Review of Shifting the paradigm in community mental health: Towards empowerment and community.

Reviews the book, Shifting the paradigm in community mental health: Towards empowerment and community by Geoffrey Nelson, John Lord, and Joanna Ochocka (2001). This book, as it combines theory, practice, and research (a case study) about the processes of empowerment and integration of consumers of mental health care in a Canadian setting, delineates strategies and approaches that can be factors in fulfilling this important aim. Shifting the Paradigm in Community Mental Health is a welcome contribution to the literature on the implementation of consumer empowerment and involvement in mental health treatment and care. The authors offer an approach enabling the reader to see the dimensions for empowerment and community integration termed the empowerment-community integration paradigm. The book will be useful for a wide audience, including consumers, professionals, stakeholders, researchers, and policy makers, and should be in the libraries of all institutions, formal and informal, that deliver mental health care. The overall clarity of the writing and all the approaches will be very much appreciated by all those who work or receive services in mental health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The mental health of Asian Americans.

Reviews the book, The mental health of Asian Americans by Stanley Sue and James K. Morishima (1982). In The Mental Health of Asian Americans, Sue and Morishima assess the current status of theory and research strategies in this field and initiate dialogue regarding future directions for our investigative energies and service delivery efforts. They are largely successful at this ambitious mission. Their work represents one of the best and most comprehensive texts on the special issues related to Asian-American mental health. Although this book was published in 1982, the theories presented and issues discussed remain extremely pertinent to the problems encountered today in providing services to this population. The authors' major intent is not to demonstrate how to deal with cross-cultural issues in treating Asian-American clients, although therapeutic techniques with a particular client may be extrapolated from their discussion and numerous case examples. Instead, the authors focus on strategies for improving research and delivery of mental health services, and attaining a theoretical understanding of treatment issues within the cultural context. The content is aimed at those who are in training or currently participating in mental health research and service delivery to persons of Asian descent. Yet, this book is of interest to all professionals who are seeking a well-researched text which is grounded in theory and describes the importance of cultural factors in developing mental health services to an ethnic minority population. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinical Decision Making About Psychopathy and Violence Risk Assessment in Public Sector Mental Health Settings.

Although there has been extensive research on psychopathy, it is unknown how, or whether, clinicians in public sector mental health settings consider the Psychopathy Checklist (PCL) for assessing violence risk. Mental health clinicians (N = 135) from 4 facilities were interviewed by using multiple methods for collecting data on decision making. Participants considered clinical information most often when assessing violence risk, indicating that these data were most readily available. Clinicians perceived formal testing results (e.g., PCL) to be least available and considered testing least often, especially if clinicians had less clinical experience. Participants did not explicitly report using the PCL but did implicitly rely on psychopathy factors when assessing violence risk. Clinicians in crisis settings reported less availability of historical data typically needed for the PCL. The data point to specific ways to improve the clinical practice of violence risk assessment in public mental health settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Women's Mental Health: A Comprehensive Textbook.

Reviews the book, Women's Mental Health: A Comprehensive Textbook edited by Susan G. Kornstein and Anita H. Clayton (2004). The reviewer notes that this book was so helpful that I could not put it down to write a review. In my opinion, many readers, including clinicians in psychology and psychiatry, researchers, graduate students, and sophisticated undergraduates would all benefit from perusing this text and examining chapters related to specific disorders and aspects of the reproductive stages of women's lives. This book is definitely a gold mine for busy academics preparing comprehensive lectures on women's mental health issues. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Continuing education in cultural competence for community mental health practitioners.

Continuing education in cultural competence is a key strategy for enhancing provider effectiveness in working with culturally diverse clients. In the mental health field, a majority of published works address training issues related to students in graduate programs. Few articles, however, discuss specific models or methods of continuing education for practitioners working in community-based settings. The authors present a case example of an interactive workshop in cultural competence for community mental health practitioners. They discuss key modules of this workshop, including (a) cultural competence and outreach principles, (b) cultural identity and worldview, (c) stereotyping and automatic thinking, (d) dynamics of difference, and (e) application exercises. Recommendations are offered for administrators, direct care staff, trainers, and researchers who may be interested in undertaking or participating in cultural competence continuing education efforts. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Mental health law in Canada.

