School-Based Child-Centered Play Therapy with Hispanic Children: Outcomes and Cultural Consideration.

Hispanic children are the fastest growing segment of the population. Numerous factors place them at-risk for school success. This study examined the effects of Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) compared to a curriculum-based small group intervention with 29 Hispanic children referred for school counseling due to behavior problems. Children were assigned to treatment groups by random drawing within grade levels. Treatment was provided by Hispanic bilingual counselors. Statistical analysis revealed that, according to parent report, children receiving CCPT showed statistically significant decreases in externalizing behavior problems, compared to the curriculum-based treatment group. Effect size calculations revealed that CCPT demonstrated a large treatment effect on externalizing behavior problems and a moderate treatment effect on internalizing behavior problems. Cultural considerations and recommendations for practice and future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Differential impact of play therapy on developmental levels of children.

The purpose of this preliminary study was to explore the impact of child-centered play therapy (CCPT) on children identified within J. Piaget's (1962) preoperational and concrete operations developmental stages. Using archival data, this study used a 3-wave repeated measures analysis of variance design to analyze the impact of CCPT on 24 children between the ages of 3 and 8 who received 19-23 individual CCPT sessions. On the basis of the child's age, children were evenly divided into 2 treatment groups of preoperational or operational developmental stage. A pretest, approximate midpoint, and posttest administration of the Parenting Stress Index (R. Abidin, 1995) was collected for use in the analysis. Preliminary results of this study revealed statistically significant differences in the impact of CCPT for children of different developmental stages. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Child-centered play therapy.

Presents child centered play therapy (CCPT), including the rationale, basic tenets and effectiveness of the approach. The stages of CCPT are described. As the name suggests, CCPT focuses on the child and not on his or her problems. Most children not only thrive in the play environment, but with the therapeutic contributions of the therapist, go to reach higher levels of maturity and adjustment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Limits and relationship in child-centered play therapy: Two case studies.

This article presents case studies exploring two boys' uses of limit testing as a therapeutic tool in child-centered play therapy (CCPT). Both boys were referred for behavior that was abnormally disruptive for their age and setting, which was kindergarten in an elementary school that serves a very high poverty community and is accustomed to handling misbehavior. Data evidencing progress is provided as a reference point, while analysis is focused on conceptualization and mechanisms of change related to each child's use of limit testing in CCPT. The authors suggest that each boy used limit testing in CCPT to try out the therapeutic relationship as a stand-in for other relationships, to rethink relational expectations inside and outside of therapy, revisit unmet needs and meanings of early experiences, and change self-concept in ways that affected positive behavioral change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Play therapy with children exhibiting symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Sixty elementary school age children qualified as symptomatic of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 treatment conditions: child-centered play therapy (CCPT) or reading mentoring (RM). All children participated in 16 individual 30-min sessions in the schools. Results indicated that children who participated in 16 sessions of CCPT and RM demonstrated statistically significant improvement on the ADHD and student characteristics domains, as well as the Anxiety/Withdrawal and Learning Disability subscales of the Index of Teaching Stress and the ADHD Index of the Conners Teacher Rating Scale--Revised: Short Form. Children who participated in CCPT demonstrated statistically significant improvement over RM children on the student characteristics domain and on the Emotional Lability and Anxiety/Withdrawal subscales of the Index of Teaching Stress. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An exploratory study of child-centered play therapy with aggressive children.

Children exhibiting aggressive problem behaviors typically reach a peak of aggressive acts at an early age, providing evidence that early intervention for aggression is needed. Child-centered play therapy (CCPT) is 1 intervention that offers the child an environment in which aggression can be expressed and empathically responded to by a play therapist. Forty-one elementary school age children were assigned to a CCPT condition or a wait-list control group condition. Children who participated in 14 sessions of CCPT showed a moderate decrease in aggressive behaviors over children in the control group, according to effect sizes as reported by parents (N = 32). Teachers reported that both groups significantly improved over time (N = 41). Post hoc analysis revealed that children assigned to CCPT decreased aggressive behaviors statistically significantly and children assigned to control group demonstrated no statistically significant difference. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Child-centered play therapy with a seven-year-old boy diagnosed with intermittent explosive disorder.

