Mixed Methods Research Designs in Counseling Psychology.

With the increased popularity of qualitative research, researchers in counseling psychology are expanding their methodologies to include mixed methods designs. These designs involve the collection, analysis, and integration of quantitative and qualitative data in a single or multiphase study. This article presents an overview of mixed methods research designs. It defines mixed methods research, discusses its origins and philosophical basis, advances steps and procedures used in these designs, and identifies 6 different types of designs. Important design features are illustrated using studies published in the counseling literature. Finally, the article ends with recommendations for designing, implementing, and reporting mixed methods studies in the literature and for discussing their viability and continued usefulness in the field of counseling psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Search for a system: Developmental paradigms, counseling research, and the Journal of Counseling Psychology..

Examined trends in counseling research, as represented in the Journal of Counseling Psychology (JCP), to identify the "system" of counseling psychology. All major, unsolicited articles published in the JCP from 1954 through 1980 (N?=?1,582) were classified by methodological design into 1 of 4 categories derived primarily from J. Langer (1969). The mechanical mirror or behavior approach to research has been the most commonly occurring methodological design, followed in order by organic lamp, eclectic, and psychoanalytic designs. Changes in the occurrence of one research paradigm as against another may more accurately reflect the methodological demands of different research questions rather than shifts in the methodological biases of researchers. The role of this journal's editors in helping to shape the identity of counseling psychology is examined along with the attempts of counseling psychologists to find a system to define the profession. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intensive experimental research in counseling.

Considers that experimental research in counseling has been dominated by pretest-posttest designs. However, intensive designs that examine treatment processes and effects with individuals over time offer several advantages, such as immediate data on how treatment influences clients. K. R. Mitchell's (see record 1970-04151-001) article on using an intensive design is analyzed. Several design and analysis problems are discussed, such as inadequate experimental control and nonindependence of data. Alternative designs and analysis methods are presented. (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality, development, and counseling psychology: Depth, ambivalence, and actualization.

Although there is a profound connection between personality and developmental psychology on the one hand and counseling psychology on the other, this relationship has been marked by ambivalence. Reasons for this are discussed, and it is suggested that the relationship is moving in the direction of actualization. Four substantive areas are explored in which personality and developmental psychology both inform and are influenced by counseling psychology: career behavior, cultural identity, psychoanalysis, and adult development. Finally, the "healthy personality" is examined as an area of personality and developmental psychology in which counseling psychology has not fulfilled its promise, and the importance and possible directions of such work are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social psychology and counseling psychology: The history, products, and promise of an interface.

For 3 decades, counseling psychologists have drawn ideas from social psychology about the social process of counseling, integrated the ideas into counseling theories, and assessed them in research. This article traces the history of this interface, examines its products, and projects its future. Three propositions have guided and have been supported by much of the research: (1) Successful counseling relationships generate psychological convergence between counselor and client through a systematic developmental process; (2) ideas counselors introduce that are discrepant from clients' understandings stimulate change; and (3) clients' responsiveness to counselors is a function of their dependence on the counselors. These social influence dynamics underlie the processes and outcomes of counseling relationships regardless of the clinical theory that guides the counselors' work. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Health counseling in adolescent preventive visits: effectiveness, current practices, and quality measurement

Most morbidity and mortality among adolescents results from their participation in health-compromising behaviors. Recent guidelines for clinical adolescent preventive services recommend that primary care clinicians routinely screen for and counsel adolescents about these behaviors, identify and address related social, psychological, and biologic factors. Office-based counseling can influence adult health behaviors, but little is known about the effectiveness of office-based counseling for adolescents. In this review we: (a) evaluate available information about the effectiveness of office-based health counseling to improve outcomes; (b) report what is known about the health counseling adolescents receive from primary care clinicians; and (c) critically review different approaches that have been, or might be, used to measure the content and quality of health counseling provided during adolescent medical visits. With the emphasis on accountability in the current health care environment, evidence supporting the effectiveness of counseling is needed to justify investment in this aspect of clinical adolescent preventive services. Challenges to studying the effectiveness of health counseling include the lack of well-defined theory-based models for adolescent office-based counseling, the complexity of measuring counseling quality, and the many factors that influence adolescent outcomes. Reliable and valid measures of counseling quality are needed both to study and to ensure the quality of counseling received by adolescents. No single measure can be expected to fully capture counseling quality, although patient self-report deserves further development.     

