Neurorehabilitation for people suffering from brain injury has traditionally focused on rehabilitation of the somatic and cognitive functions. Research into the emotional aspects of brain injury has, however, been limited. The theoretical part of this thesis was therefore to map diagnostic tools suitable for the investigation of emotional problems of patients after brain injury and to classify these tools for the needs of neuropsychological practice. In the empirical part the author focused on the adaptation and pilot verification of the EBIQ (European Brain Injury Questionnaire) neuropsychological questionnaire, for a sample of patients having experienced brain injury and their immediate family and friends. The practical outcome of work in addition to the psychometric characteristics is a Czech working version EBIQ-P (version for patients) and EBIQ-R (version for family members), including well-prepared instructions for evaluating the results and examples for use in clinical practice. EBIQ provides an alternative to the previously used questionnaires SCL-90 and MMPI-100, since these, according to our findings and the findings from other studies on the group of patients after brain injury provide invalid results.

This study explored the relations among young adults' perceptions of differential parental treatment, temperamental style, attitudes toward their childhood and current sibling relationships, and psychological adjustment. Participants included 87 college students and their siblings between the ages of 18 and 25 years. Students completed measures in small groups, and siblings completed the surveys via mail. The data were analyzed using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM; Kashy & Kenny, 1999). Results revealed that participants' perceptions of their sibling relationship during childhood were related to their current attitudes toward the relationship. In addition, siblings were in agreement regarding their overall attitudes toward the sibling relationship as well as in their perceptions of their interactions with their parents. Siblings' reports higher levels of differential maternal and paternal control were related significantly to perceptions of less positive sibling interactions. Females and individuals with a sister reported higher levels of positivity in the sibling relationship than did males and individuals reporting on a brother. Level of psychological adjustment was found to be better for individuals who experienced more paternal control according to their sibling. Temperamental characteristics were found to be related to attitudes toward the sibling relationship and reports of parenting behaviors. Results are discussed within the context of family-based research regarding parent-child and sibling relationships.

Thesis (MA(Counselling Psychology))-University of Pretoria, 2006. / Abstract in English. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 237-253). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

Title from title page of PDF (University of Missouri--St. Louis, viewed March 9, 2010). Includes bibliographical references (p. 83-92).

A multiple case study approach was employed in this intensive thematic analysis of the process of nondirective play therapy. Using a naturalistic research paradigm, this study undertook to identify and describe the principal verbal and play themes and their transformations emergent over a course of play therapy, as well as to identify and describe similarities and differences between the themes emergent in those two domains. Play and verbalization, two types of symbolic expression, were considered routes of access to the child’s evolution of personal meaning. The research participants in this multiple case study were 4 preschoolers, aged 3 to 4. Each participant received 20 weekly play therapy sessions which were videotaped and transcribed. Running notations were made on the verbatim transcripts as to participants’ play activities. Separate coding schemes were devised for the emergent play and verbal themes. Supplemental data collection, organization, and analysis procedures included a field notebook with post hoc descriptions of the sessions, session summary sheets profiling play and verbal themes, charts, and memos. This study, discovery-oriented and exploratory in nature, yielded rich descriptions of the intricacies of therapeutic change on two symbolic levels. From these descriptions were extracted not only information on the transformations in play and verbal themes but also an understanding of the qualitative changes which denote the phases of therapy, and insight into the process of evolving meaning across these phases. A central finding of this study was that the arrays of play and verbal themes and their patterns of transformations were highly individualized. However, a number of themes emerged in common to all cases: Exploration, Aggression, Messing, Distress, and Caregiving or Nurturance. Participants were observed to work through contrasting themes, with preschoolers’ therapy characterized as an active struggle with such intense, oppositional forces as birth and death, injury and recovery, loss and retrieval. Typical thematic transformations included movement from infantile vulnerability to mastery, from grief toward resolution, from fear to safety and protection. The beginning phase of therapy was found to be typified by exploratory play. The middle phase was typified by intensified involvement in play and by experiences of disinhibition. The end phase was characterized by two contrasting yet not mutually exclusive tendencies, namely, the introduction of a sense of hopefulness, confidence, and integration; and an improved capacity to deal with difficult psychological material. Entry into the middle and end phases was signalled by qualitative shifts in the child’s attentional, tensional, or relational state. The theoretical implications of this study included insight into the critical role of the child’s initiative and of the therapist’s permissiveness in the unfolding of symbolic expression. Each individual case contained specific theoretical implications for such classic problem and treatment phenomena as developmental delay and play disruptions. The practical implications of this study include emphasizing the need for practitioners to counterbalance attention to the child’s verbal expression with attention to transformations in play activity and play material usage. It is suggested that further research extend the ramifications of this exploratory study by examining the themes occurring in treatment within homogeneous populations according to problem configuration.

