Advanced training in child psychology: Key elements in offering a Doctor of Psychology (DPsych) programme in South Africa

The aim of this article is to propose some benchmarks for a Doctor of Psychology (DPsych) in advanced training in Child Psychology in South Africa, and to highlight key elements in offering such a programme. In doing so, we use as case illustration an existing DPsych programme currently being offered at the University of the Free State, South Africa. We consider advanced child psychology training to registered psychologists in the clinical, counselling and educational categories. The DPsych option encompasses clinical practice, research, training, selection, and student outcomes in the context of theory as well as evidence-based practices. A wider adoption of a DPsych, focusing on child psychology, would add value to the integration of the best available research and clinical expertise in child mental health care in South Africa.     

Procedural Justice and Perceptions of Fairness in Selection Practice

Demonstrating procedural justice through a focus on the psychometric job-related approach to selection continues to be the most effective means for employers to meet legal requirements and potential claims of unfair treatment. A study of selection practice in a large local UK City Council reports how a structured, highly ‘job-focused’ approach can result in negative perceptions about the fairness of the process, its outcomes and effectiveness. Its findings reveal an organizational dilemma – how to develop selection systems that are sufficiently robust in terms of demonstrating maximum procedural fairness and objectivity to withstand potential litigation but are sufficiently flexible to accommodate those other factors which influence individual perceptions of fairness. It considers the future of the highly structured approach in the light of pressures to develop selection processes which can meet the needs of rapidly changing organizational structures as well the expansion of anti-discrimination legislation and litigation.     

When Prayers Go Unanswered

Many Americans believe God answers prayers, but scholars know little about how individuals handle situations in which they perceive that prayers have gone unanswered. Using data from an in‐depth interview project with current and former victims of intimate partner violence, I argue that perceived unanswered prayers cause challenges to belief systems that elicit attribution processes—or cognitive processes through which individuals try to explain the causes of actors’ behavior—whose outcomes are explanations for why God did not answer their prayers. I find that the outcomes of these attribution processes are God‐serving justifications, or attributions of God's perceived unanticipated or problematic behavior that define this behavior as appropriate to the situation. God‐serving justifications for unanswered prayers fall into three types: (1) appeal to higher loyalties, (2) affirmation of benefits, and (3) denial of the pray‐er. I conclude with a discussion of the implications and limitations of the analysis.     

An Island in a Sea of Development: An Examination of Place Attachment,Activity Type,and Crowding in an Urban National Park

ABSTRACT

As more people move to urban areas there will be increased pressure on existing green spaces to offer places for recreation, contemplation, historic interpretation, exercise, and nature appreciation. Development and a rise in population has led to too few public recreation sites available in many regions of the world resulting in unsustainable pressure being applied to parks. The objective of this study was to examine how place attachment may be related to type and frequency of park use and management issues regarding crowding. Data for this study were obtained via intercept survey of a random sample of visitors (N = 1088) at a park in the Metro Atlanta area, Georgia. Results suggest that place attachment had a significant relationship with frequency of visits and types of activities that visitors engaged in. There was, however, no significant relation between place attachment and crowding. First-time visitors and less frequent visitors felt most crowded, which may support the idea that the most frequent visitors expect it to be crowded and are, therefore, less sensitive to it. This study sheds light on how visitors to an urban park view their experience while recreating, and may inform policies and regulations that will help mitigate the unique management situations that urban parks present.     

Differential Influence of Social Support in Emerging Adulthood Across Sources of Support and Profiles of Interpersonal and Non-Interpersonal Potentially Traumatic Experiences

Social support is protective against the negative effects of trauma, yet how these effects vary across sources of support and patterns of trauma exposure has not been examined. High co-occurrence exists among different types of trauma across domains and ages, yielding patterns of trauma exposure that may affect social support. This study identified profiles of potentially traumatic events (PTEs) experienced by 252 college students and examined the relationships between social support and mental health across these profiles. Five profiles emerged: “Non-Interpersonal Trauma Exposure,” “Adult Intimate Partner Violence,” “Poly-trauma Exposure,” “Low Trauma Exposure,” and “Childhood Family Violence.” The link between social support and adjustment differed across profiles. Family support was valuable for promoting resilience across patterns of PTEs. Friend and romantic partner support were related to lower mental health problems. Support from family and friends is particularly valuable in the context of adult intimate partner violence and childhood family violence.     

