Counseling Therapy Research Articles

Group Therapy For LGBT Individuals

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) individuals continue to face adversity in this ever-changing time and society. In today’s society, there are U.S. Supreme Court decisions that have withheld LGBT rights. These individuals in the LGBT community require the necessary support to counteract adversity and gain support from peers who understand their struggle and those who they have commonalities with. Since the LGBT populations are increasing, there is a demand for highly trained group counselors and psychotherapists to provide assistance and supportive services. Group counseling presents a unique modality of treatment for LGBT individuals to gain the necessary support from each other in a safe and supportive setting to further heal the wounds of adversity. It is through group psychotherapy counseling sessions that these individuals can express their needs, gain acceptance, and discover the powerful nature of human interaction with peers and a therapist. The paper emphasizes meta-analysis and objective knowledge of literature reviews to construct understanding of LGBT perceptions in group psychotherapy counseling. Keywords: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender, Group Counseling Therapy

KONSELING DENGAN PENDEKATAN RATIONAL EMOTIVE BEHAVIOR THERAPY UNTUK MENGATASI KEBIASAAN MEROKOK

Smoking is an act of waste and waste on property. The purpose of this study were to described: 1) smoking habits of students before giving Rational Emotive therapy? ; 2) student smoking habits after giving Rational Emotive therapy ?; and 3) the effectiveness of Rational Emotive counseling therapy in reducing students' smoking habits. This research was used pre test & post test design. The population in this research were all class X students of SMAN 3 Pekanbaru who had smoking habits with totaling 32 students. To determine the sample of this study, the researcher used purposive sampling. Then, through this technique, 5 students were used as the research sample. Besides, the data was analysed by using "t" test. Moreover, the result of this research showed that: 1) before given emotive rational counseling therapy, students smoking habits are in the high category with an average score of 92.6 and an average percentage of 77.167%; 2) after given emotive rational counseling therapy have decreased, students smoking habit are in the medium category with an average score of 66.8 and an average percentage of 55.667%; and 3) there is a significant difference between students' smoking habits before and have been given emotive rational counseling therapy that is equal to 4,691. This means that rational emotive counseling therapy is effective to reduce student smoking habits.

Prolonged exposure therapy and supportive counselling for posttraumatic stress disorder in adolescents in a community-based sample, including experiences of stakeholders: study protocol for a comparative randomized controlled trial using task-shifting

BackgroundThere is a dearth of empirical evidence on the effectiveness of pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments for adolescents with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in developing countries. The primary aim of the study is to examine the effects of prolonged exposure therapy compared with supportive counseling for adolescents with PTSD delivered by nurses trained as counselors.Methods/designA single-blind randomized clinical trial comprising 90 adolescents with PTSD using a permuted block design will be utilized. Nurses previously naïve to prolonged exposure and supportive counselling will be trained to provide these treatments at the adolescents’ high schools. Data collection will last from March 2014 to December 2017 and annually thereafter, dependent on the availability of funding.Participants will receive seven to fourteen 60 min sessions of prolonged exposure treatment (n = 45) or supportive counselling (n = 45). All assessments will be conducted before treatment, at mid-treatment, immediately after treatment completion, at 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-up, and annually thereafter. It is hypothesized that PE-A will be superior to SC in reducing PTSD symptoms at post-treatment as measured by the CPSS-I administered by an independent evaluator. It is further hypothesized that PE-A treatment gains will be maintained at 3-, 6- and 12-month follow-ups and annually thereafter.DiscussionWhile early indications are that PE-A is an effective treatment for PTSD in adolescents, this study will help determine the effectiveness of PE-A in a South African, community setting (school-based) when task-shifted to nurses, as compared to SC.Trial registrationPan African Clinical Trials Registry: PACTR201511001345372, retrospectively registered 11 November 2015.

Human-animal Relational Theory: a Guide for Animal-assisted Counseling

ABSTRACTAnimal-assisted therapy in counseling (AAT-C) is growing in popularity. However, there has been no theory to guide the practice and supervision of this field. In response to this need, I developed human-animal relational theory (HART). HART is a model that explains how AAT-C is effective and serves as a guide for practice and supervision. I describe HART constructs in a manner consistent with neurobiological effects of human-animal interaction. HART provides guidance on how to identify and effectively process significant human-animal relational moments (SHARMS) in counseling for therapeutic impact. I present real cases to exemplify implementation of HART.

