Claiming Subjectivity: Re-Storying Clinical Psychology and Myself

This article explores becoming a clinical psychologist later in life. Drawing on the author’s experience as a developmental psychologist who becomes a clinical respecialization student, it traces shifts in narratives of identity, belongingness, perspectives on psychology, and ways of knowing that both influence and construct her perspective on age and midlife. The paradigm shifts of going from professor, to student and intern, and philosophical shifts, transitioning from a stance of objectivity, to one informed by deep subjectivity, are considered. The ways that age matters is pondered as an artifact of the larger social construction of aging. The article proposes that a rich later-in-life perspective often includes the capacity to utilize self-knowledge and affective interpretation that nurtures subjectivity. The capacity to summon subjectivity facilitates rich authentic empathic connection with patients in clinical practice. The author explores the process of learning and re-storying herself in a manner that draws on self-reflection, clinical subjectivities, the life-learned ability to be humble, and a theory-informed lens of clinical psychology that is truly different from developmental psychology. The promise for future contributions to both clinical work and the greater field by “new” clinicians at midlife is explored.     

Noncompetition Agreements and the Counseling Profession: An Unrecognized Reality for Private Practitioners

Restrictive covenants are proven means of limiting competition and need to be understood by counselors. The authors consider the American Counseling Association's (ACA) position on noncompetition agreements between employers and employees in light of case law from other service professions and conclude that ACA members are uninformed and available sources of information (i.e., ACA Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice, ACA, 1995) do not provide needed information. The absence of information about this important topic puts members at risk in an increasingly competitive private practice market. The authors propose guidelines for responding to this issue.     

Social and demographic correlates of loneliness in late life

Although loneliness is often viewed as a serious problem of old age, few studies have addressed either its measurement or prevalence among older populations. The present study analyzed survey data from newspaper questionnaires circulated in three North American cities (N = 2,026) in order to examine the prevalence of loneliness across the life-span and some of its correlates in late life. Loneliness decreased across the adult life-span, with respondents age 65 and older the least lonely; elders were also more satisfied with their social relationships. Neither gender nor living alone was related to loneliness for older people. The data also partially confirm the desolation hypothesis, suggesting that desolation, or the loss of an intimate attachment, rather than isolation per se is a major correlate of loneliness in late life. Further, recency of loss was strongly related to increased loneliness. Directions for future research and intervention are discussed.     

Examining the Invariance of Holland's Vocational Interest Model across Gender

This study examines the structural invariance of Holland's (1973, 1985) vocational interest model across gender. Evidence of gender differences in the fit of Holland's model was sought by submitting 14 (7 male; 7 female) previously published Strong Interest Inventory (SII) General Occupational Themes (GOT) scale correlation matrices to multiple structural analytic techniques. Randomization tests of hypothesized order relations (Hubert Arabie, 1987) and single sample confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) indicated a moderate to strong correspondence between GOT data and Holland's circular order and circumplex models. Randomization tests of differences in model–data fit, and two-sample CFA indicated that these models are a no more or less accurate representation of the observed data for men than for women. Additional analyses aimed at identifying gender differences in the misfit of specific aspects of Holland's model also yielded no evidence of differential fit.     

Grandparents' support for families who have children with disabilities

This study was designed to assess the levels of support provided by grandparents for families who had grandchildren with disabilities. A questionnaire survey of parents was used to assess the levels of practical, financial and emotional support they received from the children's grandparents. Parents were also questioned about their satisfaction with this support. Overall levels of support were low but most parents were nevertheless generally satisfied with the support they had received. However, a quarter of the grandparents were considered to have added to the parent's problems and almost a third of the parents expressed a wish for more support from grandparents.     

Reducing the Risk of HIV Infection for Women: An Attitudinal Analysis of Condom-Carrying Behavior1

A study of 971 sexually active, heterosexual, nonpregnant women was undertaken in an HIV-endemic community in the New York City area to determine the psychological correlates of carrying condoms. Analyses suggested that women factor concerns about negative social reactions from society in general most heavily in their attitude toward carrying condoms, followed by their overall attitude toward condoms, and concerns about the increase in preventive efficacy resulting from carrying condoms. This brief structure was generalized across risk groups. Intervention implications of these results are discussed.     

Stability of interests across ethnicity and gender: A longitudinal examination of grades 8 through 12

RIASEC interests were assessed in grades 8, 10, and 12 on a large national sample of 69,987 college bound students. Random samples of 1000 were drawn to represent each of the major US ethnic groups (African, Asian, Native, Mexican, Latino (non Mexican), Anglo, and Multiracial Americans) and interests were examined as they varied across time, ethnicity, and gender with respect to structure, mean changes, stability, clarity, and interest-occupational choice congruence. Results indicate that the structure of interests did not vary as a function of time, gender or ethnicity. The pattern of interests was fairly stable and similar across all ethnic groups and both genders. Congruence and clarity increased in 10th grade but both decreased in 12th grade suggesting a time of re-examination.     

It’s not just what you know, it’s who you know: Testing a model of the relative importance of social networks to academic performance

Applying three mathematical modeling techniques, this study proposes and tests the fit of an academic performance model, and then estimates the relative importance of four performance predictors: academic ability, performance goal orientation, educational technology use, and social network density. Drawing on social network theory, findings from this study show that social network density is a statistically important and unique predictor of academic performance, suggesting that “who you know” matters in large classroom settings. However, this study also indicates that academic ability is the most dominant factor in the explanation of academic performance. Practical and theoretical implications for enhancing academic performance through social networks are discussed.

Self-Plagiarism or Appropriate Textual Re-use?

Self-plagiarism requires clear definition within an environment that places integrity at the heart of the research enterprise. This paper explores the whole notion of self-plagiarism by academics and distinguishes between appropriate and inappropriate textual re-use in academic publications, while considering research on other forms of plagiarism such as student plagiarism. Based on the practical experience of the authors in identifying academics’ self-plagiarism using both electronic detection and manual analysis, a simple model is proposed for identifying self-plagiarism by academics.     

Predictors of Recent Mental Health Service Use in a Medical Population: Implications for Integrated Care

This study investigated the relationship between physical and mental health and psychosocial variables and recent (within the last 12 months) mental health service use among 240 medical patients recruited from general and specialty outpatient clinics at an academic medical center. Results indicated 43.3% of the participants had recently received mental health services in the form of psychotropic medication (75%), psychotherapy (2%), or a combination of these treatments (20.2%). Among patients with moderate to severe symptoms of anxiety or depression, approximately two-thirds were receiving mental health treatment. Moreover, four variables (healthcare provider referral for mental health services, perceived need for mental health services, prior use of mental health services, and frequency of medical appointments) were significant unique predictors of recent mental health service use. This suggests collaborative/integrated medical care may increase needed mental health service use.