Internship Directors Research Articles

A Position Paper on Paid Music Therapy Internships: An Analysis of Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats to Initiate Dialogue

The music therapy internship represents the culmination of students’ clinical training. Currently, most music therapy internships are unpaid while other healthcare professions offer paid internship options or do not require an internship. The purpose of this position paper was to conduct a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis and initiate dialogue regarding paid music therapy internships in the United States. Designed to initiate dialogue and conversation, this article is not a research paper. I conducted an initial SWOT analysis on paid music therapy internships. I then shared the analysis with music therapy students, internship directors, clinicians, business owners, and faculty and integrated their feedback. Although the SWOT analysis indicated that the current internship model can result in strong clinicians, there are weaknesses regarding workforce diversity, accessibility, and finances. There may be numerous opportunities for the profession to strengthen itself through paid internships. The profession’s mission and values regarding increased access to music therapy for service users, greater workforce diversity, and quality of care amid escalating tuition and cost of living expenses are consequential factors that may influence paid music therapy internships. Although paid internships may be beyond the control of clinical training directors and thus may not be feasible in all contexts, the large number of unpaid internships may hinder the music therapy profession from thriving and advancing toward its mission. The profession may have an opportunity to use its own agency by valuing itself through paid music therapy internships. Questions and considerations are provided to conclude the paper.

A national survey of doctoral psychology education and training in suicide risk and violence risk assessment and management.

When, in the judgment of a mental health professional, patient suicide risk and/or patient violence risk are considered imminent, they have been referred to as behavioral emergencies. Past surveys have suggested that education and training with these emergency situations have been inadequate. The present study was undertaken to obtain more current information on the training that psychologists receive in these areas of practice. All directors of APA-accredited graduate psychology programs and all directors of APA-accredited predoctoral psychology internship programs were asked to complete an online survey inquiring about such training provided in their programs. Results indicated that both sets of directors rated such doctoral training in suicide risk assessment and management as very important. Internship directors, however, were significantly more likely than graduate program directors to state that psychologists should be required to complete continuing education courses on other-directed violence risk. Serious gaps in training were identified; that is, only 59.2% of psychology graduate directors reported that their program offered training in safety planning for suicide risk and only 25.4% reported that their program offered training in safety planning for violence risk. Given that serious injury and even death can occur from patient suicidal behavior and/or a patient violent behavior, the implications of these findings are discussed.

Self-Efficacy of Dietetics Educators Preparing to Implement a New National Education Model

Purpose: The Future Education Model (FEM) was introduced in 2017 and included changes to the existing dietetics education model, such as a shift in degree requirements and a change in Accreditation Standards based on competency-based programming. Starting in 2019, dietetics educators could apply to begin implementing the FEM at their institutions. Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) served as the framework for this research. SCT can be used to understand individuals’ motivations in various contexts, including workplace environments like higher education. Self-efficacy is one component of SCT; self-efficacy in dietetics educators may be an important indicator of potential success implementing the mandatory FEM. The purpose of this study was to 1) determine dietetics educators’ self-efficacy towards implementing the FEM, and 2) compare self-efficacy scores based on demographic characteristics. Methods: A reliable and valid online questionnaire was developed and emailed to 520 dietetics directors in the United States. Frequencies, mean scores, and standard deviations were calculated for self-efficacy items; self-efficacy indicates potential to meet demands of implementing the FEM. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to analyze differences between job title, age, years in higher education, and dietetics educator general self-efficacy. Results: There were 161 dietetics directors who responded (31% response rate). Dietetics directors’ mean total self-efficacy scores indicated self-efficacy towards implementing the FEM across all positions, age groups, and years in higher education. One-way ANOVA results indicated no significant differences between director age nor years in higher education and total mean self-efficacy scores, but there was a significant difference between graduate program directors’ (M=63.50, SD = 11.24) and internship directors’ (53.41, SD = 6.91) mean total self-efficacy scores (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Participants in this study were generally self-efficacious regarding implementing the FEM, a possible predictor of successful implementation when the time comes to making program changes and implementing these necessary changes.

COVID-19 Adaptations for Health Service Psychology Internship Training in a Medical School.

