The Client's Theory of Change: Consulting the Client in the Integrative Process

This article casts a critical eye upon the integration literature and asserts that, as in psychotherapy in general, the client has been woefully left out of the therapeutic process. An alternative that privileges the client's voice as the source of wisdom and solution is presented. It is proposed that conducting therapy within the context of the client's own theory of change offers ways of integrating multiple therapy perspectives. An argument is made for not only recasting the client as the star of the drama of therapy, but also giving the heroic client directorial control of the action as it unfolds.     

Posttraumatic symptomatology in children exposed to war

This study examines affective and behavioral symptomatology in two groups of school-age children who were traumatized to different degrees during the war in Croatia (N = 1034). Six self-reported questionnaires were used to assess the following: number and type of war experiences, PTSD symptoms, anxiety, depression, psychosomatic symptoms, and psychosocial adaptation. Canonical discriminant analysis yielded a significant discriminant function that indicates moderate differentiation between the two groups of children according to the assessed symptoms. The results of a 2 x 2 x 2 ANOVAs (gender x age x level of traumatization) indicate that the children's reactions to war traumata varied in respect to all factors, as well as their interaction. The results indicate that gender differences are more prominent in older children. Older girls report more posttraumatic stress reactions, anxiety and depression, but at the same time seem better adapted than boys. Younger children, particularly those who survived more war even report more PTSD symptoms than older children.     

Analysis of activity preferences as a function of differential consequences

Individuals who do not possess the verbal skills to express meaningful choice in the absence of its consequences may have difficulty indicating their preference for protracted activities that are unavailable until some time in the future (e.g., taking a walk, riding a bike). When we examined the preferences of 4 individuals with developmental disabilities by showing them pictorial representations of various activities, their initial choices showed no clear preferences. In a subsequent condition, selecting a photograph resulted in brief access to the depicted activity. When selections produced differential consequences (i.e., access to the activity), clear preferences emerged. In addition, 3 individuals' preferences were later shifted to an initially less preferred but more socially desirable option by superimposing additional reinforcement contingencies for engaging in the less preferred activity. Results are discussed in terms of the conditions under which choice functions as an indicator of preference and how those conditions may be altered to improve the quality of choice making without limiting access to preferred options.     

BALANCING THE RIGHT TO HABILITATION WITH THE RIGHT TO PERSONAL LIBERTIES: THE RIGHTS OF PEOPLE WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES TO EAT TOO MANY DOUGHNUTS AND TAKE A NAP

In the pursuit of efficient habilitation, many service providers exercise a great deal of control over the lives of clients with developmental disabilities. For example, service providers often choose the client's habilitative goals, determine the daily schedule, and regulate access to preferred activities. This paper examines the advantages and disadvantages of allowing clients to exercise personal liberties, such as the right to choose and refuse daily activities. On one hand, poor choices on the part of the client could hinder habilitation. On the other hand, moral and legal issues arise when the client's right to choice is abridged. Recommendations are offered to protect both the right to habilitation and the freedom to choose.     

Parental grief following the death of an infant—a follow-up over one year

The course of parental bereavement during the first year following an infant's death was investigated. Also, the differences in mothers' and fathers' reactions, the differences according to the mothers' occupational role, and the similarities in couples' reactions were studied. From a total sample of 59 families, 13 families answered their questionnaires at all three time points (1, 6 and 13 months), 22 families responded at two time points, and 37 families responded at some point following the loss. Measures relating to anxiety, depression, bodily discomfort, general well being and impact of event were used at the three time points. The results showed that grief, as measured by the different inventories, decreased over time. The decrease was most evident from 6 to 13 months, and most prominent in women. A considerable number of the parents were still actively dealing with the loss all through the first year of bereavement. In most couples the mother reported most distress. Mothers were significantly more depressed than fathers at all time points, and mothers also had significantly higher anxiety and lower general health at 1 and 13 months, and intrusive scores of 1 and 6 months. Women at home evidenced more grief at all three time points than women employed outside the home. A high or low score in one spouse was more strongly correlated with a similar score in the other at 1 and 13 months, than at 6 months. The implications for counselling of parents, with special emphasis on the employment situation of the mother, is emphasized.     

A journey through languages: A systematic literature review on the multilingual experience in counselling and psychotherapy with children and adolescents

The purpose of this research was to address the gap in the existing literature on the multilingual aspect of language in psychotherapy with children and adolescents. This research aimed at interpreting possible meanings for clients of being multilingual in the therapeutic process as well as reflect on the influence of clients’ multilingualism in the therapeutic relationship. The researcher used a systematic literature review (PRISMA guidelines, 2009) to select articles based on empirical qualitative/mixed studies with participants up to 25 years old or adults referring to childhood/adolescence. The researcher used thematic synthesis (Thomas & Harden, 2008) to extract, analyse and interpret data. The rigour of this study was enhanced by the use of auto-ethnography as a source of evidence (McLeod, 2015). The auto-etnography documents self-reflections on personal experience of being multilingual contributing to deeper contextualised knowledge. The findings confirm previous research on the existence of a link between multilingualism and “identity” (Costa, 2020, p. 5). This research suggests that the meaning a client gives to bilingualism can be co-constructed within an attuned therapeutic relationship. In this co-construction journey, there is a significant opportunity for children and young people in finding their way through languages, hence reaching emancipation and affirmation in the world. The main limitation of this research relates to the fact that there are not many studies with children/young people. This led the researcher to also include studies based on a mixed sample and with adults referring to childhood/adolescence, which might have influenced the interpretation of findings.     

Thou Shalt not Lie! Exploring and testing countermeasures against faking intentions and faking in selection interviews

Many applicants use faking in interviews to present themselves more favorably than they really are. There is widespread concern that this may affect interview validity. As previous research on countermeasures is sparse, we conducted an exploratory study to identify the most promising countermeasures. For technology-mediated interviews, these were warnings referring to a criterion-based content analysis and lie detection algorithms focusing on nonverbal or paraverbal cues. For face-to-face interviews, these were objective questions and a personable interviewer. We then investigated the effects of these countermeasures on faking intentions in two experimental vignette studies and on faking in another simulated interview study. However, none of the countermeasures could reduce faking intentions or faking. Additionally, in the vignette studies, warnings impaired applicant reactions.