anglicky The aim of this diploma is to describe the role of an expert psychologist witness in criminal trial and to define purpose of forensic psychological assessments. It also tries to answer current questions related to the field of psychological expert opinions. The psychological forensic expert witness is appointed in the same way as other legal expert witnesses. That means he has the same rights and obligations as them. The first chapter is therefore devoted to connoisseurship in general. It deals with the historical development of expert witnesses, current applicable legislation and upcoming legislative changes in this area. The second chapter approaches other expert witnesses in court too. It includes number of forensic experts in various fields and compares expert psychologists to psychiatrists, who often provide their opinions alongside psychologists'. The main part of the chapter is left to expert opinions. It clarifies terms such as personality, intellect, memory, motivation and dangerousness of the offender, that are the most commonly evaluated aspects. Conclusion of second chapter summarises the expert opinions in selected EU countries and the USA. The final chapter is devoted to the expert report as evidence in criminal proceedings. In addition to the description of expert witnesses...

The global epidemiology of Autistic Spectrum Condition (ASC) is not thought to vary as a function of ethnicity. However, evidence suggests that the identified prevalence of ASC may be inconsistent across ethnic groups in the UK. In the UK, educational psychologists (EPs) often play a key role in the ASC identification process. Given the believed value of accurate identification of ASC to a child’s education, and the importance of providing minority ethnic groups with an equitable service, the following study explores how EPs incorporate ethnic minority cultural factors (EMCF) within ASC assessments. A multiple embedded case analysis was conducted with three EPs. Each was highly proficient in ASC assessment and brought experiences from both different geographical areas, and from service delivery through varied providers; a local authority (LA), a social enterprise, and private practice. Participants’ responses in two semi-structured interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. A documentary analysis of the existing LA pathway for the assessment of ASC was completed. This was complemented with a quantitative demographic analysis of data relating to the regions in which each participant EP was working. Interview transcripts were analysed thematically, and findings are presented through thematic maps. Content analysis of the existing policies revealed considerable variation between LAs in how ASC is assessed in school age children. Integration of findings revealed six considerations made in ASC assessments with EMC children, potentially impacting upon their consultations with parents, and their direct work with the child. Further examination suggests that the EP’s work context can influence their considerations through four avenues. It appears that EPs’ understanding of EMCF within ASC assessments is influenced by professional experiences and opportunities within their local context. The study extends understanding how EPs consider EMCF in their assessments for ASC. Findings are discussed with regards to their implications for theory, practice and future research.

Background: Present literature highlights early years as an important phase of child development. Whilst Educational Psychologists have a role within early years, there is little research to state what this looks like and how it is conducted in practice. Therefore, this research considers the role an Educational Psychologist could take within an early years setting and explores the variety of work they could conduct. Participants: One early years setting from the researcher’s current Local Authority was used for this research. A total of 33 participants were involved including 11 early years staff, eight Educational Psychologists, 13 parents/carers and a Health Visitor. Methods: This study describes an academic year long Action Research (Tripp, 2003) project with the use of a Research and Development in Organisations framework (Timmins, Shepherd & Kelly, 2003). This included pre-model questionnaires, interviews with early years staff, a focus group with Educational Psychologists and a further focus group with early years staff in order to develop an initial model of educational psychology practice. Work was then completed by the researcher as part of the model of practice. Discrete pieces of work were evaluated via questionnaires, while the project as a whole was evaluated via post-model questionnaires, focus group, interview and researcher diary. Analysis/Findings: Quantitative data were summarised using descriptive statistics and qualitative data were transcribed and a thematic analysis applied. Within this study, the researcher developed a model of practice based on the needs of the setting that included being more frequently involved with casework and conducting work specifically aimed at supporting staff and parents/carers. Additionally, there were discrepancies found in the value placed by participants upon the different pieces of the work as well as the overall approach taken. Conclusion/Implications: This research suggests that there is a greater role for Educational Psychologists within early years, involving more than conducting casework but through providing a more holistic and intensive approach to supporting staff and parents/carers. This supports the existing limited literature as well as advocating a more extensive role for them within early intervention services.

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The purpose of this study was to explore the role that the educational psychologist can play to support inclusion at school level in South Africa. The study aims to provide national, provincial and district support teams with information that could guide them on how best to utilise educational psychology services within the context of limited resources. It also aims to guide the educational psychology profession in how best to provide support within the South African public inclusive schooling system. The research was conducted using a conceptual framework based on three matrices designed by Wedell (2005) to address some of the ‘rigidities that hamper inclusion’ (Wedell, 2005, p. 4). My deduction was that these matrices do not adequately capture the stage of development of inclusive education in the South African context, and that additional matrices are needed which show the key variables that are impacting on the ability of the educational psychologist to support learners with barriers to learning in the South African public education context. In this study, I followed an interpretivist paradigm, and adopted an instrumental case study design. The intention was to gain insight at a very practical level, namely the school, into how the challenges related to inclusion are being, and could be, addressed. Data was collected in one Gauteng public school through semi-structured face-to-face interviews with the school principal, a private educational psychologist providing services to the school community, a parent and national Department of Basic Education officials, and focus groups with teachers and district officials. Three main themes emerged following thematic content analysis of the data: Participants’ understanding and experiences of inclusion and inclusive education at school level, perceptions of the role of the educational psychologist in supporting inclusion in schools, and the future role of educational psychologists in supporting inclusion in schools. The findings indicate that inclusion remains more of an aspiration than a reality, and show the important role the educational psychologist can play in helping to build collaborative approaches to planning and implementation of policy. Amongst other things, educational psychologists should find a way, collectively, of engaging with district offices to structure planning and implementation that includes the profession. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Educational Psychology / unrestricted