Necessary (but not sufficient) innovation: Comment on Fox and Jones (1998), Koehly and Shivy (1998), and Russell, Kahn, Spoth, and Altmaier (1998).

In the Special Section on Innovative Quantitative Research Methods, C. M. Fox and J. A. Jones (1998), L. M. Koehly and V. A. Shivy (1998), and D. W. Russell, J. H. Kahn, R. Spoth, and E. M. Altmaier (1998) have presented statistical methods related to Rasch modeling, social network analysis, and latent variable structural equation modeling for experimental designs, respectively. These methods address 3 critically important issues in counseling psychology research: (a) measuring constructs, (b) modeling processes of change, and (c) operationalizing social relations. It is argued that innovation in methods is necessary to study complex phenomena, but sophisticated methods should not be used to disguise insufficient conceptualizations of the research problem. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Using history to strengthen a research methods course.

Teaching about small N designs is a common element of the modern research methods course. Further, these designs are the central feature of courses in applied behavior analysis and an important part of any course in counseling or clinical psychology. The history of these small N designs typically is traced no further than the work of B. F. Skinner, who argued strongly for a philosophy of science grounded in the in-depth study of individuals behaving in their environments. Yet, the logic of the small N design has a more complex history, and it was common during experimental psychology's earliest days. From the beginning of the “new laboratory psychology” of the late 19th century, studies often featured the detailed study of single individuals, with additional subjects used for the purpose of replication. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

APA-approved doctoral programs in clinical, counseling, and school psychology: 1982.

The Committee on Accreditation has approved the doctoral training programs in clinical, counseling, and school psychology that are conducted by the institutions listed in this article. In the institutions listed, the approved programs are directed by the department of psychology unless otherwise indicated. Programs that have not requested evaluation, and programs that have been evaluated but not approved, are not included in the list. Inclusion of an institution in this list indicates approval of doctoral programs in clinical, counseling, school, and combined professional-scientific psychology. Combined professional-scientific psychology is a new area of accreditation for programs that do not clearly fit the model for separate programs in clinical, counseling, and school psychology. This area of accreditation is defined as a combination of clinical, counseling, and/or school psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predictors of observer ratings of multicultural counseling competence in Black, Latino, and White American trainees.

Using transcribed intake sessions of 52 counselor–client dyads, this study explored the relative contributions of (a) counselor and client race or ethnicity, (b) counselor–client racial or ethnic match, (c) previous academic training in multicultural counseling, and (d) self-reported multicultural counseling competence to observer ratings of trainees' multicultural counseling competence. Results revealed that (a) Black American and Latino American counselor trainees were rated as more multiculturally competent than their White American peers, and (b) prior multicultural training was positively predictive of observer-rated multicultural counseling competence. Implications of the findings for counselor training and practice are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinical, counseling, and school clinical psychology at Purdue University.

"Confusion exists in some quarters about the distinction between clinical and counseling psychology." "Whereas the clinical psychology major most often prepares for work with persons whose behavior represents the extreme of maladjustment and for work within the medical setting, the counseling psychologist will most often apply his training within the relatively normal range of adjustment." Similarities and differences in academic requirements at Purdue University for clinical, counseling, and school clinical psychology curricula are described. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Using research to determine the efficacy and modes of treatment in university counseling centers: Comment on Jobes, Jacoby, Cimbolic, and Hustead (1997) and Hayes (1997).

