Formalized psychological services in state education programs.

In recent years "state regulations have played a major part in determining the nature of local school requirements" for psychologists. States having formally legislated provisions for school psychologists, states formally recognizing qualifications of school psychologists, professional training requirements for different levels of persons rendering psychological service in schools, and required supervised practicum or internship experience are discussed. The certification of school psychologists as teachers, the renewal of certification of school psychologists, the kinds of psychological services provided or used, the apparent absence of a sensitivity to a need for school psychological services, and the various titles by which psychologists are designated in school law or official statements are considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mothers' attitudes toward seeking help for their children from school and private psychologists.

What inhibits parents from seeking psychological help for their children? This study examined the attitudes of mothers of school-age children toward seeking psychological help from school psychological services and from private psychologists. Mothers express greater and more intense worries in relation to seeking help from school psychological services as compared to private psychologists. Hypothetical vignettes about a problematic child also showed that mothers prefer to refer both their own child and that of a friend to a private psychologist. Reducing the threat aroused by public sector psychologists should increase the utilization of psychological help for children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teachers' perceptions of school psychology: A comparison of regular and special education teacher ratings.

A total of 1533 regular education and special education teachers from eight school districts in four states rated their knowledge of and satisfaction with school psychological services. Perceived helpfulness of psychological services to teachers and children was also assessed. Finally, both groups rated their perceptions of school psychologists' roles versus school counselor roles. Regular education teachers, compared to special education teachers, reported less knowledge of school psychology, perceived school psychologists as less helpful to teachers, and reported lower satisfaction with school psychology services. These reports may have been influenced by the amount of contact each teacher had with school psychologists. Both teacher groups had a limited understanding of the broad roles and functions of school psychologists, and both groups viewed school counselors as delivering more services than school psychologists. Implications of these findings with regard to school psychology reform efforts are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychologists in secondary schools in the 1990s: Current functions, training, and job satisfaction.

Surveyed 173 school psychologists serving secondary schools concerning their current roles and functions, training needs, and general job satisfaction. Results revealed that many school psychologists in secondary schools are providing a wide variety of services, including direct (e.g., counseling) and indirect (e.g., consultation) services. Approximately three-quarters of the Ss reported being satisfied with their work in secondary schools. Job satisfaction was related to increased time spent in intervention-related activities and decreased time spent in psychological assessment activities. Data reflected encouraging findings regarding the scope of school psychological services in secondary settings but also underscored the need for diversified training of school psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Consultant experience and attributions in school consultation.

Hypothesized that experienced school psychologists would be more flexible than inexperienced school psychologists in their attributions of responsibility for outcome of consultation. Responses from 56 members of a state school psychological association were analyzed for attributions of responsibility for outcome to the consultee, to the consultant, and to other factors. Results fail to support the hypothesis. Regardless of consultation success or failure, Ss attributed responsibility for consultation outcome mostly to the consultee. Experienced psychologists, however, were more likely than inexperienced psychologists to attribute responsibility for outcome to teachers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceptions of the duties and functions of the school psychologist.

Obtained the opinions of 100 school psychologists and 296 experienced teachers concerning the role of the school psychologist as he sees it and as it is perceived by the teacher. The psychologist's perception of the necessity for communication with the child's position was also explored. It was found that the psychologist is not completely sure of his role and, consequently, has difficulty in communicating with other disciplines. The procedure involving psychological evaluations of school children is therefore often surrounded by confusion and antagonism. Findings have significance for training programs of school psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Making decisions in planning for delivery of school psychological services.

Describes the multiattribute utility (MAUT) method, its application to planning for the delivery of school psychological services, and future directions for determining the usefulness of the approach. The MAUT method is a 10-step approach used by school psychologists that allows a planning situation to be structured by disaggregating the essential elements of the decision and discussing available program alternatives. Thus, the planning focus is narrowed to exact areas of agreement and disagreement among a decision-making unit such as a group of school psychologists. Examples are provided of dealing with handicapped children mainstreamed into regular schools and planning activities for socially maladjusted adolescents in a special day school. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reflections on the role of the school psychologist in Israel.

Outlines principles that guided the author in directing the school psychological service in a small community in Israel. Some guidelines are presented for new psychologists working in school or community settings. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evaluation research: A psychological perspective.

Presents a model for evaluation research from a psychological perspective that incorporates various concepts and methods, and indicates the roles in which psychologists trained in more traditional areas can contribute to evaluation research. Analysis reveals evaluation research to be a complex set of feedback processes monitoring various aspects of social change processes. These feedback mechanisms vary greatly in their level of precision and pose numerous challenges and opportunities for psychologists trained in more traditional areas. (37 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Managed Care: Implications for School Psychology. Comment.

Comments on the article by Sanchez and Turner (see record 2003-03405-005) examining the implications for practice and training in psychology in the era of managed care. The current author states that Sanchez and Turner should be commended. Their article amplifies and clarifies critical issues psychologists must consider while practicing within an era increasingly shaped by health insurance policies and practices. Nevertheless, the author feels that several intriguing facets of managed care were not highlighted. Discussion focuses on the impact that reimbursement and managed care is having on school (and clinical) psychologists. The author points out that it is unknown to what extent managed care may (and has) altered psychological services delivered by school psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The chronically ill child in the school.

