Ratings of Therapist Dynamic Activities and Alliance Early and Late in Psychotherapy.

The present study examines the concurrent and predictive relationships between therapist psychodynamic-interpersonal activity and therapist-rated alliance. Ratings from 45 patient and therapist dyads engaged in short term psychodynamic psychotherapy from a point early (3rd or 4th session) and late (the session at which 90% of the treatment was completed) in treatment were used. The results suggest that therapists who have positive views of the alliance early in treatment also have positive views of the alliance later in treatment. Therapists who used psychodynamic-interpersonal activities early in treatment also made use of psychodynamic-interpersonal activities later in treatment. Moreover, the use of psychodynamic-interpersonal activities early in treatment was positively related to both global and specific aspects of therapist-rated alliance late in treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Roles for Psychologists in End-of-Life Care: Emerging Models of Practice.

Professional psychologists are increasingly likely to encounter opportunities to work with patients and families facing end-of-life issues. Psychologists can provide psychological assessment, intervention for patients and families, consultation with and support of health care team members, grief therapy, and program development and evaluation. Psychological services are useful for healthy individuals who wish to make thoughtful plans about their own future care, patients with life-limiting illnesses, families stressed by providing end-of-life care, bereaved individuals, and health care providers who face issues of burnout and strain. Several challenges for psychologists working in end-of-life care are noted, including training, development of clear roles, and reimbursement. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mapping the Characteristics of a 'Good' Play Therapist.

In this pilot study, concept mapping, a methodological approach combining qualitative and quantitative analytic strategies, was used to identify the therapist qualities, competencies, and skills necessary for effective play therapy outcomes as perceived by a sub-sample of 28 experienced play therapists who are members of the Association for Play Therapy (APT). The clusters associated with the therapeutic relationship and facilitative skills (e.g., empathy, warmth, and genuineness) were rated as the most essential skills to possess and also as the most difficult to develop. In contrast, the clusters associated with play therapy interventions and theories were rated as the least important skills to possess but as the easiest to acquire. The findings are discussed, with implications for therapeutic practice, research, and policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

基于特殊需要教育的聋校英语教师专业化内涵及发展研究

在界定特殊需要教育概念的基础上探讨了聋校英语教师专业化的内涵,提出了聋校英语教师专业化发展的可行性策略,以加深人们对聋校英语教师专业化的认识,同时加快教师专业化发展的步伐,使有听力障碍的特殊需要儿童更能适应社会、融入社会,实现自身的社会价值。     

基于聋人案例的空间隐喻语义认知计算

我们从心理语言学的角度,对空间隐喻进行相似性分类和计算,使用多维量表和聚类方法,以聋人为被试分别进行了两个实验。实验结果表明,聋人为实现空间隐喻理解的计算,使用了地形空间和语法空间的特征信息,同时受手语语言特点的影响,其空间隐喻的认知主题包括手势者自身参照系、参照物的相对坐标系、手势空间的饱和度、以手部或胸部为边界。同时表明由于两种空间的存在,聋人大脑对空间隐喻的理解存在着层次,并且在长期使用手语交流的过程中,其地形空间和语法空间相互作用,影响了聋人大脑空间隐喻的结构和表征,从而导致了独特的高效快速空间隐喻计算。
     

1993: Axline's eight principles of play therapy revisited.

Examined V. Axlines's book, Play Therapy (1947) which includes 8 basic principles on non-directive play therapy. Student responses to learning these principles in play therapy classes were also examined. Each student was assigned a play therapy client and was observed and assisted directly by the instructor, a licensed clinical psychologist. Clients were mildly trouble children (aged 5–10 yrs) and were selected from a referral base by the instructor as appropriate for the course. As the semester progressed and students gained direct experience, weekly small (3–4 student) group discussions were held to explore in-depth understanding of play therapy principles and how these principles are put into practice. It is concluded that Axline's book remains a classic text and a foremost resource in the field. Coupling it with experiential learning is an invaluable basis for teaching play therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychotherapy with high-achieving adolescent girls.

The "overnurtured child" is the label applied to adolescent girls whose strong mother-identification and oedipal attachment to father may be associated with a variety of achievement-related conflicts following puberty. Symptoms include anxiety, depression, vague feelings of inadequacy, loneliness, and isolation from peers. These patients suffer from a form of identity diffusion in which pressures to continue achieving at their present rate of excellence collide with pressures to be more "feminine," social, and affiliative. Therapy is conceptualized as a kind of resocialization process aimed at facilitating separation from family and the development of an independent identity. In treatment, the therapist plays a variety of interrelated roles such as role model, family counselor, and teacher. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social recovery of monkeys isolated for the first year of life: I. Rehabilitation and therapy.

Previous research demonstrated that 12 mo of total social isolation initiated at birth produced severe and seemingly permanent social deficits in rhesus monkeys. Such monkeys exhibited self-clasping, self-mouthing, and other stereotypic, self-directed responses. Recent research has indicated that 6-mo-isolated monkeys could develop social behaviors if exposed to younger, socially unsophisticated "therapist" monkeys. In the present experiment, 4 12-mo isolate-reared monkeys developed appropriate species-typical behavior through the use of adaptation, self-pacing of visual input, and exposure to 4 younger "therapist" monkeys. Adaptation enabled the isolate Ss to become familiar with their postisolation environment, while self-pacing facilitated their watching the therapist Ss' social interactions. The isolates showed a marked decrease in self-directed behaviors following extensive intimate contact with the therapists. Species-typical behaviors significantly increased during this period, so that the isolate behavioral repertoire did not differ substantially from the therapist behavioral repertoire by the end of the therapy period. Results clearly fail to support a critical period for socialization in the rhesus monkey, and an alternative environment-specific learning hypothesis is proposed. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Collecting and evaluating the CUNY ASL corpus for research on American Sign Language animation

While there is great potential for sign language animation generation software to improve the accessibility of information for deaf individuals with low written-language literacy, the understandability of current sign language animation systems is limited. Data-driven methodologies using annotated sign language corpora encoding detailed human movement have enabled some researchers to address several key linguistic challenges in ASL generation. This article motivates and describes our current research on collecting a motion-capture corpus of American Sign Language (ASL). As an evaluation of our motion-capture configuration, calibration, and recording protocol, we have conducted several rounds of evaluation studies with native ASL signers, and we have made use of our collected data to synthesize novel animations of ASL, which have also been evaluated in experimental studies with native signers.