The articles by D. A. Jobes, A. M. Jacoby, P. Cimbolic, and L. A. T. Hustead (1997) and J. A. Hayes (1997) in the Special Section on Research in Counseling Centers are reviewed in the context of changes in college and university counseling centers. D. A. Jobes et al.'s study dealt with the development and application of the Suicide Status Form; J. A. Hayes's study reported the results of a factor analysis of the Brief Symptom Inventory that used data gathered specifically from college students. Suggestions are offered as to how the results of these studies might be applied to current counseling center work. A greater role for research in counseling centers is argued for, and examples of how research might abet counseling center personnel in their attempts to be both efficient and efficacious are offered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Guiding assumptions, data, and minor pestilence: Reply to Tracey (1992) and Tinsley (1992).

In response to concerns raised by T. J. Tracey and H. E. Tinsley (see PA, Vol 79:17955 annd 17954, respectively), several issues are discussed. Research in a new area should incorporate a variety of methods and philosophies including those that are more empirical or discovery-oriented in focus rather than being driven solely by borrowed theory. Failure to acknowledge the differences between personal and career counseling has hampered expectations research in career counseling. No empirical basis currently exists for selecting the best assessment format for instruments measuring expectations in counseling. Both preference and anticipations rather than a single, global expectations construct need to be assessed in career counseling, and a reliable and valid assessment instrument is currently not available for that purpose. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mexican-American acculturation, counselor ethnicity, counseling style, and perceived counselor credibility.

Used a 3?×?2?×?2 factorial design to study the effects of S acculturation (low, medium, or high), counselor ethnicity (Anglo-American or Mexican-American), and counseling style (directive or nondirective) on Mexican-American Ss' perceptions of and willingness to see a counselor. Within acculturation levels, Ss were randomly assigned to view stimulus materials (in which the counselor's ethnicity was varied) and to listen to tape recordings of a simulated counseling session (in which the counseling style was varied). No evidence was found of an acculturation effect for any dependent variable. However, Ss gave higher credibility ratings and were more willing to see a counselor who was Mexican American for personal, academic, and vocational concerns. Also, more positive ratings were given to the directive counseling style than the nondirective counseling style. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counseling psychology, health psychology, and beyond: A reply to Klippel and DeJoy.

J. A. Klippel and D. M. DeJoy (see record 1984-20998-001) identified 3 areas of health psychology in which counseling psychology can make a contribution: communication-skills training, community health care, and consultation services. Using their proposal as a basis, the present author examines each of the areas in terms of several potential pitfalls that counseling psychologists may want to avoid. Three reminders for counseling psychologists desiring to work in this setting are to move beyond (1) process to define measurable outcomes, (2) subjective reports and focus on actual behavior change, and (3) catchphrases and focus on their roles as members of health-services teams. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Training Competencies in American Psychological Association Accredited Graduate Programs.

The current study examines the extent to which American Psychological Association accredited clinical and counseling doctoral programs incorporate training on issues relevant to gay, lesbian, and bisexual (GLB) clients. One hundred four training directors completed surveys. Results reveal the 1st snapshot of how doctoral programs are addressing GLB issues in existing curricula. For example, programs are incorporating GLB issues in multicultural classes and practicum. However, counseling programs incorporated GLB issues more than clinical programs in several areas, such as requiring multicultural courses (where GLB issues are potentially addressed) and mentoring students in GLB research. Differences in levels of inclusion between clinical and counseling programs could be attributable to the programs' differential emphases on subspecialization. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reputation, halo, and ratings of counseling programs.

Tested the hypothesis that previous ratings of programs in psychology reflect both an experimental psychology and general institutional halo bias. A questionnaire similar to one used in an earlier study of graduate programs by H. D. Roose and C. J. Andersen (1970) was used to survey the responses of 598 professionals in the field of counseling psychology. Respondents were furnished with a listing of 70 doctoral programs in counseling psychology and other closely related programs and were asked to rate each of the programs. It was found that applied programs in counseling psychology received ratings that differed from overall ratings of psychology in general. Programs ranked as strong, good, and adequate are listed. Ratings were related to institutional halo, program age, rater knowledge of program, geographic location, and approved status by the American Psychological Association. Implications for program evaluation are discussed, and users of reputational ratings are cautioned about the need for supplemental information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)