Postdoctoral Training in Psychotherapy.

During the past year, a number of articles have appeared in the American Psychologist on the general issue of whether psychologists should or should not do psychotherapy. While it is indisputable that a problem of this kind deserves attention as long as enough people are concerned to give it substance, we confess to a sense of bewilderment: Is not a long dead horse receiving a rather severe whipping? In settings ranging from hospitals and clinics to private practice, psychologists are doing psychotherapy, have been doing it for some time, and are likely to continue doing it as long as there is a social need for this kind of service. This fact has been clearly acknowledged by such national organizations as the VA and the USPHS and, through ABEPP and the Education and Training Board, by the APA itself. Much more central questions, it seems to us, are those of whether psychologists are being adequately trained for their therapeutic function and of what can be done to make training opportunities more available. First, we recommend that a comprehensive survey be made, through the Education and Training Board or other appropriate agency, of precisely what postdoctoral training resources are available in the nation for psychologists. Second, we urge that the APA investigate the possibility of establishing postdoctoral training programs in strategically located universities. Third, suspecting that one or another of the major foundations would be interested in this kind of venture into professional training at postdoctoral levels, we suggest that the APA take responsibility for investigating potential sources of financial support. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Difficulties in family practice residency training: Recommendations for training health psychologists in primary care settings.

We attempt to pursue a model for health psychologists by developing recommendations for behavioral science input into family practice residencies, gleaned from experiences of several health psychologists specifically trained to be directors of behavioral science programs of such medicine departments. This information is accumulated and based on a 7-year period at one university-based, inner-city program and two community-based hospitals. These recommendations are offered in the hope that health psychology training specialists will anticipate roadblocks associated with family practice residency training programs and will plan accordingly. Specifically, we make recommendations regarding program overview and training background, roadblocks (including medicine as the final authority), theoretical versus practical teaching orientation, resident time constraints, administrative support and priorities, and training effectiveness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction.

For this issue, we have selected remembrances of three psychologists (two clinicians and one industrial/organizational) who were pioneers in various aspects of their fields. Marguerite R. Hertz, the most senior of these writers, shares her memoir of the Rorschach test's development into a major diagnostic tool for clinical psychologists. Mary Tenopyr shares how her entrance into the field of industrial psychology was almost accidental, as was true for many psychologists in that field. Larry Abt reviews the changes in clinical psychology that he experienced throughout his career, noting how psychotherapy started to dominate the field and recalling the early conflicts in psychoanalytic training institutes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evidence on multicultural training in school psychology: Recommendations for future directions.

School psychology training programs are required to provide multicultural training to preservice school psychologists; however, trainers have had difficulty adequately including multicultural content into the curriculum. Thus, there is a gap between the requirements and the training that many school psychologists receive. Training programs have grappled with multicultural training because of difficulty identifying the structure and content of such training for school psychologists. To advance multicultural training in school psychology, guidance is needed regarding the content and structure necessary to adequately develop multicultural competence. Hence, the purpose of this article is to critically review the evidence on multicultural training in school psychology and provide a synthesis of the best evidence for preparing multiculturally competent school psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training psychologists in family therapy in family institute settings.

Contends that pathways for training psychologists in family treatment approaches have yet to become well articulated, due to the traditional segregation of the fields of psychology and family therapy. The author examines the interface between one important source for such training, family institutes, and psychology training programs. The roots of the mutual misunderstanding between these institutions are examined, followed by a discussion of the strengths and potential difficulties of training psychologists in family institute settings. A set of recommendations is offered for how family institutes and psychology training programs can best work together. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Practicing clinical psychologists’ provision of sexual health care services.

Practicing clinical psychologists are likely to work with sexual health concerns as part of their clinical practice because of high prevalence rates and sexual problems as symptoms of mental or physical health problems and their pharmacological treatment. However, the majority of clinicians do not receive didactic or supervised clinical training. This survey of 188 practicing clinical psychologists in one Canadian city confirmed that, despite lack of training, many clinicians discussed sexual health concerns with their clients and used a variety of sex therapy techniques. This survey also revealed, however, that 60% of clinicians did not ask, or very infrequently asked, clients about sexual health. In general, lack of training affected level of comfort, and both may result in inadequate application of sex therapy techniques and treatment. The results of this survey indicate an ethical imperative to included sexuality training in current graduate curricula to adequately prepare psychologists to assess, refer, and treat sexual health concerns. The inclusion of sexuality-related topics in existing clinical graduate courses, an increase in sexuality-specific courses focused on assessment and intervention in graduate curricula, and broader options for continuing education for practicing clinical psychologists are recommended. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Issues in the training of school psychologists in program evaluation.