Comparison of the Effectiveness of Creativity Therapy Training and Group Counseling Based on Choice Theory on Students’ Motivation Improving

Background: According to findings educational psychologist’s motivation has important effect upon student’s achievement and performance. Therapists and psychologists have tried to study the methods of motivation improving in students. The present study compares the effectiveness of creativity therapy training and group counseling based on the choice theory on motivation improving in students. Methods: The participants of this study included all students referring to the counseling center of Payam Noor University, Sari center, in the academic year of 2016-2017. The convenience sampling method was used for the selection of all the subjects. The sample consisted of 45 individuals who were randomly divided into 3 experimental and control groups (15 individuals per group). In pre-test, the motivation improving questionnaire was administered for all groups. The experimental groups received the training of creativity therapy and group counseling based on the theory of choice in 8 (90 minutes) sessions for 2 months. The control group did not receive training during this period. After completing the training, post-test was obtained in 3 groups. Data were analyzed using covariance analysis by the SPSS-16. Results: The results showed that there is a significant difference between the effectiveness of creativity therapy training and group counseling based on choice theory in promoting students motivation (P<0.05). Also, group counseling based on choice theory had more effect upon students motivation improving than creativity therapy (P=0.001). Conclusion: Creativity therapy training and group counseling based on choice theory may be effective in improving motivation in students.

Adventure therapy and its impact on the functioning of youth in a community setting

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this article is to explore the impact of one type of activity-based group work, adventure therapy (AT) group practice, on youth in a community-based mental health setting. Using data collected from Adventure Works, a nonprofit outdoor behavioral healthcare and adventure therapy counseling center, this article explores treatment outcomes to identify the effectiveness of adventure therapy group interventions. AT has been identified as an effective intervention within wilderness and residential settings, but little research exists focusing on adventure therapy in a community setting. Data collected shows positive outcomes for youth participating in adventure-based group therapy. Research and practice implications are discussed.

Sandtray for Children of Divorced Parents

This study aims to explore the use of sandtray therapy as therapeutic modality in counseling session to help children of divorce expressing their emotion, cognitive and behavior. This case study was done at primary schools in Malaysia. A total of 3 participants aged 11 years old were involved in the individual counseling sessions. The data collection and analysis information collected from counseling, interview sessions with the parents and teachers before and after the counseling session and the participants’ sandtray products. This research aims to observe and explore the emotion and behavior in children of divorced parents during sandtray therapy counseling session. The interviews were audio taped and transcribed for the purpose of data analysis. The coding procedures are mainly open, axial and selective to extract and organize developing themes and therapeutic model in counseling. Results of this in-depth interview were then organized and analyzed by using NVivo version 7.0 in order to construct themes and therapeutic model for counseling session. Significant themes regarding the participant’s responses to sandtray therapy were reported and discussed. The findings show that through the therapeutic of sandtray therapy, the participants were able to explore and express numerous emotions, face their problems, communicated better themselves and make a meaningful process in counseling session.

A randomized controlled evaluation of the tobacco status project, a Facebook intervention for young adults.

To test the efficacy of the Tobacco Status Project (TSP) Facebook smoking cessation intervention for young adults relative to referral to an on-line program on biochemically verified 7-day abstinence from smoking. Two-group parallel randomized controlled trial, comparing TSP (n=251) to on-line control (n=249) with follow-up to 12months. On-line, throughout the United States. Young adult cigarette smokers (mean age 21years; 73% white, 55% female, 87% daily smokers). TSP provided private Facebook groups tailored to stage of change to quit smoking, daily contacts, weekly live counseling sessions, and for those ready to quit, six cognitive behavioral therapy counseling sessions. Some TSP groups were assigned randomly to receive a monetary incentive for engagement. Control provided referral to the National Cancer Institute Smokefree.gov website. PRIMARY OUTCOME: Biochemically verified 7-day abstinence over 12months. Post-treatment (3-month) abstinence; reported abstinence, quit attempt, reduction in smoking, readiness to quit smoking over 12months. Verified 7-day abstinence was not significantly different for intervention compared with control over 1year: month 3 (8.3 versus 3.2%), 6 (6.2 versus 6.0%), and 12 (5.9 versus 10.0%); odds ratio (OR)=1.07; 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.23, 4.97; retention=71%. There was an effect at 3 months (OR=2.52; CI=1.56, 4.04; P<0.0001). There were no 12-month treatment effects for reported abstinence (P=0.746), reduction in smoking by 50% or more (P=0.533), likelihood of having made a quit attempt (P=0.387) or stage of change over time (0.968). Participants in TSP engaged more and rated the intervention more favorably than those in the control condition. Compared with referral to a smoking cessation website, a novel USA-focused Facebook smoking cessation intervention did not improve abstinence from smoking over 1year, but increased abstinence at the end of treatment and was engaging to participants.

