Evaluation of a Suicide Prevention Center by Sampling the Population at Risk*

ABSTRACT: At present there are no clear guidelines for assessing the effectiveness of suicide prevention and crisis centers. This report focuses on one readily available source of data, specifically that segment of the population at risk made up of persons admitted to the inpatient service of a mental health center due to depressive and/or suicidal states, including suicide attempts. To determine the role of the suicide prevention center in providing services to this group, 575 persons meeting these criteria were interviewed. The findings included the following: (a) 11 percent had utilized suicide prevention center services, with 59 percent of these experiencing substantial benefit; (b) 20 percent stated they were unaware of the center; (c) 8 percent expressed the view that calling the center would be inappropriate because a suicide attempt was not imminent; and (d) 26 percent indicated an inclination to call the center in the event of subsequent difficulties. Experience suggests that response to a crisis (intervention) as well as response to low lethality callers with “everyday problems” (prevention) constitute valid functions of a suicide prevention and crisis center. Preoccupation with short-term goals, such as reducing the apparent suicide rate, should not dominate the conceptualizing of program evaluation methods.     

Bettina Bergo: Anxiety – a philosophical history. New York: Oxford University Press, 2021, 514 pp,ISBN: 978-0-19-753971-2

Continental Philosophy Review - This review of Bettina Bergo’s book, Anxiety, draws attention both to the interweaving method of her account and to the substance of its implications. Her...     

Development of the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms-62 (CCAPS-62)

Few instruments have been designed specifically to address the needs of college counseling centers. This article reviews existing instruments and presents 4 studies that describe the development and psychometric properties of a new instrument, the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms-62 (CCAPS-62). Study 1 describes the initial item development, factor analysis, and preliminary scale development steps. Study 2 describes the results of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses using data from more than 22,000 clients pooled via a national practice-research network of counseling centers. Studies 3 and 4 provide preliminary evidence of subscales' convergent validity and retest reliability. Results from these 4 studies provide support for the instrument's factor structure, construct validity, and subscale reliabilities for both the total sample and subgroups. Clinical and methodological issues pertaining to the future development of the CCAPS are discussed in the context of a national practice-research network of college counseling centers.     

Influences of APOE ε4 and expertise on performance of older pilots

Little is known about how APOE ε4-related differences in cognitive performance translate to real-life performance, where training and experience may help to sustain performance. We investigated the influences of APOE ε4 status, expertise (FAA pilot proficiency ratings), and their interaction on longitudinal flight simulator performance. Over a 2-year period, 139 pilots aged 42-69 years were tested annually. APOE ε4 carriers had lower memory performance than noncarriers (p = .019). APOE interacted with Expertise (p = .036), such that the beneficial influence of expertise (p = .013) on longitudinal flight simulator performance was more pronounced for ε4 carriers. Results suggest that relevant training and activity may help sustain middle-aged and older adults' real-world performance, especially among APOE ε4 carriers.     

Nonshamanic Native American Healing

This article focuses on making clearer distinctions between nonshamanic and shamanic indigenous healing practices. Not all indigenous healing is shamanic in nature. Shamanic healing relies on the powers of the shaman to heal/cure/take away the illness, and many rely on the use of consciousness-altering substances. In contrast, nonshamanic indigenous approaches, such as the Navajo, are much more psychodynamically based and offer wisdom and techniques that can be more directly adapted and applied by Western practitioners. The author employs his theory of borderland consciousness as a bridge between depth psychology and Navajo healing. The latter is most reflective of Jungian clinical theory and techniques and therein offers a depth of wisdom and a psychological perspective that can be of significant clinical import. Clinical examples from the author's practice are offered.     

THE LEGACY OF GORDON KAUFMAN: THEOLOGICAL METHOD AND ITS PRAGMATIC NORMS

I argue that the most significant contribution and legacy of Gordon Kaufman's work rests in his theological method. I limit my discussion to his methodological starting point, his concept of human nature, as he develops it in his book, In Face of Mystery. I show the relevance of this starting point for cultural and theological criticism by arguing two points: first, that this starting point embraces religious and cultural pluralism at its center, providing a framework for intercultural and interreligious discussion and cooperation, and second, that Kaufman's interpretation of religion that emerges out of this starting point embodies pragmatic criteria for evaluating and reconstructing alternative cultural and religious worldviews, so that they may function more adequately within the changing contexts of life.     

Self and Other Ratings of Dyadic Empathy as Predictors of Relationship Satisfaction

In this study, self and other ratings of dyadic empathy are proposed to predict relationship satisfaction. One-hundred and fifty-one individuals over the age of eighteen who were in a relationship of at least six months in length at the time of the survey completed the Interpersonal Reactivity Index for Couples (Péloquin & Lafontaine, 2010) and the Couples Satisfaction Index (Funk & Rogge, 2007). Total scores for self and other rated dyadic empathy as well as scores of the congruity between self and other were assessed for each respondent. The results indicated that total perceived dyadic empathy and perceived dyadic empathic congruity were significant predictors of relationship satisfaction.