Health service psychology internship directors confronted a myriad of training challenges in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, internship training directors were tasked with ensuring that interns received appropriate training in each of the nine profession-wide competency (PWCs) areas while also ensuring the physical and emotional well-being of staff and trainees. The purpose of this paper is to describe one internship’s approach to adapting the nine PWCs during COVID-19 in the context of an academic medical setting. Successes and challenges associated with training adaptations in the context of each of the nine PWCs will be shared along with considerations for improving academic medical training programs’ ability to support interns’ educational goals and training requirements throughout and following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sexism and cisgenderism in music therapy spaces: An exploration of gender microaggressions experienced by music therapists

Gender microaggressions are everyday assaults, insults, or invalidations that occur towards persons with marginalized gender identities (including trans/cis women, trans men, and nonbinary persons). As music therapy spaces are microcosms for larger sociopolitical contexts, music therapists are prone to enacting microaggressions verbally, non-verbally, and musically. In this narrative inquiry, semi-structured interviews occurred with eight participant music therapists to examine their experiences of gender microaggressions in music therapy. Results demonstrated that gender microaggressions manifest in a variety of ways and enactors include music therapy colleagues, presenters, internship directors, educators, and clients. Five themes were found: qualities of microaggressions, impact of incident, survival tactics, interpersonal dynamics, and gender in music therapy, with a total of 33 sub-themes. From these findings, it is clear that there is a need for music therapists to develop greater awareness of ways in which they enact gender microaggressions and to create more spaces for music therapists with marginalized gender identities to process these incidents.

A National Survey on Didactic Curricula in Psychology Internship Training Programs.

Didactic curricula in psychology doctoral internship training programs in health service psychology are important components of the training experience. However, the nature of didactic curricula, including how they are developed and implemented, is not well understood. The purpose of this study was to describe characteristics of didactic programs, better understand their development, and identify barriers to implementation. This study surveyed psychology doctoral internship program directors about didactic training in their programs. A total of 122 internship directors consented to participate. On average, internship didactics were held for 11 hr per month, during regular work-day hours, and on a weekly basis. Internal faculty members were the most common didactic speakers. Didactic curricula were typically developed to meet profession-wide competencies as established by the accrediting body, the American Psychological Association. Identified barriers to didactic program development and implementation included lack of protected release time for faculty and trainees, presenter- and facility-related challenges, and difficulty addressing learner needs. Ideas for future research in this area are suggested.

Results of Medical and Hospice Music Therapy Internship Directors’ Views of Advanced Guitar Skills Needed for Interviews

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine which guitar skills beyond the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) functional guitar skill competencies are important for prospective music therapy interns to perform during the medical and hospice music therapy interview process. Participants (n = 32) for this study were medical or hospice music therapy internship supervisors from AMTA approved and university-affiliated internship sites that were asked to rate eight advanced guitar skills on their importance during the internship interview process. Of the 64 internship directors to whom the survey was sent, 32 (50%) participants representing five of the seven AMTA regions responded. The majority of internship directors (94%) reported the guitar as the primary instrument for therapy at their facility. Results indicated that four of the eight advanced guitar skills in question were considered important for interns to perform during the interview process, suggesting students should learn these advanced skills before applying to a medical or hospice music therapy internship. These findings are consistent with previous research suggesting the use of advanced guitar skills to meet musical demands within contemporary music therapy practice.

Factors Associated with Music Therapy Board Certification Examination Outcomes

Abstract The Music Therapy Board Certification (BC) Examination is a high-stakes test that affects test takers’ entry into the profession and reflects the quality of music therapy programs. Accumulating studies in the health sciences have identified the factors that contribute to first-time test takers’ success in passing credentialing examinations. However, these variables have not been investigated in music therapy. The purposes of this study are to investigate recent certificants’ perceptions and experiences of the BC examination and identify the predictors of success on the first attempt. It aims to delineate the factors associated with performance in the BC examination; identify effective strategies and resources for future test takers; and inform educators, internship directors, clinical supervisors, and test administrators regarding areas of concern and necessary support. A sample of 662 recent music therapy board certificants completed a 32-item online survey consisting of checklists, Likert scales, open-ended questions, and the Westside Test Anxiety Scale. Self-reported cumulative grade point average and general test anxiety scores were significant predictors of BC examination success on the first attempt. The results suggest the need for (a) a consistent standard for education programs that includes various theoretical orientations and clinical practice models to better prepare students with content knowledge and (b) program progression policies to identify students at risk of failing the examination and to provide remediation.

