Borderline Personality Disorder,Divorce and Family Therapy: The Need for Family Crisis Intervention Strategies

Recent literature reviews, point out the lack of crisis intervention and crisis prevention programs that are in existence to address crises experienced by first-degree and divorced family members of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) probands. The focus of such intervention programs should be to facilitate the improved ability of the first-degree and divorced family members to manage and transcend the unstable family environment. Correlations between personal instability and frequency of psychosocial crises have been examined, as well as the ripple effect of frequent individual crises on family environments. Reviews of current therapeutic interventions, as well as a synthesis of practical family therapy interventions focusing on breaking the cycle of dysfunctional multi-generational family environments are also examined.     

Premarital counseling: Appraisal and status

Abstract

Premarital counseling programs have been proliferating in the United States since their appearance in the 1930s. In order to evaluate the success such programs have had in preparing couples to build successful marriages, reduce the incidence of divorce and prevent unsuccessful marriages from occurring, the authors reviewed those programs which outlined standardized intervention procedures and utilized dependent measures to assess the program's effectiveness. Thirteen programs met these criteria. In general, premarital counseling programs were found to be atheoretical in their approach to intervention, loosely designed and nonspecific as to their goals.     

Family Measurement Techniques

Abstract

This study examined the extent to which a brief, structured couples therapy program based on Imago Relationship Therapy was associated with improvements on the COMPASS scales of individual psychological functioning as well as on a measure of relationship satisfaction, the Marital Satisfaction Inventory. An examination of pre- to post-treatment differences revealed statistically significant differences on three of the four COMPASS scales and all three MSI scales. The rate of improvement in individual distress per couples therapy session was approximately equal to the improvement, found in previous studies, yielded by individual therapy. The results support previous findings that couples therapy may be an effective modality for the treatment of intrapersonal difficulties, and suggest that both relationship and individual distress indices should be utilized in the evaluation of the efficacy of marital therapies.     

From Good to Great: Examining Exemplary Counselor Development

Some counselors excel in the profession. Few do so while maintaining a balance in life. This article examines the life of one such individual, Samuel T. Gladding. He models for counselors an aspirational process of making significant contributions to the profession while staying personally grounded. Qualities that propel professionals like Gladding from being good as a young professional into prominence as a mature counselor are examined.     

Cautionary Remarks on the Use of Clusterwise Regression

Clusterwise linear regression is a multivariate statistical procedure that attempts to cluster objects with the objective of minimizing the sum of the error sums of squares for the within-cluster regression models. In this article, we show that the minimization of this criterion makes no effort to distinguish the error explained by the within-cluster regression models from the error explained by the clustering process. In some cases, most of the variation in the response variable is explained by clustering the objects, with little additional benefit provided by the within-cluster regression models. Accordingly, there is tremendous potential for overfitting with clusterwise regression, which is demonstrated with numerical examples and simulation experiments. To guard against the misuse of clusterwise regression, we recommend a benchmarking procedure that compares the results for the observed empirical data with those obtained across a set of random permutations of the response measures. We also demonstrate the potential for overfitting via an empirical application related to the prediction of reflective judgment using high school and college performance measures.     

Day of a Cat's Death

Omnibus book review Robin Robertson The Place of the Feminine in the World to Come

Quantum Reality. By Nick Herbert. New York: Anchor Press/Double Day, 1985.

Synchronicity: The Bridge Between Matter and Mind. By F. David Peat. New York: Bantam Books. 1987.

Psyche Speaks. By Russell Lockhart. Wilmette, Illinois: Chiron, 1987.

The Scapegoat Complex: Toward a Mythology of Shdow and Guilt. By Sylvia Brinton Perera. Toronto: Inner City Books, 1986.

The Strange Trial of Mr. Hyde: A New Look Into the Nature of Human Evil. By John A. Sanford. San Francisco: Harper &; Row, 1987.

Perestroika: New Thinking for Our Country and the World. By Mikhail Gorbachev. New York: Harper &; Row, 1987.

The Jungian Experience: Analysis and Individuation. By James A. Hall, M.D. Toronto: Inner City Books, 1986.

Practical Jung: Nuts and Bolts of Jun-gian Psychotherapy. By Harry A. Wilmer. Wilmette, Illinois: Chiron Publications, 1987.

Psychiatry and the Cinema. By Krin Gabbard and Glen O. Gabbard. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987.

Female Authority: Empowering Women Through Psychotherapy. By P. Young-Eisendrath and F. Wiedemann. New York Guilford Press, 1987.

Dancing Healers: A Docfor's Journey of Healing with Native Americans. By Carl Hammerschlag. San Francisco: Harper &; Row, 1988.

Neuroimmune Interactions: Proceedings of the Second International Workshop of Neuroimmunomodulation. Edited by Bronislav D. Jankovic Branislav M. Markovic, and Novera Herbert Spector. New York: The New York Academy of Sciences, 1987.     

One wage of unknowability

This article argues against fallibilist evidentialism on the basis of considerations about knowability.     

Anxiety, Sensory Over-Responsivity, and Gastrointestinal Problems in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) experience high rates of anxiety, sensory processing problems, and gastrointestinal (GI) problems; however, the associations among these symptoms in children with ASD have not been previously examined. The current study examined bivariate and multivariate relations among anxiety, sensory over-responsivity, and chronic GI problems in a sample of 2,973 children with ASD enrolled in the Autism Treatment Network (ages 2–17 years, 81.6 % male). Twenty-four percent of the sample experienced at least one type of chronic GI problem (constipation, abdominal pain, bloating, diarrhea, and/or nausea lasting three or more months). Children with each type of GI problem had significantly higher rates of both anxiety and sensory over-responsivity. Sensory over-responsivity and anxiety were highly associated, and each provided unique contributions to the prediction of chronic GI problems in logistic regression analyses. The results indicate that anxiety, sensory over-responsivity and GI problems are possibly interrelated phenomenon for children with ASD, and may have common underlying mechanisms.     

Work strain and the post-discharge adjustment of patients following a heart attack

Abstract

The role of work characteristics in determining return to work after an acute coronary event was examined. One hundred and forty nine patients were enrolled. One year post-discharge, 74 had returned to work. Work characteristics (decision latitude, and opportunity for social interaction at work), together with age, depression, and medical prognosis, correctly classified work status in 78% of cases. At 12 months post-discharge, patients who had not returned to work recorded significantly poorer levels of adjustment compared to those who had returned to work. A better quality of life is associated with a lower level of depression pre-hospitalization, ownership of a larger home, being male, and having a more positive work environment. The findings suggest that the pre-illness work environment of the patient is a factor influencing return to work, which needs to be considered in rehabilitation programmes.