Reviews the book, Mental health law in Canada by Harvey Savage and Carla McKague (1987). Mental health professionals who come into contact with the law in the course of their work generally have an interest in the well-being of the client. However, they often feel dismayed and confused because of their lack of understanding of mental law and the legal system in general. Until recently, mental health professionals in Canada could not turn to a single volume which would help explain mental health law, including their clients' rights. However, Harvey Savage and Carla McKague's book, Mental health law in Canada, will help alleviate some of the concern and confusion Canadian mental health professionals have come to know. Although some authors have written about Canadian mental health law in specific contexts (e.g., criminal responsibility or fitness to stand trial), Savage and McKague's contribution is the only available comprehensive source directed to the law affecting psychiatric patients. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward reflective practice: A multicultural competence training model from a community mental health center.

Despite the importance of multicultural competence in clinical practice and training, there is a surprising dearth of innovative training models from fieldwork sites that would be replicable in other practicum settings. The authors illustrate a multicultural competence training model from a community mental health center that highlights the Guidelines on Multicultural Education, Training, Research, Practice, and Organization Change for Psychologists (American Psychological Association, 2003). The model focuses on providing multicultural training through two separate but linked training teams for the dual purposes of internal reflection and reflective practice. The authors conclude with a discussion of the implications of this training model for practice, research, and organizational change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction: Methodological issues in school-based mental health services research.

New research directions on the effectiveness of mental health services for children and adolescents offer the opportunity for school psychology to apply its knowledge base to the systemic juncture between mental health and school systems. Models of service delivery to children, adolescents, and their families that integrate school, mental health, and other service sectors are being actively studied to answer questions about the outcomes of these services for children with mental health problems. The papers in this journal were first presented at the 6th Annual Research Conference of the Florida Mental Health Institute on "A System of Care for Children's Mental Health: Expanding the Research Base." The papers describe state-of-the art studies of school-based mental health interventions for children, adolescents, and their families. In each of the papers, particular attention is paid to the salient methodological issues researchers face in conducting these studies within school settings. It is hoped that these articles will foreground the healthy and creative tensions that exist between different research paradigms and multiple service communities, especially mental health and school systems, by encouraging new research on important and as yet unanswered questions about the effectiveness of school-based service delivery to children and adolescents with mental health needs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

APA Visiting Psychologist Program: 1974-1975.

Notes that the Visiting Psychologist Program has completed its eighth year of operation under the sponsorship of the National Institute of Mental Health. The program is designed to facilitate the dissemination of up-to-date knowledge generated in recent research findings and to provide for the demonstration of innovations in psychological procedures to mental health professionals in service settings by psychologists who are significantly involved in research, training, and delivery of services. Agencies that received initial visits are listed, with their Visiting Psychologists as well. Agencies and Visiting Psychologists involved in return visits are also listed. The Advisory Committee would like to thank all of those who contributed to the success of the program. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Transforming Mental Health Care for Children and Their Families.

In April 2002, the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health was created by executive order to study the mental health care delivery system in our nation and to make recommendations for improvements so that individuals with serious mental disorders can live, work, learn, and fully participate in their homes and communities. In its report, "Achieving the Promise: Transforming Mental Health Care in America," the commission provided strategies to address critical infrastructure, practice, and research issues. This article focuses on the work of the commission's Subcommittee on Children and Families, describing its vision for mental health service delivery for children and providing suggestions for strengthening community-based care for youths with or at risk of behavioral health disorders. Training, research, practice, and policy implications for psychologists are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Canadian mental health law and policy.

Reviews the book, Canadian Mental Health Law and Policy by John E. Gray, Margaret A. Shone, and Peter F. Liddle (2000). The authors of this book have produced a multidisciplinary text that succinctly summarizes the main points of Canadian mental health laws and the variability across provinces and territories in these laws and in their typical interpretation and application. This book offers a concise guide to the laws dealing with key issues such as involuntary hospital admission, authorization of psychiatric treatment, and treatment refusal. Although not always an easy read for those unfamiliar with legal terms and writing, the book is geared to a wide audience that includes legal and policy specialists, mental health professionals, and advocates for the mentally ill. These authors are to be congratulated for their efforts to disseminate and explain information on Canadian mental health law and to promote a more humane and scientifically grounded set of legal standards and interpretations that are pertinent to the disposition and treatment of Canadian citizens with severe mental disorders. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The mental hospital in the 21st century.

