Moral Development and Counselor Trainee Empathy

A high moral development group was superior to a low moral development group in the demonstration of empathy on a counseling tape.     

The Limits of Reciprocity in Behavioral Marriage Therapy

This reexamination of the values underlying Behavioral Marriage Therapy (BMT) focuses on the central theoretical concept of reciprocity. It is suggested that BMT's emphasis on individuality and instrumental exchange may not be suitable for all couples. An alternative perspective, emphasizing a developmental progression in marriage reciprocity defined by mutual understanding, is seen to be more sensitive to the differing value systems of couples in therapy.     

Making Ideas Work: Ralph Bedell and the NDEA Institutes

Ralph Bedell, professor emeritus of educational and counseling psychology, was interviewed to gain insight info the influence of the National Defense Counseling and Guidance Institutes on the history of counseling and to learn about the man who was responsible for the NDEA program.     

Teaching Interpersonal Communication to Troubled Families

Assumptions family members make about each other exert considerable influence on communication in families. Rigidly held assumptions restrict the flow of information, reinforcing counterproductive behavioral patterns. Combining psychoanalytic and structural components, this paper offers a new approach to family intervention that addresses itself to the exchange of information within troubled families. Groups of families convene for a series of camping weekends. The shared life experience in a recreational setting plus the use of a teaching model help family members to break through rigid conceptualizations of themselves and others. In following the observational model, which slows down and fosters reciprocation in communication, family members pursue the following steps: (a) observe each other; (b) compare notes with a co-observer; (c) share observations with those observed; and (d) receive feedback from the observed.     

Innovations for Enhancing Education of Career Counselors Using Technology

Research on a CD-ROM containing 10 presenter-controlled modules for instruction supports the conclusion that research be done with in-service education that includes employment counselors.     

Emotional Intelligence,Social Problem‐Solving Skills,and Psychological Distress: A Study of Chinese Undergraduate Students1

This study examines how emotional intelligence (EI), personality, and social problem‐solving skills were linked to depression and life dissatisfaction in 144 Chinese undergraduate students in Hong Kong. Factor analyses of questionnaire responses yielded 3 separate dimensions of depression (affective, somative, and cognitive). Structural equation modeling showed that EI (self‐emotions appraisal and use of emotion) was linked to somatic and cognitive symptoms of depression, after controlling for personality. Also, social problem solving was linked to psychological distress, and moderated its links with personality and EI. These results underscore the differences among the links between the components of EI and of psychological health, and support the possibility of promoting people's psychological health through EI and social problem‐solving interventions.