Research Involvement Continuum Level of Dietetic Internship Directors

Research is considered to be the foundation of the profession of dietetics, and it is a required component of the dietetic internship (DI) curriculum. However, studies have shown that dietitians, including dietetic educators, are not highly involved with research. This research-competency gap has been studied in the literature, but the role of DI directors, who are the gatekeepers of DI programs, have not been included in empirical discussions on this topic. The purpose of this study was to identify where DI directors fall on the research involvement continuum as defined by the Research Involvement Questionnaire (RIQ) and to identify the types of factors that influence DI directors’ involvement with research. In this cross-sectional survey study that included 96 DI directors, research involvement of DI directors was limited. Using the four levels of the research involvement continuum, it was found that more participants were classified into level one (low research experience) than levels two through four combined. Research involvement was most related to education/training, professional experience, and research experience. Based upon the theory of experiential learning, dietetic educators must have meaningful experiences with research in order to reach the higher levels on the research continuum. The findings from this study can be used to better prepare DI directors and other dietetic educators as well as to inform curricular decisions to better align education and practice within the profession of dietetics.

Dietetic Internship Directors’ and Preceptors’ Views on Preceptor Recruitment and Retention

Dietetic Internship Directors’ and Preceptors’ Views on Preceptor Recruitment and Retention

Current Patterns of Training in Personality Assessment During Internship.

Training in broad-based objective and projective personality assessments has been a mainstay of applied psychology. Stedman (2007) and Piotrowski (2015) have documented a decline in projective training during internship. This study investigated internship directors' current expectations regarding graduate school training with objective and projective instruments, their ratings of the importance of that training, and current training patterns with objective and projective instruments during internship. Participants were 355 psychology internship programs, representing 46.1% of the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers. Results indicated the following current internship training patterns: Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (68% to 51%), Personality Assessment Inventory (59% to 25%), Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (51% to 34%), Rorschach (35 to 26%), story telling (41% to 19%), sentence completion (41% to 18%), and drawings (36% to 9%). Adult program directors reported higher percentages for objective tests; child program directors reported higher percentages for projective tests. A decreased valuation of projective techniques is now typical of current internship training programs.

Exploring Dietetic Internship Directors Perspectives of Student Intern Characteristics

Exploring Dietetic Internship Directors Perspectives of Student Intern Characteristics

Personal Attributes of Successful Interns as Perceived by Dietetic Internship Directors and Preceptors from Varying Generations

Personal attributes of students and employees are increasingly important to educators and employers. This study determined the personal attributes perceived by Dietetic Internship Directors and Preceptors from varying generations that lead to success in Dietetic Internships. Internship Directors and Preceptors throughout the United States participated in this 2012 study. A mixed methods approach was utilized. The results from a preliminary web-based survey of Preceptors and Dietetic Internship Directors local to the researchers were used to develop a list of personal attributes. The final survey provided participants the opportunity to rate 35 personal attributes. Usable data for analysis was received from 311 responders. The top ten reported personal attributes included: motivation, completion of tasks, dependability, respectful, positive attitude, flexible, listening skills, asks questions, open minded, and professional. Dietetic Internship Directors perceived flexibility (M=9.53) and punctuality (M=9.34) to lead to success significantly (p=0.017) more than Preceptors (M=9.30; M=9.04). Results showed significant differences in success-associated attributes of Interns among the primary setting, generation, and Registered Dietitian status of Directors and Preceptors. The Behavioral category of personal attributes was perceived to be more important than Communication or Interpersonal. This study suggests that some personal attributes are more highly valued by Dietetic Internship Directors and Preceptors than others. Knowledge of these attributes can help guide allied health educators in preparing future interns and employers in selecting potential employees.

Gatekeeping practices of music therapy academic programs and internships: a national survey.

