The purpose of this study was to investigate the informational needs of incoming clients at college counseling centers. Two primary questions were asked: first, what areas of information do students identify as important in deciding whether or not to enter counseling; and second, what knowledge from other sources do students bring to this process. Subjects were 297 student clients at three college counseling centers. An optional questionnaire was administered at intake which asked students to rate the importance of nine areas of information about counseling. The questionnaire also examined the student's expectations about the duration of counseling and knowledge about confidentiality policy and the benefits and risks of counseling. Content areas addressed in the questionnaire were drawn from the literature on informed consent and client informational materials. Results suggest that, overall, students are interested in a wide range of information about counseling and that knowledge they bring with them is often incomplete. Data analysis included subgroup comparisons according to gender, prior experience with counseling or psychotherapy, SES, age, and year in school. Women and students with prior experience in counseling tend to be more interested in receiving information about confidentiality policy, theoretical orientation, format of counseling or psychotherapy, and duration of counseling. Also, women are more interested in information about success rates. Client knowledge of benefits and risks of counseling or psychotherapy, although incomplete, appears accurate with respect to current literature in these areas. The desirability of increased use of informed consent procedures and client informational materials is discussed.

This qualitative case study identified possible causal/contributing factors in the suicidal behavior of several cases of Cape Verdean immigrant adolescents, and identified commonalities in this target group. Three Cape Verdean immigrant adolescent students who had manifested serious suicidal behavior, and three Cape Verdean immigrant adolescent students who had not exhibited such behavior participated in the study. A qualitative case study approach was utilized. The methodology of interviews and observations was employed. Students who had manifested serious suicidal behavior, were compared to each other and to students who had not exhibited suicidal behavior. The following research questions guided this study: (1) What possible causal/contributing factors are present in the case studies of students who had been suicidal? (2) What are the precipitating events in these cases of suicidal behavior? (3) Are there any commonalities in the causal/contributing factors in each of the cases studied? (4) What differences are noted when a comparison is made between the group of students that has exhibited suicidal behavior and the group that has not. It is this researcher's opinion that to a large degree, the Cape Verdean immigrant adolescents in this study exhibited suicidal behavior for the very same reasons that other young people manifest these behaviors. Serious family conflict, loss of loved ones through death and separation, feelings of isolation and rejection from family members and peers, and a lack of connectedness to a significant caretaker may have been the most overwhelming contributing factors. However, their experiences with emigration, culture shock, and racial/cultural/linguistic differences may have added just enough additional stressors to predispose them to a greater degree to suicidal behavior when the other more typical causal/contributing factors were present. The critical implication of the data from this study is that communities and schools need to join with families of the Cape Verdean immigrant population to develop strategies and programs to remedy this serious mental health issue.

When families of children who have experienced extra-familial sexual abuse are included in treatment, they are often seen by therapists who are viewed as experts using psychoeducational models. Such a framework does not emphasize how families discover their own resources or develop new meanings of their experiences. This study evaluated whether, and how, a program based on constructivist principles helped to empower a group of sexually abused boys and their families by creating a collaborative, rather than a hierarchical, therapeutic relationship. A post-treatment evaluation was performed by means of three semi-structured interviews and completion of two simple questionnaires. Through in-depth interviews with the boys and their families, information was gathered on the subjective experiences of the clients regarding both the abuse and the healing process. Themes were generated from the data in the final analysis to assess severity of PTSD symptoms and to describe the constructivist group process. A model was proposed for the treatment of extra-familial sexual abuse based on constructivist principles.