Child-centered play therapy (CCPT) has been supported as an effective method for working with children. A case study is presented that describes treatment using CCPT with a 7-year-old boy diagnosed with intermittent explosive disorder (IED). This case study delineates 16 sessions of play therapy with a registered play therapist. The behavioral problems the child exhibited at the onset of therapy were greatly improved at the conclusion of the sessions. The outcome of this case study supported the use of play therapy for children with IED. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Monitoring two boys' processes through the stages of child-centered play therapy.

This article describes two boys' actions in child-centered play therapy (CCPT) through the lens of the typical stages in CCPT as described by Nordling and Guerney (1999). Both boys were referred for severe attention and aggression problems that had persisted for more than one school year at age six. While each boy engaged in CCPT in unique ways, the authors were able to clearly discern the stages in each boy's play. The authors assert for the value of play therapists' ability to discern stages in children's therapeutic play to monitor progress and determine readiness to end from an internal to the child gauge, as well as through the external gauges of behavior change reports from parents and teachers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Quantitative analysis of long-term child-centered play therapy.

This exploratory study measured the impact of long-term Child- Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) with 23 children identified by teachers as exhibiting behavioral and emotional difficulties. Through the use of a repeated measures design, researchers examined the use of CCPT from pre-intervention to mid-intervention (16 sessions) to post intervention (32 sessions). Results indicated that children who participated in 32 sessions of CCPT demonstrated statistically significant improvement on the Total Problems Scale as measured on the Teacher Report Form, Total Stress Scale of the Index of Teaching Stress (ITS), ADHD Domain of the ITS, and Student Characteristics of the ITS. Researchers reported improvement to be statistically steady over the full duration of therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Kenneth E. Moyer (1919-2006).

Presents an obituary for Kenneth E. Moyer. Before becoming an internationally known expert in the field of aggressive behavior, Kenneth Evan (Keck) Moyer held jobs as an acrobat, a physical therapist, and a farmer. He served as a marine in World War II and was a consultant to the Norwegian government. The range of his life experiences amazed his friends, who wondered how he could have done all these things and still have acquired such a breadth of scholarly knowledge. Throughout his life, his scholarly pursuits had practical applications, and his practical endeavors had a scholarly basis. Keck died May 18, 2006, of an apparent heart attack. His son, Robert S. Moyer, a psychologist who recently retired from the faculty of Bates College, and his daughter, Cathy Noblick, a marriage and family counselor in New Jersey, survive him. Also surviving are five grandchildren and four great grandchildren. He was devoted to all of them and to children he supported through international programs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect on blood pressure of an acute fall in ionized calcium during hemodialysis. A randomized study in two patients

In school children with atopic asthma the beneficial effects of disodium cromoglycate (DSCG) and beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) are well-established. In preschool children, wheezing is quite common, and in the majority of cases the symptoms are episodic and reported to be associated with viral infections rather than atopy. We compared the efficacy of regular treatment with DSCG and BDP for prevention of wheezing in preschool children. We were interested to establish whether regular treatment with inhaled anti-inflammatory drugs could lead to a decrease in bronchial responsiveness. In 15 patients (median age, 56 months; range, 43-66 months) bronchial responsiveness was assessed by measuring specific airway resistance (sRaw) during a histamine provocation test. The concentration of histamine eliciting a 100% increase in sRaw (PC100his) was determined. In a double-blind crossover study, patients inhaled either DSCG 10 mg three times a day or BDP 100 microg three times a day for 2 months. After a wash-out period, treatment was changed to BDP or DSCG, respectively. Daily peak flow measurements were carried out, and exacerbations were noted. PC100his was measured at the start and end of each treatment period. No significant decrease in bronchial responsiveness was seen (PC100his DSCG: before 1.3, after 1.66 mg/ml, Pvalue not significant; BDP: before 1.1 after 1.22 mg/ml, Pvalue not significant). Significantly higher morning peak flows were observed on BDP therapy (160 on BDP vs. 150 L/min on DSCG, P < 0.03). BDP treatment resulted in significantly fewer wheezing exacerbations (7 vs. 16, P < 0.005) compared with DSCG therapy. We conclude that in preschool children with episodic virally induced wheezing, BDP therapy was superior to DSCG aerosol treatments for the prevention of exacerbations of wheezing, although no significant effect on bronchial responsiveness was noted during either treatment protocol.     