Gatekeeping safeguards access to the practice of a profession to ensure the quality of clinical services. It involves selective admission, continuous evaluation, and timely and ethical decisions in response to trainees with severe professional competency problems (SPCP). To date, little information is available concerning gatekeeping practices in the field of music therapy. This study investigated the extent and outcomes of gatekeeping practices across academic programs and National Roster internship sites approved by the American Music Therapy Association. Specifically, it examined the prevalence of trainees with SPCP, program-wide precautionary measures, common indicators of trainees with SPCP, remedial strategies, and supports and barriers to effective management. Thirty-two academic program directors and 77 internship directors completed an online survey. Responses were compiled into aggregate form (frequencies & percentages) for analysis. Chi-square tests with Yates' correction were applied to compare the differences between academic programs and internships. A significantly higher percentage of academic programs (93.8%) reported having at least one trainee with SPCP over the past 5 years than did internships (66.2%). The most common indicators of competency problems included inadequate music skill development, emotional instability, limited communication skills, deficient interpersonal skills, defensiveness in supervision, and lack of insight. Typical remedial methods included referral to personal therapy, increased supervision, and repetition of practicum or extension of internship. Issues regarding trainees with SPCP are frequently addressed by academic and internship program directors. Improving clarity within professional guidelines and establishing more rigorous and consistent standards across training programs are recommended.

An investigation of internship directors’ perspectives on the learning objectives required by the commission on accreditation.

An investigation of internship directors’ perspectives on the learning objectives required by the commission on accreditation.

Functional Musicianship of Music Therapy Students: Entering Internships as Perceived by Internship Directors

Functional musicianship - the ability to play an instrument effectively for therapeutic purposes - is an important skill in the education and training of music therapists, and has a long history as a building block for students, teachers and professionals. The first bachelor's degree program in music therapy, introduced by Roy Underwood in 1944 at Michigan State College, strongly emphasized functional piano skills as a core competency of the degree program (de l'Etoile, 2000). Functional musicianship was also a component of the first official National Association for Music Therapy (NAMT) curriculum approved in 1952 (de l'Etoile, 2000). The importance of functional musicianship to the practice of music therapy continued to be cited in the music therapy literature in subsequent years following the establishment of the official NAMT curriculum (Braswell, Decuir, & Brooks, 1985; Braswell, Decuir, & Maranto, 1980; Crocker, 1955; Ficken, 1976; Jensen & McKinney, 1990; Schulberg, 1981).Functional musicianship is presently included among the AMTA Professional Competencies. These competencies list eleven different categories under Musical Foundations, including composition, guitar skills, piano skills, vocal skills, proficiency on other instruments, improvisation, and ability to conduct and lead movement experiences (AMTA, 2010). Each category lists minimum competencies the student should achieve for entry-level music therapy practice.Functional musicianship will likely continue to be of importance to music therapists in the future (Decuir & Vega, 2010). In a recent Delphi poll, psychiatric music therapy internship directors ranked functional musicianship among the top six changes predicted to increase in importance in the profession by the year 2016 (Cassity, 2007).Although this literature acknowledges the importance of functional musicianship in the practice of music therapy (Braswell et al., 1980; Cohen, Hadsell, & Williams, 1997; Jensen & McKinney, 1990; Petrie, 1993), there are indications that students may be arriving for internship with inadequate functional musicianship skills. Cassity (1987) surveyed 180 internship directors to determine the degree to which music therapy interns were mastering functional piano skills. The 100 internship directors who responded indicated music therapy interns training to enter the field - preservice music therapists - were performing below the midpoint on 64 of the 74 skills presented. For example, 80% of the internship directors indicated preservice music therapists were receiving inadequate functional piano training. The only skill on which preservice music therapists received a superior rating was the ability to read a one-part melody line.Improvisation competencies are listed in the AMTA competencies and have been cited as important in past literature (Cassity, 1987). In a more specific survey of music skills, Hiller (2009) asked board-certified music therapists to rate the use of clinical improvisation and improvisation instruction received in undergraduate or equivalency pro- grams in the United States. Results of the survey indicated that while improvisation was considered important, the instruction of improvisation methods was neither widespread nor consistent in undergraduate programs.Traditionally, functional musicianship has been taught in the university setting (Wheeler, 2000), which has been considered the most appropriate place for teaching such skills (Cassity, 1987; Jensen & McKinney, 1990; VanWeelden, Juchniewicz, & Cevasco, 2008; Wheeler, 1987). Despite this belief, many internship directors have discussed the need to remediate their interns' fundamental skills (Farnan, 2001). This is despite the fact that most internship directors do not consider teaching functional musicianship to interns to be among the most rewarding aspects of intern supervision (Tanguay, 2008).Since the university is considered the most appropriate setting for the teaching of functional musicianship, it is important to evaluate the extent that preservice music therapists are learning functional musicianship skills before entering internship. …