The Impact of Sandtray Therapy in Group Counseling towards Children’s Self-Esteem

This study is based on experimental design by making a comparison between control group and experimental group based on the pre and post test results. The objectives of the study are to identify the effect of sandtray therapy towards the improvement of the five self-esteem variables: general, social, family, academic, and lie. The subjects of the study were children aged 11 years old (n = 32) in Malaysia. The subjects were divided into two groups namely the sandtray group (n = 16) for the experimental group, who received sandtray therapy compared to control group (n = 16) who did not receive the treatment. The self-esteem inventory test will be drawn from Coopersmith (1967). The data were analyzed using SPSS version 22, Manova Recurrent Measurement, pre-test and post-test. The results of the Pillai Trace multivariate test showed that the main effects of the main variables of the post-test were F (5, 11) = 41.372, p <.05. Results from the Sphericity Assumed on table 1.6 below, pretest and posttest of general self-esteem shows F (1, 15) = 49.853 ?<.05. The results towards the social self-esteem shows F (1, 15) = 63.646 ?<.05, to the parental self-esteem F (1, 15) = 82.924 ?<.05, to the academic self-esteem F (1, 15) = 80.071 ?<.05, and to lie self-esteem F (1, 15) = .732 ?>.05.The findings of this study specify that Sandtray therapy is a valuable therapeutic intervention to enhance the child’s self-esteem. Several recommendations were presented to parents, teachers, school administrators and Ministry of Education Malaysia were discussed in promoting children’s wellbeing.

How amazing music therapy in counseling for millennials

Most of millennials college students in Indonesia still think that undergraduate thesis is a terrifying final project. In the process of making the undergraduate thesis, they often do something non-productive, like procrastinating doing it and avoiding their supervisors. This excessive academic anxiety toward undergraduate thesis could lead them to do something irrational, e.g. suicide. As one of college’s internal agents of change, psychologists or educational counselors are expected to overcome the problem which frequently happens every year by giving the students an intervention in accordance with their interests and needs as millennials. Music, as one of millennials’ essential needs, can be used as an alternative to therapeutic healing medium. Conventional counseling strategy that has been conducted all this time, shows only ineffective result. That is why it is needed to be changed into modern approach that is more effective in reducing academic anxiety of the millennials college students, which is integrative approach through music therapy intervention in counseling.

Effect of Counseling Approach and Learning Achievement to Moral Intelligence

This research aimed to know the effects the Rational Emotive Therapy (RET) with counseling approach and learning achievement toward the moral intelligence. This research used the experimental method and applied kinds of treatment, namely: RET counseling approach and Client-Centered Therapy (CCT) counseling approach. Each treatment involved two groups of students from Elementary School Students at Cipondoh 3 Tangerang Banten. The data analysis used in this research was two-way analysis of variance.The findings acquired was the differences between the moral intelligence of students who were counseled with RET counseling approach and CCT counseling approach. The group of students with slow learning achievement, the moral intelligence of those who were counseled with RET counseling approach was higher than those who were counseled with CCT counseling approach. For the group of students with high learning achievement, the moral intelligence of those who were counseled with RET counseling approach was lower than those who were counseled with CCT counseling approach. The results of this research indicate that counseling approaches can be used as a method to develop the moral intelligence of students.

The Effectiveness of Career Counselling Model towards Career Maturity and Self-Concept Level of Former Drug Addicts

The purpose of this research was to investigate the effectiveness of Career Counseling Model towards the inmates’ career maturity and their self-concept level. This research has used experimental design, in w hich experimental and control group, were involved. The total of 64 respondents was purposively selected, 32 of each group, were from two different drug rehabilitation centers. Two instruments were used in the experiment which were Career Maturity Scale (CMI) and Tennesse Self-Concept Scales (TSCS), to measure two variables which were career maturity and self-concept, respectively. The hypotheses were tested by using t-test and the mean score. The result showed that there is a positive significant difference of the mean score of CMI between pre-test (11.1563) and post-test (15.6250) of the experimental group, t= -4.874 (p= 0.00 < 0.05). The result also showed that there is a significant positive difference in the mean score of TSCS between pre-test (232.9000) and the post-test (241.5667) of the experimental group, t= -3.373 (p= 0.002 < 0.05). Both results implied that there was a positive impact on respondents’ career maturity and self-concept level after going through the treatment. Therefore, this study has proven the effectiveness of Career Counseling Therapy in developing inmates’ career maturity and self-concept level.