Program evaluation is becoming increasingly important to all professional psychologists, including school psychologists. Despite a burgeoning of information about program evaluation principles, little attention has been given to program evaluation training, especially the utility of that training for program decision making. Five issues pertinent to the training of school psychologists in program evaluation are discussed: need for training, extent of training, goals of training, methods of training, and evaluation of training experiences. The material presented is based on the authors' experiences in program evaluation training at the Rutgers School Psychology Training Program. (43 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Postdoctoral training in professional geropsychology: A survey of fellowship graduates.

Have psychologists who have pursued postdoctoral training in geropsychology viewed such training as a worthwhile professional investment? As the population is aging, psychologists are increasingly working with older adults. For many psychologists, competent practice with the elderly will require some continuing education, whereas other psychologists may choose to secure specialty-level training in the field. A survey of psychologists who completed such specialized postdoctoral training found a high level of satisfaction with the training and a sense of professional competence in most of the geropsychology competency areas set forth by the American Psychological Association. The need for increased opportunities for both proficiency and specialty-level training in applied geropsychology is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward professional clinical psychology.

"The immediate task confronting clinical psychology is to obtain recognition for its competence. The important thing for clinical psychologists to keep in mind is that we must determine now whether we shall serve a prime or an ancillary role… . If we vigorously and realistically pursue recognition for our competence, our role will be a prime one. Competence, therefore, is our concern, and it is associated with professional status. Many tests of professionalism confront us. The past 2 decades have produced a fantastic increase in the numbers of clinical psychologists who provide psychotherapy and psychodiagnosis in both institutional and private settings." Postdoctoral training institutes, preventive procedures, and brief treatment techniques are needed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The perceived effectiveness of Christian and secular graduate training programs in preparing Christian psychologists to deal with experiences of sexual attraction.

Most psychologists experience feelings of sexual attraction toward clients, and for some Christian therapists this situation can be further complicated by their tendency to deny such sexual attraction. How effective are graduate training programs in teaching Christian psychologists to manage feelings of sexual attraction in professional contexts? In this survey, 258 Christian psychologists answered questions regarding their graduate training. A positive training environment was related to healthy coping responses in managing feelings of sexual attraction, and graduates of explicitly Christian training programs reported greater satisfaction with training conditions than graduates of secular programs. Those involved in training professional psychologists should consider the general training environment in addition to specific course work about managing feelings of sexual attraction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Guest editor's overview.

Editorial emphasizes the the degree to which the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 have relevance to psychologists in terms of their practice, research, and training. As mentioned by Robert Pollard in the preface to this special issue, this is one of two companion special issues on the ADA which are being published simultaneously by Rehabilitation Psychology and Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research. In these issues, the significance of the ADA to psychologists in such areas as assessment, reasonable accommodation considerations with special populations, new consulting opportunities, and training are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychologists in the ivory tower.

C. A. Kiesler's (1977) article on the training of psychiatrists and psychologists points out that psychologists have more training in research; contrary to Kiesler's view, however, such training does not necessarily make them better practitioners. The American Psychological Association must encourage training programs that emphasize practice rather than research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counseling psychology in clinical health psychology: The impact of specialty perspective.

