The purpose of this study was to survey the perceptions and preferences of mental health personnel from which guidelines could be derived for staff development planners within community mental health centers. The study involved the administration of a forty item questionnaire to a large community mental health center. The items were designed to elicit staff perceptions and preferences regarding staff development issues and activities. After analyzing the data, conclusions were drawn and guidelines formulated. / Conclusions. The principle conclusions developed in the study were: (1) Items involving decisional participation were critical ones. (2) Respondents, regardless of job rank, perceived staff development to be of great importance, but did not think the organization really backed it. (3) Respondents preferred not to enter into intimate training roles with each other. (4) Promotion was perceived as unrelated to inservice training. (5) Time and location of inservice activities were very important to the respondents. / Guidelines. Selected guidelines developed in the study were: (1) Staff must be involved in all stages from planning to outcome evaluation. (2) The entire staff would not have to be surveyed to determine perceptions and preferences. Job position or classification within the study organization did not significantly influence perception of needs items. (3) Flexibility and variation in the scheduling of staff development events must accommodate different work schedules and unit missions. (4) Organizational commitment with appropriate personnel policies must be present for realistic backup of the staff development program. (5) The perceived needs and interests of staff must be reflected in the design and composition of inservice education and training efforts. (6) Staff will view with caution any effort that would diminish their control and ownership of staff development planning. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 42-06, Section: A, page: 2527. / Thesis (Educat.D.)--The Florida State University, 1981.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_74531 |
| Contributors | KIRKPATRICK, GEORGE D., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 87 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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