Peranan Konselor dalam Penerapan dan Pemupukan Nilai-Nilai Murni Melalui Rogram Konseling Terhadap Remaja di Sekolah: Satu Wadah Terpadu Antara Guru dan Kounselor

This research aims to review the role of counseling toward the development of qamil people. This research will review and understand western caucus perspectives on human research functions on earth based on freud and rogrs theory. The problem is why human life on earth is causing problems especially from the spiritual aspect even though it has often received counseling therapy. Diseases associated with mental disorders such as new rosis, Emotional instability, stress, mental disorders and their compatriots are evidence of a person's need for counseling. The formation of a model that strives for the overall development of the workforce is expected to be practiced to care for clients facing personal problems, the families of the community. This model is expected to become a martial-client mechanism to deal with every problem not only from the spiritual aspect, even form a healthy human, motivated, confident and willing to face all the problems and challenges in human life in the future.

Adolescents with Disorders of Sex Development: A 3-Year Psychosocial Follow-Up Before and After Gender Reassignment

Objectives: Psychosocial interventions have been increasingly proven to play a key role in a holistic team-oriented approach to disorders of sex development (DSD) care. This article examined the influence of cultural and religious factors on the acceptance of the decision for gender-reassignment surgery. Next, how this patient accepted herself and her body image, and invested in her femininity, was analyzed. Methods: The study is based on a 3-year follow-up (from 2013 to 2015) of an adolescent with 46,XX DSD, in the mental health department of FANN National University Hospital in Dakar, Senegal. The patient and his/her parents and other family members underwent 12 sessions of counseling and supportive psychotherapy before and after surgical treatment. On average, each session lasted 55 min. Results: Raised as a boy until the age of 15, the patient initially refused surgical intervention. The parents were also confused, owing to the societal preference for males and the fear of stigmatization. The role of the grandfather was instrumental in the counseling and supportive psychotherapy, as he attributed a masculine and religious given name to the child. The postsurgical anatomy reduced the patient’s distress. However, the psychic integration of her bisexuality was ambivalent and accompanied by depressive feelings and intense dream activity. Feminine socialization and environmental learning, conditioned by Wolof traditions and upbringing, were some constraints that affected postgender reassignment outcomes. Conclusion: While gender reassignment affects the patient, but it can even more profoundly affect the parent of that is the same sex to whom as the child’s sex has been as identified at birth. Counseling and supportive therapy should take into account cultural constraints and transformations within and across the psychological developmental stages.

Peer support workers’ experiences of supporting women with postnatal depression: a constant comparative exploration

Objective: To explore the lived experiences of peer support workers (PSWs) during their intervention with mothers suffering from postnatal depression (PND).Background: Postnatal depression is a major public health concern affecting approximately 13% of women worldwide. There is evidence within recent literature that peer support may have a positive effect upon women suffering with PND.Methods: Written data from the PSW’s logbooks, interviews and supervisory sessions was collected and thematically analysed.Results: Data were analysed using a constant comparative method and four key themes emerged. These were: changing perspectives of the PSW, their personal self-analysis and recognition, concern about the abandonment of the women that they had been supporting and self-recovery from postnatal depression.Conclusion: Findings indicate that PSWs choose to offer support based upon their own experiences, rejecting formal counselling therapies. This study found that peer-designed interventions do appear to have some merit.

Effectiveness of supplementary blended flour based on chickpea and cereals for the treatment of infants with moderate acute malnutrition in Iran: A randomized clinical trial.

BackgroundDespite the decreasing rate of under nutrition children in recent years overall, the negative affect in growth and development make it as a main concern in the world. Applying an available and appropriate supplementary food is a major approach in treating children with Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM).ObjectiveTo compare the effectiveness of a new supplementary blended flour (containing chickpea, rice, wheat and barley, named Shadameen) in combination with multivitamin/mineral supplement and nutritional counseling versus multivitamin/mineral supplement and nutritional counseling alone, in the treatment of children with MAM.MethodsThis randomized controlled trial study was conducted at Heshmatiyeh Hospital in Sabzevar city in Iran, from January 2016 to December 2016. Seventy infants, aged 9 to 24 months with MAM who were referred from urban health centers to the hospital clinic were included. They were randomly assigned to receive, for about 3 months, either multivitamin / mineral supplement and nutritional counseling alone or in combination with an extra supplementary blended food. We analyzed weight, length, weight for length Z score (WLZ), weight for age Z score (WAZ) and length for weight Z score (LAZ), along with recovery rate and adverse events among the two groups. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 16. We used statistics, Chi-square, independent t-test, and Fisher’s exact test for the analyses of primary and secondary outcomes.ResultsThe food supplementation infant’s mean weight and WLZ and WAZ were greater compared with the other group (0.81±0.29 gr and 0.55±0.33 gr, p=0.002), (0.36±0.36 and 0.02±0.52, p=0.003), (0.40±0.33 and 0.09±0.37, p=0.001). The recovery rate in the food supplemented group was significantly higher than the other group (68.4%, 31.6%, p=0.001). No adverse reactions were observed. There were no significant differences in LAZ at the end of the study between the two groups (p=0.53).ConclusionThis study showed that Shadameen in combination with multivitamin/mineral and counselling therapy can be more effective in decreasing the wasting rate of children with MAM than vitamin/mineral and counseling therapy alone.Trial registrationThe trial was registered at the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (http://www.irct.ir) with the Irct ID: IRCT2015040921670N1.FundingThis study was financially supported by the vice chancellor for research office, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences.