Not all clinical health psychologists are trained as clinical psychologists. A significant minority is trained and identifies as counseling psychologists. As a field, it is important to understand how the specialty-specific values, training context, scholarship, and parameters of practice of counseling psychology contribute to clinical health psychology. In this article, we (a) identify the core values and training context of counseling psychology, (b) review the scholarly history of clinical health psychology by counseling psychologists, (c) present the parameters of practice of clinical health psychology as identified from the extant counseling psychology literature, and (d) examine American Psychological Association membership status to investigate joint membership in the Division of Health Psychology and the Society of Counseling Psychology. Conclusions indicate that (a) an identifiable set of core values guides the training of counseling psychologists, (b) scholarly literature by counseling psychologists has contributed to the growth and development of clinical health psychology, and (c) parameters of practice reflect the specialty-specific perspective of counseling psychology. As professional psychology continues to grow as a health care profession, clinical health psychology will benefit from the knowledge, values, attitudes, competencies, and practice parameters of counseling psychology, and counseling psychology will benefit from recognizing what it brings to the practice of clinical health psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinical psychologists reflect on the usefulness of various components of graduate training.

Graduates of clinical training programs were surveyed to determine the degree to which they have found various graduate school experiences useful in their professional work. Samples of academic clinical psychologists and practicing clinical psychologists reported time allocation and preference for various professional activities, perceived usefulness of various theoretical orientations, and the influence on their current professional work of 19 different graduate training topics. Results suggest that where differences exist, academic clinical psychologists are generally more satisfied with Boulder-model-inspired scientific training than are clinical practitioners. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training for substance abuse treatment among psychologists in a rural state.

Is treating substance abuse generally a part of psychological practice? Do psychologists feel prepared to deliver substance abuse treatment? Licensed psychologists in Idaho were surveyed about their training and provision of substance abuse services. Of 144 respondents (66% return rate), nearly all (89%) had contact with substance abusers, yet most rated their graduate training as inadequate preparation for practice. Rural psychologists reported seeing the highest percentage of substance abusers. Many psychologists limited their treatment to self-help group referral. Continuing education offers the most immediate solution and might be related to certification efforts. Predoctoral training of generalist psychologists, especially in rural areas, is advocated with an emphasis on integrated behavioral health care. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teaching psychology to jurists: Initiatives and reactions prior to World War I.

This article deals with the kind of psychology suggested for jurists that was thought to be necessary training for their work. An analysis of the content of two textbooks by Otto Lipmann and Karl Marbe reveals that such teaching activity involves two different levels of historical analysis. On the one hand, it relates to experimental research done by psychologists on law-related issues; on the other, it concerns the professional experience psychologists accumulated by acting as expert witnesses in court. The paper investigates how psychologists presented psychology to jurists, which methods and theories they suggested as being essential for juristic training and professional performance, and whether jurists appreciated these materials and efforts. These inquiries are embedded in the debate on the history of criminal psychology, taking into account the European, particularly the German, context. The author shows how specific historical developments led to an increased exchange between experimental psychology and criminal law during the first decades of the 20th century. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinical Psychologists as Psychotherapists: History, Future, and Alternatives.

As managed care and other cost-containment strategies become centralfeatures of the American health care system, doctoral-level clinical psychologists will be increasingly supplanted in the role of psychotherapist by lower cost providers such as social workers, marriage and family counselors, and masters-level psychologists. To provide one basis for clinical psychologists to make judgments about their role in psychotherapy, this article describes what the field was like before psychotherapy became a core activity and then compares the present transition with its historical counterpart: the opening up of the psychotherapy profession to doctoral-level clinical psychologists after World War II. History suggests that efforts to resist the current changes will be unsuccessful and that the most adaptive coping strategy for clinical psychologists is to take advantage of the transition by re-envisioning training and practice of clinical psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Levels of training to address religion in clincal practice.

Psychologists routinely work with clients who hold religious beliefs and values, yet there is often the question of whether psychologists are trained and competent to address religion as an aspect of diversity. How do training programs prepare psychologists to address this specific diversity issue? Do training programs equip psychologists to work effectively with religious clients? It is useful for psychologists to consider a 3-tier training system in religion and religious diversity that reflects a commitment to seeing religion as a meaningful expression of diversity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training in Psychotherapy for Psychologists: Recommendations of Clinical Psychologists.

This article discusses the current debate on the subject of psychotherapy training for psychologists and how it tends to concern itself with rather broad philosophical issues and matters of role definition. As part of a larger study, data not previously reported were derived from three questions which asked for opinions about ideal patterns of psychotherapy training for psychologists. This brief report suggests the desirability of careful stratification of the group of clinical psychologists in future opinion sampling and when policy recommendations are being developed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)