<p> The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the unique sexual and religious identity development of sexual minorities who attend evangelical Christian institutions of higher education. Although research exists on sexual identity development and religious identity development, scant research exists as to how these developmental areas interact in sexual minorities who attend evangelical institutions of higher education. The research questions that were answered in this study included the following: How do sexual minority students at evangelical Christian institutions of higher education develop a sexual identity and make choices about sexual expression? How do sexual minority students at evangelical Christian institutions of higher education develop a religious identity? How do these two developmental areas interact in this population? </p><p> Four individuals who identified as sexual minorities were interviewed for this study. Interviews were analyzed using interpretive phenomenological analysis to understand the lived experiences of the participants. The data analysis led to the following emergent themes: <i>evangelical beliefs/narratives about homosexuality, new understanding of faith, current faith development, the closet, coded language, community, romantic relationships, current meaning of sexual identity, intersectional identities, evangelical college culture, vigilance, advocacy, and academic/artistic expression.</i> These themes highlighted how inextricably linked are sexual and religious identity development in this population. Also highlighted were how the individuals resolved their identity conflict with great difficulty but also as empowered changed agents. Clinical and educational applications of the research were also discussed.</p><p>

This study explored the supervision process within community mental health agencies. This process was conceptualized as consisting of three categories of supervisor intervention, Theory/Information (TH), Technique (TQ), and Personal Self-Knowledge (PSK), which were used in working with psychotherapists; a fourth category (OT) captured other types of interventions which emerged. Using a descriptive case study approach, this researcher sought to identify areas of intervention emphasis which supervisors exhibited and the relative role of PSK interventions. Twelve clinical supervisors, holding advanced degrees, were interviewed and asked to recall their supervision approach to two client-therapist impasses, one recalled as positive and one as negative. The criteria for these choices included supervisors' perceptions of success at renewing therapeutic movement within the treatment relationship. Transcripts of interviews were systematically examined to determine patterns of intervention activity and differences between positive and negative recalls. Representative portions of transcripts were illustrated in detail. A pattern emerged which revealed that supervisors most often intervened in TH-related ways and most often thought about intervention is PSK-related ways. This was discussed as a decision-making process in which supervisors assumed dual responsibilities for overseeing clients' treatment planning and supervisees' clinical learning. It was revealed that the more successful recalls were characterized by blended TH and PSK intervention approaches which addressed clients' treatment needs and supported clinicians' learning needs; these recalls included specific types of PSK interventions, labelled first- and second-level facilitators, which were discussed as effective strategies for promoting therapeutic movement. Less successful recalls were characterized by the absence of second-level facilitators and more blended intervention approaches. These were discussed in terms of a reduced supervisory commitment to resolution of the impasse which resulted from supervisors' responses to problems within the supervisory relationship. This researcher concluded that problems at the supervisory level interfered with effective impasse resolution and affected supervisors' clinical objectivity; recommendations for research and practice were offered and changes were advocated in the institutional support and training of supervisors.

War is a one of the major causes of child mortality and morbidity worldwide. Research evidence suggests that exposure to war trauma increases a child's risk of developing psychological problems, both short and long term. However, studies of resilience have shown that some children have a remarkable ability to survive trauma with little or no damage to their psyche. This dissertation is a study of individuals who have survived childhood war trauma and managed to rise above the odds to function well in major areas of life. The study was designed to explore factors contributing to their ability to remain resilient in the face of adversity. Using in-depth phenomenological interviewing, ten Cambodian child survivors were interviewed. All of the participants were separated from their families in 1975 when the Khmer Rouge took over and suffered extraordinarily difficult ordeals during their internment in the labor camps. Some managed to reunite with their families in 1979 after the Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia before fleeing to the refugee camps in Thailand. Others lost all of their family members and came to the US as accompanied minors. Findings emerging from this study reveal that family cohesion, positive childhood memories, supportive recovery environment, stubborn determination to overcome obstacles, and Buddhist values are important factors that work together to produce resiliency. All of the participants were raised by empathic parents and learned to become self-reliant at an early age. The affection and warmth which marked those early years were the most important in sustaining them during difficult times in their lives. The Buddhist values of accepting suffering as their fate allowed them to form greater tolerance of the hardships and enabled them to face adversity with optimism and confidence. As survivors, they are proud and determined to make the most of "the second chance" granted to them. In the resettlement phase, they were able to heal their wounds quickly by letting bygones be bygones and optimistically moving toward the future. The safe and supportive recovery environment combined with an easy access to different resources made it possible for them to quickly put their shattered lives back together.