas requiring training redesign.     

SELF-ASSESSED TRAINING NEEDS: THE EFFECTS OF ATTITUDES TOWARD TRAINING, MANAGERIAL LEVEL, AND FUNCTION

Self-assessment research has concentrated on validity and psychometric issues in selection and appraisal contexts. Little is known about factors that affect self-assessment of training needs. The present study examines the influence of managerial position (level, function) and managerial attitudes toward training utility on self-reported training needs. A training-needs survey consisting of items related to basic managerial, interpersonal, administrative, and quality control skills was completed by 506 lower and middle level managers across four functional areas. Correlational and regression analyses indicated that managerial level and function had some effect on reported administrative training needs, while function and attitudes towards training utility had some impact on self-reported training needs for quality control. Level, function, and attitude were not related to reported basic managerial and interpersonal training needs. The implications and limitations of the results are discussed, and future research directions are presented.