Reviews the book, The mental hospital in the 21st century by Emmanuel Persad, Shane S. Kazarian, and Llewellyn W. Joseph (1992). The authors not only review past endeavors in the delivery of mental health services but speculate as to the role the mental hospital may take in the years to come. The starting point for this book is a conference entitled "The Role of the Mental Hospital in the 21st Century" sponsored by the London Psychiatric Hospital in October 1990. The book features 20 brief chapters regrouped in three sections. In all, 29 contributors mainly from Canada, bring forth varying perspectives on the role of the mental hospital. The real contribution of this book is that it puts into perspective the magnitude of the challenge that confronts the major stakeholders in developing a comprehensive and balanced system of mental health services. The present book could serve as a starting point for some serious debate among the stakeholders about the way the mentally ill are treated and to determine how the role of the mental hospital should change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Between the laboratory and life: Child development research in Toronto, 1919-1956.

Between 1919 and 1956, psychologists at the University of Toronto built a research program in developmental psychology on a functionalist, holistic, and ecological basis. They conducted longitudinal studies on mental health in growing children in educational settings instead of in laboratories and formed strong alliances with the local educational system in order to do so. They initially defined mental health as adjustment and considered conditions within schools to be conducive to its attainment. After developing a psychological theory of personality development, they came to view educational conditions as discouraging the development of mental health. The alliance between the educational system and psychology consequently unraveled, and the program declined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The National Service Corps.

"On November 14, 1962, President Kennedy announced the appointment of a cabinet-level committee… to assess the feasibility of a national service corps." The corps would "recruit youth and older adults whose main function would be personal service to people. Among human needs described are problems of mental health and mental retardation, educational and vocational training deficiencies, inadequate social skills for urban living, delinqency, and communicable disease… . The American Psychological Association has been involved from the start and the Executive Officer serves as a member of a continuing Advisory Council on Mental Health and Mental Retardation." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Mental Health Concept.

In its recent report (Amer. Psychologist, 1959, 14, 820-825, see record 1961-00974-001) the Ad Hoc Planning Group on the Role of the APA in Mental Health Programs and Research makes several critical comments on the concepts of mental health and mental illness. These are listed in this article. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Jum Clarence Nunnally (1924–1982).

Jum Clarence Nunnally was known for his book on the attitudes toward mental health Popular Conceptions of Mental Health (1961). He also worked on measurement methods and published several articles on factor analysis and other issues in measurement. At Vanderbilt University he published four additional books and an additional 110 articles, achieving wide recognition as a research methodologist before his death from cancer on August 22, 1982. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

APA visiting psychologist program: 1981-1982.

The Visiting Psychologist to Field Settings Program, under the sponsorship of the National Institute of Mental Health, has completed its 15th year of operation. The program continues to function as a mechanism for the dissemination of up-to-date knowledge generated in recent research findings and to provide for the demonstration of innovations in psychological procedures to mental health professionals in service settings by psychologists who are significantly involved in research, training, and the delivery of services. The number of agencies visited by the program since its inception totals over 500. During the past year, 22 agencies were visited. Since several of the agencies reviewed by the Advisory Committee requested similar areas of consultation and were in close geographical proximity to one another, the committee felt it desirable to arrange some combined agency visits in order to include as many agencies as possible in the program. Agencies that received visits are listed with their Visiting Psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mental health and the American Psychological Association.

Major sections are: What Is Mental Health (Historical Development, Aspects of Mental Health, Mental Health and Public Health); Psychologists in Mental Health (Research, Service, Communication); The APA and Mental Health (Facilitation of Research, Education for Research and Service, Facilitation of Communication, Relations to Other Organizations, The Status of Psychologists); An APA Committee on Mental Health (Committee on Mental Health Research and Programs, Other APA Functions). Mental health in its newer and broader meanings is conceived "as a human enterprise that merits the best contributions of psychologists generally." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)