A Review of Emmanuel Y. Lartey’s Postcolonializing God: An African Practical Theology

This review of pastoral and practical theologian Dr. Emmanuel Lartey’s 2013 Postcolonializing God: An African Practical Theology summarizes the book’s specific contribution to African pastoral and practical theology as well as to the broader fields of pastoral and practical theology. The reviewer outlines Lartey’s three movements of reversal, recovery, and transcendence intertwined in the active process of postcolonializing. She raises questions about developmental theories of postcolonial change and commends Lartey for locating postcolonializing in pastoral practice rather than developmental achievement.     

The criterion validity of the Borderline Personality Features Scale for Children in an adolescent inpatient setting

The purpose of the current study was to examine the criterion validity of the Borderline Personality Features Scale for Children (BPFS-C) by assessing the performance of the self-report and a newly developed parent report version of the measure (BPFS-P) in detecting a borderline personality disorder (BPD) diagnosis in adolescent inpatients. This study also examined parent-child agreement and the internal consistency of the BPFS subscales. An inpatient sample of adolescents (n = 51) ranging from ages 12-18 completed the BPFS and were administered the Child Interview for DSM-IV Borderline Personality Disorder (CI-BPD) by trained clinical research staff. ROC analyses revealed that the BPFS-C has high accuracy (AUC = .931; Se = .856; Sp = .840) in discriminating adolescents with a diagnosis of BPD, as measured by the CI-BPD, while the BPFS-P has moderate accuracy (AUC = .795; Se = .733; Sp = .720). Parent-child agreement on total scores was significant (r = .687; p < .005). Cronbach's alphas suggested internal consistency for the four subscales of the BPFS. These findings support the criterion validity of this measure, particularly the self-report version, in adolescent inpatient settings.     

Testing a self-determination theory intervention for motivating tobacco cessation: supporting autonomy and competence in a clinical trial.

A longitudinal randomized trial tested the self-determination theory (SDT) intervention and process model of health behavior change for tobacco cessation (N = 1006). Adult smokers were recruited for a study of smokers' health and were assigned to intensive treatment or community care. Participants were relatively poor and undereducated. Intervention patients perceived greater autonomy support and reported greater autonomous and competence motivations than did control patients. They also reported greater medication use and significantly greater abstinence. Structural equation modeling analyses confirmed the SDT process model in which perceived autonomy support led to increases in autonomous and competence motivations, which in turn led to greater cessation. The causal role of autonomy support in the internalization of autonomous motivation, perceived competence, and smoking cessation was supported.     

Bite size and texture assessments to prescribe treatment for severe food selectivity in autism

Separate evaluations of bite size (amount of food on the spoon) and food texture were used to prescribe treatment changes in a feeding protocol for a 3‐year‐old male with autism and severe food selectivity. Each evaluation revealed distinct behavioral topographies, with an increase in disruptive behaviors associated with increased bite sizes and decreased swallowing and higher rates of gagging associated with higher textures. The results of each evaluation were used to successfully guide increases in volume and texture during therapeutic meals. Results highlight the importance of considering both aversion to food as well as oral motor skills when designing treatment for children with food selectivity. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Delay and number of food reinforcers: Effects on choice and latencies

Pigeons were given a choice between two identical-duration situations (terminal links of chain schedules). One terminal link of the choice pair provided two food deliveries, and the other provided five. The exact times of these food deliveries differed between the terminal links and were varied over conditions. A single response during the initial link gave immediate access to the corresponding terminal link. Forced trials, during which only one of the initial-link keys was lighted, were interspersed with choice trials during which both initial-link keys were lighted. Choice tended to favor whichever terminal link was correlated with the higher sum of the immediacies (i.e., the sum of the reciprocals of the delays to each of the reinforcers following the choice, with all delays measured from the choice). Latencies on forced trials and on choice trials also were related (negatively) to the sum of the immediacies. This correlation among response measures (choice and latencies) suggests that both measures are manifestations of the effect of conditioned reinforcement on response tendencies.