Clinical supervisor training in Australia: A review of current problems and possible solutions

Clinical supervision cuts to the heart of professional psychology training. It is the most expensive single investment of staff time in the training of the psychology practitioner, and it appears to be the single most important contributor to training effectiveness, repaying that investment. Now there are changes afoot internationally which may change its pivotal role. For example, the Psychology Board of Australia has recently proposed that supervisors undergo approved supervisor training; in the USA, a competence‐based emphasis is gaining ground; while in the UK, supervisors within the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies initiative are receiving unprecedented training and support. It is therefore timely to clarify the need for such training and to consider promising options for its effective delivery. Following a summary of the changes within Australia, we next address these emergent problems and promising solutions by examining the available scientific evidence and by considering professional consensus statements.     

Family Perceptions of Living with Alzheimer's Disease

The purpose of this study was to identify the major themes that 38 multigenerational families emphasized in their conversations about living with Alzheimer's disease. Interviews were conducted with families that were providing home care in the early stages of the disease. Family perceptions were analyzed with the aid of a computer content analysis program. Families emphasized four themes: (a) the awareness that something was “wrong”; (b) the uncertain nature of the diagnosis; (c) excluding a family member; and (d) the ambiguous nature of family life with Alzheimer's disease.     

MULTIPLE PREDICTORS OF POST-TRANSFER SATISFACTION: THE ROLE OF URBAN FACTORS

Multiple correlation analysis and means tests were used to test the effectiveness of fifteen psychological, economic and other variables in explaining the variance in post job transfer satisfaction among a sample of managers.
Of the variables to emerge as significant predictors of satisfaction in both of two subsamples, preference for location of residence predominated. Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA) was then employed to explore which of sixteen urban factors was most important in determining location preference among the managers and their spouses. The MCA analysis showed that size of the city ranked as the major predictor of location preference among both the managers and their spouses.     

JOB-RELATEDNESS OF A POSTTRAINING JOB KNOWLEDGE CRITERION USE TO ASSESS VALIDITY AND TEST FAIRNESS

Significant job-relatedness was found for a posttraining job knowledge test criterion using an application of Lawshe's content validity method. The aide test was used as a criterion to assess the predictive validity of a vocabulary test and a civil service test with samples of black ( N = 43) and white ( N = 62) psychiatric aides. Significant validities were found on both tests, but a vocabulary test proved to be the better predictor of the criterion in both samples. The obtained validities were discussed in terms of differential validity, test fairness, and sample size. This study demonstrated that a content validity method could be applied to criteria as well as selection tests. It was concluded that content validity methods may be able to help solve the problem of criterion relevance in validation research by providing quantitative evidence of the job-relatedness of criteria.     

Developing Anticipation Skills in Tennis Using On-Court Instruction: Perception versus Perception and Action

On-court instruction involving either Perception–action training or Perception-only training was used to improve anticipation skill in novice tennis players. A technical instruction group acted as a control. Participants' ability to anticipate an opponent's serve was assessed pre- and posttest using established on-court measures involving frame-by-frame video analysis. The perception–action and perception-only groups significantly improved their anticipatory performance from pretest to posttest. No pretest-to-posttest differences in anticipation skill were reported for the technical instruction group. The ability to anticipate an opponent's serve can be improved through on-court instruction where the relationship between key postural cues and subsequent performance is highlighted, and both practice and feedback are provided. No significant differences were observed between the perception–action and perception-only training groups, implying that either mode of training may be effective in enhancing perceptual skill in sport.     

USING SIGNAL-CONTINGENT EXPERIENCE SAMPLING METHODOLOGY TO STUDY WORK IN THE FIELD: A DISCUSSION AND ILLUSTRATION EXAMINING TASK PERCEPTIONS AND MOOD

In this article, the advantages and drawbacks of using Experience Sampling Methodology (ESM), especially signal-contingent ESM, to study psychological variables in the workplace are described. It is argued that ESM can be a valuable tool in the field study of work, with the potential to answer different research questions than can be answered by traditional cross-sectional research. To illustrate ESM, an application of signal-contingent ESM to the examination of mood and concurrent task perceptions at work is presented. Study results indicate that both perceived goal progress and skill on task influence task enjoyment and mood. Also described and illustrated is an adaptation of pooled time-series hierarchical regression for analyzing immediate, short-term retrospective (end-of-day), and individual difference variables in a single framework. In conjunction, ESM data collection and hierarchical regression analysis provide a useful approach for studies that examine immediate work experiences.     

Moving Through Loss: The Spiritual Journey of Gay Men and Lesbian Women

This article describes losses of gay men and lesbian women relative to their relationship with traditional religion and the mental health profession. By helping their clients reframe these losses into opportunities for transformation, counselors can facilitate spiritual integration both within and beyond the context of Judeo-Christian spiritualities.