Basic family therapy skills: III. Brief and strategic schools of family therapy.

688 family therapy supervisors (C. R. Figley and T. Nelson; 1989, 1990) previously nominated and rated generic and theory-specific beginning family therapy skills. 53 Ss returned questionnaires related to brief family therapy, and 91 Ss returned questionnaires related to strategic family therapy. 14 brief family therapy skills and 29 strategic family therapy skills are presented in table form, with means, standard deviations, and frequencies listed. Items are rank ordered according to mean scores. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Strangers at Home: Comment on Dirkzwager, Bramsen, Adèr, and van der Ploeg (2005).

This comment summarizes the findings of the article by A. J. E. Dirkzwager, I. Bramsen, H. Adèr, and H. M. van der Ploeg (2005; see record 2005-06518-006) and notes that it can serve as a reawakening about the immediate and long-term psychosocial consequences of war, not only for those troops who are deployed but also for the loved ones who await their return. The lessons learned once again--that the mental health of the returning peacekeeper parallels that of his or her partner, that partners of traumatized soldiers report more posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, somatic and sleep problems, negative social support, and low marital morale than partners of nontraumatized soldiers--are consistent with systemic traumatology theory. This comment traces the historical and theoretical foundations that underlie the concept of secondary trauma (i.e., compassion fatigue) and discusses the implications for family psychology practice in helping veterans and their families recover from their ordeals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Results of a modulator pulse top ripple reduction study

The design of a modulator that can produce high-voltage klystron drive pulses with minimal ripple on the top is described. The design study focused on ways to reduce ripple and adjust the shape of the pulse to minimize variations in the final output of the klystron. Comparisons of the pulse performance for a range of possible loads were done to determine the sensitivity of the design to load characteristics. The resulting modulator design incorporates dual pulse forming networks, and uses a cancellation scheme to reduce ripple. The basic design, simulations and the performance of a low-power prototype are discussed. A high-power klystron modulator design is summarized