Darbo tikslas - nustatyti 13 – 16 metų paauglių, turinčių mišrių elgesio ir emocinių sutrikimų, internalių ir eksternalių problemų lygį ir įvairovę. Tyrimo pradžioje keliama hipotezė, jog paaugliai, turintys mišrių elgesio ir emocinių sutrikimų, turi aukštesnį internalių bei aukštesnį eksternalių problemų lygį, nei tokių sutrikimų neturintys bendraamžiai. Tikslui pasiekti kėlėme šiuos uždavinius: įvertinti 13 - 16 metų paauglių, pasižyminčių mišriais elgesio ir emociniais sutrikimais, internalių bei eksternalių problemų lygį ir įvairovę. Palyginti 13 - 16 metų paauglių, turinčių mišrių elgesio ir emocinių sutrikimų, su tokio pat amžiaus paauglių, neturinčių emocinių sutrikimų, internalių ir eksternalių problemų lygį ir įvairovę. Palyginti 13 – 16 metų paauglių, turinčių mišrių elgesio ir emocinių sutrikimų, su tokio pat amžiaus paauglių, neturinčių emocinių sutrikimų, nerimo lygį ir įvairovę. Tyrimas atliktas, taikant šias metodikas: Žmogaus piešinys: emocinių sutrikimų atrankos procedūra DAP : SPED ( Screening Procedure for Emotional Disturbance); T. M. Achenbacho (1991) klausimynus 11 -18 metų jaunuolio savęs vertinimo lapą (Youth Self – Report (YSR 11/18), 6 -18 metų vaiko elgesio tyrimo lapą (Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL 4/18), bei Daugiamatę vaikų nerimo skalę MASC ( Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children). Tyrime dalyvavo 92 13 -16 metų paaugliai, 52 – klinikinės grupės paaugliai, pasižymintys mišriomis elgesio ir emocinėmis problemomis, bei 40 –... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The aim of the work is to ascertain the level and variety of internal and external problems of 13 – 16 years teenagers having medley behavior and emotional problems. In the beginning of the research was raised hypothesis, that the level of behavior and emotional problems is elevated for teenagers having medley behavior and emotional problems, than for teenagers do not having these problems. In order to achieve the aim we have raised these main objectives: to evaluate the level and variety of internal and external problems of 13 – 16 years teenagers having medley behavior and emotional problems. To evaluate the level and variety of anxiety of 13 – 16 years teenagers having medley behavior and emotional problems. The research was carried out applying these research methods: standardized questionnaire by Achenbach (1991) – Your Self –Report (YSR 11 / 18), Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL 4 / 18); standardized MASC - Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children and DAP : SPED Draw A Person : Screening Procedure for Emotional Disturbance. 92 13 -16 years teenagers participated in the research. 52 teenagers, having medley behavior and emotional problems and 40 teenagers do not having these problems. Participated in the research and 52 parents of teenagers, having medley behavior and emotional problems and 40 parents of teenagers, do not having these problems. After the research we carried out, that teenagers, having medley behavior and emotional problems experience more... [to full text]

The dissertation is based on the theoretical perspective of developmental psychopathology and focuses on emotional problems and their change in adolescents with learning disabilities at ages 12 to 15. The aim of the dissertation is to identify the importance of learning disability as a risk factor and other individual and interpersonal factors for emotional problems in adolescence. The study assessed 95 adolescents with learning disabilities and 93 peers without learning disabilities, thereby evaluating their emotional problems, self-perceptions, friendships, perceived social support from peers, parents and teachers as well as bullying experience. It was found that adolescents with learning disabilities had more emotional problems compared with their peers, but only at age 12-13, not at age 14-15. The main predictor of emotional problems after two years was bullying experience, although the results indicate that the same level of bullying was experienced by both groups. Learning disability as a risk factor contributes to emotional problems but only in combination with other interpersonal factors, namely the number of good friends and bullying experience; learning disability enhances vulnerability for emotional problems. The results of the dissertation call for recognition of the relevance of interpersonal factors, bullying experience in particular, for the emotional well-being of adolescents with learning disabilities. / Disertacijoje, remiantis raidos psichopatologijos teorine perspektyva, analizuojami 12–15 metų paauglių, turinčių mokymosi sutrikimų, emociniai sunkumai ir jų kaita per dvejus metus; keliamas tikslas nustatyti emocinių sunkumų individualius ir tarpasmeninius veiksnius. Tyrime dalyvavo 95 paaugliai, turintys mokymosi sutrikimų, ir 93 jų bendraamžiai, neturintys mokymosi sutrikimų; įvertinti jų emociniai sunkumai, savęs vertinimas, draugystės aspektai, bendraamžių socialinė parama bei patyčios, tėvų ir mokytojų socialinė parama. Nustatyta, kad mokymosi sutrikimų turintys paaugliai turėjo daugiau emocinių sunkumų, ypač užsisklendimo, bet tik būdami 12–13 metų. Po dvejų metų emocinių sunkumų lygis grupėse nesiskyrė. Taip pat nesiskyrė patyčių patirtis grupėse, tačiau mokymosi sutrikimų turinčių paauglių grupei patyčių patirtis prognozuoja emocinius sunkumus po dvejų metų, o palyginamojoje grupėje – bendraamžių paramos stoka. Mokymosi sutrikimas kaip rizikos veiksnys yra reikšmingas emocinių sunkumų prognozei, bet tik kartu su kitais tarpasmeniniais veiksniais: draugų skaičiumi, patyčių patirtimi. Galima teigti, kad mokymosi sutrikimas didina paauglių pažeidžiamumą emociniams sunkumams. Disertacijos rezultatai įgalina pripažinti tarpasmeninių veiksnių, ypač patyčių patirties, reikšmę mokymosi sutrikimų turinčių paauglių emociniams sunkumams.