Assessment of selection criteria used by internship directors for choosing Bastyr students, and of their competence as interns

We aimed to assess the selection criteria used by dietetic internship (DI) directors for choosing Bastyr University (BU) didactic program in dietetics (DPD) students and to assess their competence as dietetic interns. A 10‐question survey was sent to internship directors, annually from 2006 – 2009, who accepted BU‐DPD graduates. Selection criteria (volunteer and nutrition work‐related experience) and competency questions (communication skills, interpersonal relationships, research, whole foods, medical nutrition therapy, management/leadership, health systems, environmental science, and integrative medicine) were used. The survey compared BU‐DPD interns to interns from other programs. Of 103 surveys, 71 were completed (69% return rate). The DI directors considered volunteer (73.2%) and nutrition‐related work (87.3%) as highly relevant. They rated work/volunteer experience as follows: hospital experience most important (77.5%); community experience very important (43.7%); food service experience least important (42.3%). DI Directors rated BU‐DPD preparation as “Above Average” or “Excellent.” Bastyr interns scored “more than satisfactory” to “outstanding” in the competencies surveyed, especially integrative medicine and whole foods. Bastyr graduates were perceived to perform at a high level compared to the preparation of other interns in some of the specific competencies surveyed.

Evaluation of the William S. Hall Psychiatric Institute Clinical Psychology Internship: A Replication and Extension

This study extends three earlier investigations involving participants who completed their predoctoral clinical psychology internship at the William S. Hall Psychiatric Institute. Intern graduates (N = 37) evaluated how effectively their internship training prepared them for seven aspects of their current work as practicing psychologists. Participants also rated the relevancy of 24 different internship training experiences to their current work and how much these experiences contributed to their development as clinical psychologists. The present study, in conjunction with the three previous studies, covers most of the 40-year period since the inception of the internship program. Analysis of the current data indicates the internship has improved over time and was deemed an exceptional training experience by its graduates. Findings may be of particular interest to internship directors and faculty interested in improving their training program and those who plan to conduct a self-study to maintain their accreditation for clinical psychology internship.

Cultural Competence in Dietetics Education

Program directors of accredited dietetics educational programs for registered dietitians were surveyed to determine the extent to which cultural competency is currently being addressed in their curricula. A total of 153 of 461 responses were collected over the 10-week survey period, yielding a 33% response rate. Responses were obtained from 20 of the 50 coordinated program directors (40%); 58 of the 209 didactic program directors (28%); and 61 of the 232 dietetic internship directors (26%). Fourteen participants identified themselves as “other.” Results of this study showed a discrepancy between what program directors thought should be included in curriculum related to cultural competence and what they are currently providing. Content areas related to knowledge were more likely to be included than those related to skills and attitudes. Fewer than 20% of all dietetics education programs responding to the survey teach a required course in cultural competency.

Clinical psychology training in sleep and sleep disorders

There is growing evidence to suggest that clinical psychologists would benefit from more training in sleep and sleep disorders. Sleep disturbances are commonly comorbid with mental health disorders and this relationship is often bidirectional. In addition, psychologists have become integral members of multidisciplinary sleep medicine teams and there are not enough qualified psychologists to meet the clinical demand. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the current education on sleep and sleep disorders provided to clinical psychology predoctoral students and interns. Directors of graduate programs and internships (N=212) completed a brief online survey on sleep education in their program. Only 6% of programs offers formal didactic courses in sleep, with 31% of programs offering training in the treatment of sleep disorders. There are few programs with sleep faculty (16%), and most reported that their institutions were ineffective in providing sleep education. Thirty-nine percent of training directors reported they would implement a standard curriculum on sleep, if available. The findings from this study suggest that more opportunities are needed for trainees in clinical psychology to gain didactic and clinical experience with sleep and sleep disorders.