Focuses on the school attendance and performance problems encountered by chronically ill children (CIC), from the point of their re-entry after diagnosis or treatment. CIC exhibit school related problems, reflected in psychological well being, interaction with peers, academic performance, and higher absenteeism. Inability to attend school may lead to decreased self esteem and hopelessness about the future. Specific aspects of the illness or its treatment, the child's emotional response to the illness, prolonged absence, and learning problems may influence school functioning. Attitudes of parents, teachers, other school personnel and the health care team, and inability of the school to provide necessary daily health care services seriously affect successful school re-entry. School psychologists play an important role in maximizing CIC's success in school, as they prospectively monitor their educational functioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A step in the right direction: A resource for collaboration on health-related issues.

Reviews the book, Health-related disorders in children and adolescents edited by L. Phelps (see record 1998-07780-000). This edited text provides an overview of 96 medical conditions that place children at risk of developing psychological or educational problems. The central feature of this book is that it is intended as a reference tool for professionals who collaborate with medical professionals. Increasingly, there have been many vehicles for school psychologists to collaborate with medical professionals, including comprehensive school health care programs and school-based health clinics, and community-based coordinated services that provide children and youth comprehensive care. In this regard, school psychologists are likely to encounter increasing numbers of children who experience health disorders, along with more traditional areas of practice including mental health and educational issues. Although not a purely medically oriented text, Phelps has taken a perspective that school psychologists work within the context of a multidisciplinary team of professionals who are likely to provide services for these children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Medical views of psychological consultation.

A questionnaire was mailed to 500 physicians in a five-state rural region in an effort to obtain their views, concerns, and attitudes about the utility of psychological consultations. The 500 physicians were randomly selected in equal numbers per state from national directories of internal medicine physicians and family practitioners. Of the 500 physicians surveyed, 139 (28%) responded by completing and returning the questionnaire. The results suggest that physicians generally view psychological consultations as helpful and necessary; however, they expressed concern about what training psychologists received as consultants. Physicians also expressed strong concern about the perceived lack of feedback from psychologists during and after consultations. The implications of the return rate and results are discussed. Recommendations to establish greater credibility and to improve interactions between physicians and psychologists are offered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

School psychologists and Public Law 94-142: A clarification of implications.

Discusses the article by J. B. Franzoni and W. Jones (1981) in which they emphasized the need for special training of school psychologists in the administration and interpretation of projective techniques for diagnosing severe emotional disturbance. It is pointed out here that the current trend in school-based assessment is toward use of a behavioral assessment model to evaluate not only emotional disturbance but also other handicapping conditions. Using this model the child is evaluated in his or her environment. It is also noted that school psychologists can move away from a role that is restricted to testing by taking advantage of laws that allow them to provide psychological services to staff members, parents, and children. (3 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Identifying evidence-based interventions in school psychology: Building a bridge or jousting with windmills?

The outcomes of current efforts at identifying evidence-based interventions (EBIs) within school psychology remain uncertain. The political and professional contexts, diversity of settings in which school psychologists function, wide variety of intervention objectives, and multiple constituencies served by school psychologists present unique challenges to this endeavor. As the EBI process evolves, it is predicted that vigorous debate will continue over basic epistemological questions, methodological rigor, and professional use of EBI reviews. It is argued that such discussion is critical if the EBI project is to be relevant to both researchers and practitioners. Although a complex task, the effort to identify EBIs can facilitate a more data-based, problem-solving approach to school psychological services. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Practice Patterns Across the Clinical Life Span: Results From the California Survey of Psychological Practice.

Recent surveys among psychologists and historical accounts of the profession document important practice pattern differences among psychologists on the basis of years of postlicensure experience. Evidence for these differences across 4 groups of psychologists was examined from responses to the 2000 California Survey of Psychological Practice. Psychologists with fewer than 5 years of experience were found to treat on a weekly basis a greater percentage of patients with childhood disorders and substance abuse disorders and to spend a greater percentage of practice time in public health and/or mental health settings than other psychologists. No differences were found in the use of 3 dominant forms of psychotherapy. The implications of these results for practicing psychologists, graduate faculty and students, and representatives of state psychological associations are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychologists in medical schools.

Describes the results of a survey conducted by the Committee on Psychology in Medical Schools for the Education and Training Board of the American Psychological Association, utilizing 84 reports from medical schools in 1967-1969 period. Psychology's growth in medical school has followed no standard pattern, but has developed in unique fashion at each school as a function of local constellations of factors. The great expansion of psychology in medical schools has occurred in the last 2 decades, but the period of rapid growth has now ended. While psychology is still most often based within the department of psychiatry, greater diversity of locations is found in schools where psychology was established more recently. Teaching is a major function of medical school psychologists. Their main teaching contribution is to medical education, but they are also involved at all levels of psychological education. Research, which covers the full range of psychological interests, and clinical services, which are beginning to reach out into the community, are the other main functions of medical school psychologists. The satisfactions found in the medical school as a professional environment relate to the vast array of clinical populations, research facilities, and disciplines available there. Dissatisfactions are primarily a result of inadequate recognition as an independent discipline. Overwhelmingly, medical school psychologists desire a more autonomous position for psychology, most often through the mechanism of an independent department of psychology. Other mechanisms recommended are the behavioral sciences department and the "single faculty model" in which 1 university department provides psychological training to all the schools of the university. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Consumer-focused psychological assessment.

To enhance the clinical utility of psychological assessments, the author recommends a consumer-focused approach to health care marketing--the "Four Rs": relevance, response, relationships, and results (J. English, 2000). Research suggests 5 responses psychologists can take to increase the relevance of psychological assessments: (a) eliminate jargon, (b) focus on referral questions, (c) individualize assessment reports, (d) emphasize client strengths, and (e) write concrete recommendations. To build relationships with consumers, psychologists should collaborate with them when formulating referral questions and providing feedback of assessment results. Finally, psychologists should use the results of consumer satisfaction studies to improve the clinical utility of psychological assessments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)