Temperamental resistance to control increases the association between sleep problems and externalizing behavior development.

This study examined the moderating effects of temperamental resistance to control on the link between development of sleep problems and development of externalizing behaviors over a 5-year period. Resistance to control was assessed with mothers' retrospective reports of temperament in infancy, provided when children were 5 years of age. Sleep problems were assessed with mother reports on an annual basis from age 5 to age 9. Externalizing behaviors were assessed with teacher reports on an annual basis from age 5 to age 9. A cross-domain latent growth curve model indicated that sleep problem trajectories were positively associated with externalizing behavior trajectories only for children high in resistance to control. In addition, resistance to control was positively associated with initial (age 5) sleep problems and initial (age 5) externalizing behaviors. The authors speculate that the development of sleep problems promotes the development of behavior problems for resistant children, whose self-regulatory abilities are especially tenuous. Implications for prevention and treatment of conduct problems are considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Change in maternal criticism and behavior problems in adolescents and adults with autism across a 7-year period.

In a previous study, high levels of maternal criticism predicted increased behavior problems in adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) over an 18-month period (Greenberg, Seltzer, Hong, & Orsmond, 2006). The current investigation followed these families over a period of 7 years to examine the longitudinal course of criticism and behavior problems, to assess the association between their trajectories, and to determine the degree to which change in each of these factors predicted levels of criticism and behavior problems at the end of the study period. A sample of 118 mothers coresiding with their adolescent and adult children with ASD provided open-ended narratives about their children and reported on the children's behavior problems at 4 waves. Maternal criticism was derived from expressed emotion ratings of the narratives. Criticism exhibited low but significant stability over the 7-year period, and behavior problems exhibited high stability. Through latent growth curve modeling, (a) criticism was found to have increased over time, but only for the group of families in which the sons or daughters transitioned from high school services during the study period; (b) individual changes in criticism and behavior problems were positively correlated over the 7-year period; and (c) changes in criticism predicted levels of behavior problems at the conclusion of the study. Changes in behavior problems were not predictive of end levels of criticism. Implications for intervention and prevention efforts are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Nicholas Hobbs: Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Public Service 1980.

Presents a citation and biography on Nicholas Hobbs on the occasion of his receiving the Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Public Service in 1980 from the American Psychological Association. Dr. Hobbs is recognized for his contributions to the residential treatment of emotionally disturbed children, his work with the Peace Corps, his service to Vanderbilt University and the government in many capacities as well as president of the American Psychological Association. A bibliography of his research is also provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of telomerase for pancreatic carcinogenesis in human and hamster

Telomerase activity and terminal restriction flagment (TRF) length were investigated in human and hamster pancreatic duct adenocarcinomas. In the hamster primary and transplantable pancreatic carcinomas and cell lines, telomerase activity increased 86 to 215.7 times relative to the levels in normal spleen and pancreas, and reduction of TRF length was observed. In 38 human pancreatic ductal carcinomas, 32 (84%) exhibited increased telomerase activities with no apparent relation to the histological type of tumor, tumor size, regional lymph node involvement and distant metastasis. These results suggest that telomerase play an important role for pancreatic duct carcinogenesis.     

The socioemotional behaviors of children with SLI: Social Adaptation or Social Deviance?