Educational psychologists are expected to offer real-world relevant services. One way to strive towards real-word relevance is for educational psychologists to facilitate resilience by using Ungar’s diagnostic criteria of resilience. However, at this time the usefulness of applying Ungar’s criteria is still unexplored. Thus, this study asked: ‘What insight into the resilience of vulnerable rural adolescents can be achieved by applying Ungar’s diagnostic criteria of resilience to the documents (i.e. paper-and-pencil activities) generated in psycho-educational assessments?’ In answering this question, a qualitative secondary data analysis was conducted of psycho-educational paper-and-pencil activities completed by 65 male and female IsiSwati-speaking Grade 9 learners at a secondary school in Mpumalanga, a remote province in South Africa, during the Flourishing Learning Youth (FLY) study. FLY, a project of the Centre for the Study of Resilience, is based at the University of Pretoria. The a priori categories were sourced from Ungar’s diagnostic criteria and the relevant a priori codes from the review of South African resilience literature. The analysis showed that adolescents were challenged by physical risk, emotional risk and poverty-related risk. Additionally, adolescents were protected by personal resources (agency, self-worth), family resources (role models, supportive parentchild interaction), community resources (role models, community belonging), school resources (teachers as role models and supporters) and macro resources (spirituality). These findings echo extant South African resilience studies and enabled the educational psychologist to ‘diagnose’ resilience for this group of adolescents to better understand the risks to their well-being, the resources that can be leveraged to buffer this risk, and the resources that are absent and must be negotiated. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Educational Psychology / MEd / Unrestricted

The purpose of the study was to explore how mothers experience the support provided by the educational psychologist for their children with ADHD. The conceptual framework utilised for this study incorporated systems theory, collaborations and inclusive education in South Africa. In this study, I followed an interpretivist paradigm using a phenomenological approach. A qualitative case study design was selected, with five purposefully and conveniently selected mothers whose children had been previously diagnosed with ADHD by an educational psychologist. The participants took part in either a focus group or a one-onone interview. Two main themes emerged following the thematic content analysis of the interviews, namely: How mothers experience their children with ADHD and How mothers experience support of their children with ADHD. The findings of this study suggest that mothers of children with ADHD expect a deeper level of support from an educational psychologist. The findings also indicate that mothers experience parenting children with ADHD stressful and that they need reassurance and emotional support from the educational psychologist. The results show the need for a more inclusive school environment and it highlights the importance of the role of the educational psychologist sharing knowledge and working collaboratively with educators, the Institutional Level and District Based Support Teams and the various health care practitioners to provide support to the child and family. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Educational Psychology / unrestricted

Clinician attitudes toward a client have a significant influence on outcomes for that client's treatment. Exploring the attitudes of clinicians toward sex offenders can provide additional insights into methods to improve treatments for this population. The purpose of this qualitative grounded theory study was to examine the attitudes of clinical professionals who work with sex offenders to identify the specific ways that these attitudes influenced professional behaviors and client interactions. Grounded theory was used to move beyond a general description of the issue to formulate a theory regarding clinician work with sex offenders and its implications. The sample comprised 10 clinical professionals who worked with sex offenders in community mental health agencies. Open coding and axial coding were used to generate themes from in-depth semistructured interviews to collect data from clinicians who treated sex offenders. Findings indicated that the professionals were mostly concerned for the behavior of sex offenders, were willing to work with them despite feelings of anger and disgust and were curious about the possibility of treatment. Participants treated sex offenders like any other clients but emphasized the importance of safety during treatment. Participants balanced their obligations to the profession and the client with negative images and views of sex offenders. These professionals struggled when providing treatment to sex offenders but described strategies for coping or overcoming negative feelings, emotions, and biases. Clinicians can use these findings to deliver better planned care to this population, resulting in better therapeutic outcomes for sex offenders.

The master's thesis deals with the topic of the use of psychotherapy in the field of palliative care provided to adult clients. The theoretical part presents the current conception of care for the dying and defines the field of palliative care, including its availability. Attention is also paid to the characteristics of palliative care recipients, where the behavior and experiencing of terminally ill patients are outlined using models depicting the process of dying. This is followed by the definition of palliative psychotherapy together with a description of its involvement amongst other forms of support for the dying patients. At the end of the theoretical part there are presented structured psychotherapeutic interventions focusing on work with terminally ill clients, including information considering their effectiveness and possible application. The empirical part of the thesis consists of qualitative research of the psychotherapeutic process in working with adult dying clients from the perspective of palliative psychologists and psychotherapists. The informations obtained from semistructured interviews are processed with the method of thematic analysis. Outputs reflect the experiences of respondents coping with the difficulties of a palliative environment such as lack of time, unstructured...

The focus of this study was to examine the Deaf community and their preferences for both a psychologist and the language utilized in a clinical psychological setting. The study gave each participant a mock profile for a psychologist and then asked participants to answer questions on their perceptions of the psychologist provided. A total of 22 participants who identified as Deaf, deaf, hard-of-hearing, or as an individual with hearing loss were surveyed. Results indicated that participants randomly assigned to the Deaf psychologist had higher rates of satisfaction and trust over participants who were assigned to other psychologists. The study also supported the concept that individuals who prefer using American Sign Language will similarly prefer a psychologist who knows and can communicate in American Sign Language.