Sexting as a predictor of sexual behavior in a sample of Czech adolescents

The purpose of this longitudinal study is to examine the relationship between teen sexting and offline sexual behavior. Using a sample of 1134 Czech adolescents aged 10–18 (M_age = 13.84, SD = 1.94, girls = 58.8%) from 55 schools, the latent growth model of offline sexual behavior with sexting as a time-varying covariate was employed. Participants differed at baseline for offline sexual behavior at both individual and school levels, and they varied in the growth rate of offline sexual behavior at the individual level. Only age and sensation seeking explained the variability at baseline of offline sexual behavior. The positive association between sexting and offline sexual behavior was not constant across time. However, sexting at baseline predicted offline sexual behavior a half year and one year later. Sexting may be treated as a precursor of offline sexual behavior.     

Older adult research in the Journal of Counseling Psychology,The Counseling Psychologist,and Counselling Psychology Quarterly: A 15-year review and implications for research

In preparing for an aging global population, older adults’ well-being has become an urgent priority across the world. Counseling psychologists have also called upon the field for more empirical attention on older adults. Yet, a review of the literature revealed that older adults were represented in less than 2% of all the articles in the Journal of Counseling Psychology (JCP) and The Counseling Psychologist (TCP) from 1991 to 2000. The current study presents a follow-up review of older adult research in counseling psychology literature between 2001 and 2015 in the following mainstream journals: Counselling Psychology Quarterly (CPQ), JCP, and TCQ. Results suggest a decline in the past 15 years, with less than 1% of the total articles in JCP, TCP, and CPQ devoted to older adults. Most of the studies employed cross-sectional survey research design to examine predictors of mental health. A number of studies focused on culture-specific experiences of diverse older adults. Implications and suggestions for future research on older adult issues are discussed in relation to the principles and interests rooted in the field of counseling psychology.     

Dietary planning,self-efficacy,and outcome expectancies play a role in an online intervention on fruit and vegetable consumption

Objective: An online intervention to improve fruit and vegetable (FV) intake examines the role of planning, outcome expectancies, self-efficacy and gender. Women are not only expected to eat more FV than men, but they are also expected to be more responsive to nutritional advice and benefit more from treatment.

Method: A two-arm digital intervention with 269 men and 395 women (M_age = 41.2, SD_age = 11.45; range: 19–66 years) was conducted in Italy, Spain and Greece, followed up at three and six months, comparing a static with a dynamic, feedback-intensive platform.

Results: Linear mixed models yielded an increase in FV consumption in both the dynamic and the static intervention arms. In men, outcome expectancies were positively related to follow-up FV intake. Dietary planning interacted with self-efficacy on behavioural outcomes.

Conclusion: FV intake increased overall, and being a woman and involvement in planning facilitated behaviour change. Women seemed to be more engaged in the dynamic platform resulting in a higher amount of planning. Initial motivation, as indicated by outcome expectancies, seemed to be beneficial for men. Self-efficacious individuals benefitted from their engagement in planning, but self-efficacy did not compensate for failing to plan.     

The Individual Career Counseling Needs and Experiences of Female Survivors of Partner Violence

The impact of partner violence on women's employment and career development is profound. Career counselors may contribute substantially to these women's rehabilitation. This study examined employment and career counseling needs, barriers experienced, and counseling satisfaction of female survivors of partner violence (N = 71). The women participated in community‐ and research‐based individual career counseling services designed to promote their short‐ and long‐term career development. The authors conducted correlational, t‐test, and logistic regression analyses and found that barriers differed by race/ethnicity, age, number of children, and career service needs. Results provide important information about survivors' career counseling service access and needs.     

Using Artist Trading Cards as an Expressive Arts Intervention in Counseling

Artist trading cards (ATCs) are miniature works of art that are created within the dimensions of standardized trading cards or playing cards (2.5 inches × 3.5 inches). ATCs can be made with a variety of media—everything from pen and ink to oil paints, collages, mosaics, stamping, and altered photos. Using this compact art format as an expressive arts intervention in the therapeutic environment provides the counselor with most, if not all, of the same therapeutic benefits of larger art media (e.g., expressive release, creativity, artistic communication, symbolic self-expression, self-exploration, etc.). The unique benefit of the ATC format is that ATCs allow for traditional expressive arts interventions to be “better, faster, and cheaper” in many ways.     

Positive psychotherapy: A strength-based approach

Positive psychotherapy (PPT) is a therapeutic approach broadly based on the principles of positive psychology. Rooted in Chris Peterson’s groundbreaking work on character strengths, PPT integrates symptoms with strengths, resources with risks, weaknesses with values, and hopes with regrets in order to understand the inherent complexities of human experiences in a way that is more balanced than the traditional deficit-oriented approach to psychotherapy. This paper makes the case of an alternative approach to psychotherapy that pays equal attention and effort to negatives and positives. It discusses PPT’s assumptions and describes in detail how PPT exercises work in clinical settings. The paper summarizes results of pilot studies using this approach, discusses caveats in conducting PPT, and suggests potential directions.     

The Youth Public Arts Program: Interpersonal and Intrapersonal Outcomes for At-Risk Youth

This article provides the findings of a program evaluation of the Youth Public Arts Program, a long-standing community-based art program that serves at-risk youth in eastern North Carolina. The program evaluation was undertaken to examine the art skills, social and interpersonal skills, and community involvement of the participants. The study included four focus groups and telephone surveys with a total of 38 stakeholders (program participants, parents of participants, program staff, and referral sources). Results indicated that the at-risk youth had gains in both interpersonal and intrapersonal skills, including family relationships, peer relationships, community interaction, increased art skills, confidence, and self-regulation. This article adds to the very limited literature on community-based art programs for youth.     

The Perks of Being Relational: Reviewing The Perks of Being a Wallflower

This article reviews The Perks of Being a Wallflower (Halfon, Smith, Malkovich, & Chbosky, 2012), a coming-of-age film about 3 high school students attempting to survive school, find themselves, and connect with others. The authors provide a synopsis of various portions of the film and identify important aspects of relational-cultural theory (RCT) within its plot, such as growth-fostering relationships, controlling images, and relational images. Various characters’ plotlines are discussed in relation to what RCT identifies as paramount tenets of human development and mental health. The authors also briefly discuss other counseling issues touched on within the film (i.e., affectional identity, sexual assault, and relational violence).     

Introducing Reality Play Therapy: Reactions and Perceptions From Elementary School Counselors

Many elementary school students lack school relationships required for positive personal, social, and academic interactions. Reality therapy and play therapy both seek to address these relationships through developmentally appropriate and effective interventions. Integrating these 2 approaches has the potential for elementary school counselors to provide students with opportunities to create positive relationships and develop problem-solving skills. In this study, 8 school counselors participated in a series of trainings introducing reality play-therapy techniques to assess this potential. A thematic analysis conducted on feedback sessions following the trainings yielded themes related to the participants’ positive perceptions to the training and possible application.     

African American Pastors on Mental Health,Coping, and Help Seeking

Within the Black Church, there remains much that is unknown about pastoral motivations, beliefs, and attitudes about mental health. The purpose of this study was to investigate pastors' responses to parishioners dealing with mental health issues, including perspectives on counseling services and coping strategies. According to this study's findings, African American pastors often are the first line of support for parishioners' mental health and recognizing adaptive and maladaptive forms of coping.