Hearing voices? Giving them a face can help

For people who hear voices, interacting with virtual avatars that embody the voices might be key to a speedy reduction in the distress they cause. A team led by Tom Craig and Philippa Garety at Kings College London gave six sessions of emotional counseling or avatar therapy to 150 volunteers with auditory verbal hallucinations that hadn't improved with drugs. A few weeks after the sessions ended, the voices heard by the avatar therapy group were reported to be significantly less upsetting compared with people who had received counseling. They heard voices less often, and felt these were less powerful and distressing. The improvement was greater than that reported for cognitive behavioral therapy, and the effects lasted when the participants were reassessed three months later

The application of impact counseling in therapy started with individual counseling expressive to cope with the personal problems by college students

Various approaches and theory can be applied to help students to cope with personal problems; one approach that can be applied is the impact counseling. Impact Therapy is a teaching process that carried out by the counselor, where a counselor wrote and visualized to clients about what the client wants, the client will do, how clients assess their behavior and how clients to plan what to do next. This is illustrated by Ed Jacobs As WDEP (Want, Doing, Evaluate, and Plan). Before using the impact counseling for students who are not able to communicate the problems that they experienced first counselor implemented expressive therapy. Expressive therapy known as a therapy in counseling and psychotherapy in which the client can communicate and express its feelings and their thoughts through activities related to art, music, dance, drama, poetry, as well as games. Expressive therapy is also called the "Creative Arts Therapy". Especially art, music, drama and poetry.

A5075 - The Effectiveness of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Counseling Groups on Roux-en Y®/Gastric Bypass Patients with Post-Operative Weight Gain after 5 years

The current study follows the effectiveness of post-operative groups among individuals who have experienced post-operative weight gain. In short, the review of the literature suggests that weight loss surgery is becoming a leading alternative for individuals who are struggling with morbid obesity. Understanding the potential impacts of post-operative care is essential in individuals maintaining a healthy weight.

Prevalence and Risk Factors for Erectile Dysfunction in Chinese Adult Males

BackgroundThere is a lack of nationwide epidemiologic survey data on the prevalence estimate of erectile dysfunction (ED) in Chinese men living on the mainland China. AimTo attain the representative prevalence estimate of ED in the Chinese male population and to analyze potential risk factors associated with ED by demographics, socioeconomic status, and medical comorbidities. MethodsThe study was community based. The five-item Internation Index of Erectile Function questionnaire and in-person interview were used to obtain data. The survey subjects were 5,210 non-institutionalized Chinese men at least 40 years old residing in 30 provinces and autonomies of China. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to disclose risk factors associated with ED. OutcomesThe prevalence estimate of ED was 40.56% in Chinese men at least 40 years old. ResultsThe prevalence of ED increased with increasing age. A significant high prevalence of ED was observed in men who smoked heavily, were estranged from a partner, had diabetes, and lower urinary tract symptoms from benign prostatic hyperplasia. Smoking more than 30 cigarettes daily and obesity (body mass index ≥ 30 kg/m2) significantly increased the risk for ED by multivariable-adjusted odds ratios. Stable or erratic sexual partners, personal incomes, alcohol consumption, and cardiovascular and/or cerebrovascular diseases were not risk factors associated with ED prevalence. Other sexual problems commonly seen in this group of men included difficulty achieving erectile rigidness, ejaculation, and climax during intercourse. Clinical TranslationKnowledge on the prevalence of ED and its associated risk factors will help physicians in the clinical management and prevention of ED with the use of counseling for lifestyle adjustment and drug therapy. Strengths and LimitationsData on the influence of psychological conditions on ED were not collected. ED was not categorized as minor, moderate, or severe for analysis during processing of data. ConclusionThe national representative prevalence of ED was determined for the first time in the Chinese male population.Zhang X, Yang B, Li N, Li H. Prevalence and Risk Factors for Erectile Dysfunction in Chinese Adult Males. J Sex Med 2017;14:1201–1208.