Two models of the relationship between socioemotional behavior and verbal abilities are compared: Social Adaptation and Social Deviance. The socioemotional integrity of 17 children with specific language impairment (SLI) and 20 unaffected children who were age-matched (AM) was examined using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and the Teacher's Report Form (TRF) at kindergarten and first grade. All CBCL and TRF syndrome scale means for both groups were within normal limits. Significant group x respondent interaction effects were observed; teachers, and not parents, rated the children with SLI as having more social and internalizing behavioral problems than their AM peers. Significant differences between groups were restricted to internalizing, social, and attention problems. Very little congruence or stability over time was observed in the clinical ratings. The outcomes support a Social Adaptation Model of socioemotional behavior and language impairment. Implications for the clinical management of children with SLI are discussed.     

Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Independent Practice.

The Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Independent Practice is intended to recognize outstanding independent practitioners in psychology. Nominations are considered for psychologists working in any area of clinical specialization, health services provision, or consulting, for services provided to any patient population or professional clientele in an independent setting. Services provided to diverse client groups or patient populations, including but not limited to children/adolescents/adults/older adults, urban/rural/frontier populations, minority populations, and persons with serious mental illness, are considered. The 2009 recipient of the award is Jeffrey E. Barnett. Included here are a citation, biography, and selected bibliography of Barnett's works, along with his paper, entitled "The complete practitioner: Still a work in progress," a version of which was presented at the American Psychological Association's annual convention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Independent Practice: Jeffrey E. Barnett.

Jeffrey E. Barnett, recipient of the Award for Distinguished Professional Contributions to Independent Practice, is cited for outstanding, distinguished, and meritorious service in several areas of professional practice, especially professional ethics and psychotherapy treatment. Barnett has produced hundreds of high-quality publications, workshops, and symposia that have had widespread impact. He is well-known for his quality mentoring of students, early career professionals, and members of diverse groups. Along with the citation, a biography and selected bibliography of Barnett's works are provided. Also included is his paper, entitled "The complete practitioner: Still a work in progress," a version of which was presented at the American Psychological Association's annual convention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Increased telomerase activities in human pancreatic duct adenocarcinomas

Telomerase is a key enzyme with regard to immortalization of cancer cells and increased activity has been demonstrated in various human malignant neoplasms. Since little is known of its role in pancreatic cancers, we investigated changes in telomerase activity in human pancreatic duct adenocarcinomas and compared the frequency of increased telomerase activity with the presence of K-ras gene mutations. The samples were obtained from 38 pancreatic duct adenocarcinomas and 7 tumor surrounding tissues at surgical resection. Telomerase activity was examined by telomeric repeat amplification protocol assay and terminal restriction fragment (TRF) length was examined by Southern analysis. K-ras mutation was examined by means of polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism analysis. Among 38 pancreatic carcinomas, 32 (84%) exhibited increased telomerase activities with no apparent relation to the histological type of tumor, tumor size, regional lymphnode involvement and distant metastasis or clinical stage. In tissue surrounding the tumor, telomerase activity was not detected. TRF length tended to be reduced in pancreatic carcinomas. Mutations of K-ras gene were found in 24 out of the 38 (63%) cases. Among the 38 cases, 14 showed increased telomerase activity without K-ras mutation and 4 cases showed K-ras mutation without telomerase activity. These results suggest that increased telomerase activity might be a sensitive genetic diagnostic marker and could be a target for future therapy of pancreatic duct carcinomas.     

"Behavioral treatment of childhood obesity": Correction to Epstein and Wing.

Reports an error in "Behavioral treatment of childhood obesity" by Leonard H. Epstein and Rena R. Wing (Psychological Bulletin, 1987[May], Vol 101[3], 331-342). Tables 1 and 2 contain several errors. The correct data is provided in the erratum. These errors do not influence any of the main points or conclusions in this article. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1987-25951-001.) Obesity is a common problem in children and is associated with an increased risk of adult obesity. Twenty-four studies on the behavioral treatment of childhood obesity are reviewed. Studies involving comparisons of behavioral treatment with no treatment or placebos have shown the superiority of behavioral treatment. In addition, the effects of a number of treatment factors on outcome are suggested. These factors include parental involvement, the arrangement of treatment contingencies, and exercise. Several directions for future research are presented, including selecting which children to treat, individualizing treatment, prevention, community programs, and the side effects of weight control. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)