Disertacijoje, remiantis raidos psichopatologijos teorine perspektyva, analizuojami 12–15 metų paauglių, turinčių mokymosi sutrikimų, emociniai sunkumai ir jų kaita per dvejus metus; keliamas tikslas nustatyti emocinių sunkumų individualius ir tarpasmeninius veiksnius. Tyrime dalyvavo 95 paaugliai, turintys mokymosi sutrikimų, ir 93 jų bendraamžiai, neturintys mokymosi sutrikimų; įvertinti jų emociniai sunkumai, savęs vertinimas, draugystės aspektai, bendraamžių socialinė parama bei patyčios, tėvų ir mokytojų socialinė parama. Nustatyta, kad mokymosi sutrikimų turintys paaugliai turėjo daugiau emocinių sunkumų, ypač užsisklendimo, bet tik būdami 12–13 metų. Po dvejų metų emocinių sunkumų lygis grupėse nesiskyrė. Taip pat nesiskyrė patyčių patirtis grupėse, tačiau mokymosi sutrikimų turinčių paauglių grupei patyčių patirtis prognozuoja emocinius sunkumus po dvejų metų, o palyginamojoje grupėje – bendraamžių paramos stoka. Mokymosi sutrikimas kaip rizikos veiksnys yra reikšmingas emocinių sunkumų prognozei, bet tik kartu su kitais tarpasmeniniais veiksniais: draugų skaičiumi, patyčių patirtimi. Galima teigti, kad mokymosi sutrikimas didina paauglių pažeidžiamumą emociniams sunkumams. Disertacijos rezultatai įgalina pripažinti tarpasmeninių veiksnių, ypač patyčių patirties, reikšmę mokymosi sutrikimų turinčių paauglių emociniams sunkumams. / The dissertation is based on the theoretical perspective of developmental psychopathology and focuses on emotional problems and their change in adolescents with learning disabilities at ages 12 to 15. The aim of the dissertation is to identify the importance of learning disability as a risk factor and other individual and interpersonal factors for emotional problems in adolescence. The study assessed 95 adolescents with learning disabilities and 93 peers without learning disabilities, thereby evaluating their emotional problems, self-perceptions, friendships, perceived social support from peers, parents and teachers as well as bullying experience. It was found that adolescents with learning disabilities had more emotional problems compared with their peers, but only at age 12-13, not at age 14-15. The main predictor of emotional problems after two years was bullying experience, although the results indicate that the same level of bullying was experienced by both groups. Learning disability as a risk factor contributes to emotional problems but only in combination with other interpersonal factors, namely the number of good friends and bullying experience; learning disability enhances vulnerability for emotional problems. The results of the dissertation call for recognition of the relevance of interpersonal factors, bullying experience in particular, for the emotional well-being of adolescents with learning disabilities.

The learning of socially appropriate behavior and the mastery of literacy skills are highly critical to function successfully. Students with emotional disabilities (ED) have difficulty in both areas. Further, research has shown that the pro-social behavior and literacy skills are related. The increased use of strength-based assessments is also a growing area. The current study examined the relationship between pro-social behavior and literacy skills as measured by two developmentally sequenced strength-based assessments, the Language Arts objective Sequence (LOS) and the Behavioral Objective Sequence (BOS), using students with emotional disabilities. The subjects for this study were 102 students from grades K-12 who had been diagnosed with an emotional disability or as a student with challenging behavior. The study also provided psychometric data on the LOS. The results of the current study found significant correlations among the subscales of the LOS and the BOS. Further analyses indicated the strong relationships may be related to the sequential and developmental nature of the instruments. The LOS was found to have good internal consistency and did not demonstrate any gender bias. Significant differences were found for ethnicity on two of the LOS scales, favoring European American females. However, the low number of females suggests the differences may be due to sampling error. The results are discussed with respect to complexity of pro-social behaviors and literacy, the unique characteristics of students with ED and the importance of strength-based assessments. / Department of Special Education