Clinical Psychology Programs Research Articles

A Data-Based Method of Ranking Department, Faculty and Journals in Professional Impact

Rankings of clinical psychology programs and factors influencing journal impact are important in selecting training materials and choosing journals in which to submit publications. Such choices are inherently important because they influence both the quality of an individual's training and the overall impact of their research. This article reviews current popular rankings of schools and journals. Overall publication and citation records for full-time faculty at the top institutions were tabulated. Alternate methods in ranking clinical psychology departments to the popular press are needed, since factors of publication and researcher impact are not included in these rankings. Additionally, journal impact factors were assessed. Authors of the Journal Citation Reports note deficits in reviewing specialized journals. Given these deficits, faculty members from the Department of Psychology at Louisiana State University were asked to list the most highly regarded journals in their specialty area. Rankings were made on the variables of impact factor, total citations, circulation rates, and international distribution.

PREDOCTORAL PSYCHOLOGY INTERN SELECTION: DOES PROGRAM TYPE MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not the type of program (school psychology, clinical psychology or counseling psychology) is a factor in the predoctoral psychology internship selection process. Simulated application materials describing a prospective intern, identical in all respects except for the doctoral program type, were randomly sent to 535 directors of Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC) internship sites. One-third of the sites each received application materials that indicated that the student's training was in an APA-accredited clinical psychology program, an APA-accred- ited counseling psychology program, or an APA-accredited school psychology program. Internship directors or intern selection committee members from 302 APPIC-listed internship sites responded, resulting in a 58% response rate.There is a pattern of greater acceptance for students from clinical psychology programs, with students from counseling psychology programs accepted somewhat less frequently, and stu- dents from school psychology programs being most often rejected. The results suggest that internship selectors may use a judgment heuristic that clinical psychology students are more suited to internships than are counseling and – especially – school psychology students during initial screening of internship applicants, even though there is no empirical evidence to support the heuristic. Internship selectors are advised to become more aware of potential biases toward students from counseling and school psychology programs.

Comprehensive Clinical Psychology

ABSTRACT This article reviews Comprehensive Clinical Psychology, a major reference set of eleven volumes dedicated to the theory, research, and practice of clinical psychology. The publisher is Pergamon/Elsevier. This set is not an encyclopedia; it is more like a comprehensive handbook of the major areas in clinical psychology. Each volume has separate editors with international contributors writing the various chapters. Each chapter ends with a reference list. The subject matter ranges from an introduction to the field of clinical psychology to managed health care and multicultural perspectives of clinical psychology. Print and electronic versions of the work are available. It is recommended for university libraries supporting graduate level clinical psychology programs or research programs.

Some Pointers for Students Interested in Applying to Graduate Programs in Clinical Psychology

Some Pointers for Students Interested in Applying to Graduate Programs in Clinical Psychology

Congratulations! You've Been Accepted Into a Clinical Psychology Program! Now What?

Congratulations! You've Been Accepted Into a Clinical Psychology Program! Now What?

Training and education in religion/spirituality within APA-accredited clinical psychology programs.

Training and education in religion/spirituality within APA-accredited clinical psychology programs.

Processes governing the selection of academic clinical training directors.

Accreditation guidelines of the American Psychological Association require the formal designation of a program director, but readers may not be aware that the selection processes used by academic clinical psychology programs can vary widely. Clinical directors who were members of the Council of University Directors of Clinical Psychology surveyed in this article were either elected by a subset of program participants (clinical faculty, nonprogram faculty, and/or students) or appointed by a university administrator (chair or dean). About 15% of these 85 respondents assumed the directorship in the aftermath of a predecessor's failure to secure reappointment, resignation under pressure, or removal. These pressured transitions did occur more frequently in programs that involved students in the selection process. It is hoped that these survey results will prompt further discussion regarding the methods used to select clinical directors and the impact of these governance decisions on faculty and student morale and program stability.

Training and education in religion/spirituality within APA-accredited clinical psychology programs.

Future and current psychologists may find themselves baffled when confronted with the diversity of religious and spiritual backgrounds of their clients. Few psychologists have received professional training with regard toreligion and spirituality, despite the public's overwhelming interest. Currently, the topic of religion/spirituality is being covered to some degree in most accredited clinical programs. However, a distinct minority of these programs approach this education and training in a systematic fashion, whereas other programs report no educational or training opportunities in this area. Several recommendations are made for training programs, which are encouraged to increase their sensitivity to this topic, provide more opportunities for student growth in this area, and incorporate religious and spiritual issues into course work.

Current status of doctoral-level training in psychological testing.

Training directors of 82 American Psychological Association (APA)-approved doctoral programs in clinical psychology responded to a survey on the current status and recent changes in doctoral training in psychological assessment. Although testing continues to be a major focus of training, a slight decline in emphasis on assessment was noted, most notably with projective techniques. With few exceptions (e.g., NEO-PI, Personality Assessment Inventory), traditional tests were emphasized in coursework and also were considered "essential" for the practicing psychologist. Interestingly, there seems to be increased emphasis on the interview and neuropsychological testing compared to prior surveys of academic settings. Only 29% of the training directors reported that their programs have been significantly affected by managed care, suggesting that most academic programs are somewhat insulated from marketplace pressures. It is recommended that training programs balance their focus on traditional academic values with the realities of the clinical practice arena.

Computerized psychological test usage in APA-accredited training programs.

Despite the advantages of computerized psychological assessment and the proliferation of assessment software, many psychologists still do not use computerized assessment, and its utilization has not increased during the past decade. Two-hundred-fifty-one APA-accredited training programs in clinical and counseling psychology were surveyed concerning their use of computerized psychological assessment. Directors reported a median of only three computerized tests used in their training programs. Twenty-five percent of the respondents reported no computerized psychological tests in their training programs. The computerized tests most-often used in psychology programs were compared to results of surveys of psychological tests most-often used in clinical practice.

Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

LATA K. MCGINN & WILLIAM C. SANDERSON: Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Northvale, NJ, Jason Aronson Inc. 1999, 296 pp., $40.00, ISBN 0-76-570-2118. Drs. Lata McGinn and William Sanderson have responded to the demands of the health care environment by producing an evidence-based cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT) protocol for the Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Increasingly, clinicians are being required by managed care companies and other agencies to employ treatments that have empirical support. Unfortunately, few clinicians have formal training in these evidence-based treatments since limited numbers of doctoral programs in clinical psychology, psychiatry residency training programs, and psychology and social work internships employ faculty with expertise in these evidence-based treatment approaches. The age-old problem has been transporting these treatments developed in university laboratories to the real world. McGinn and Sanderson achieve this goal by presenting a detailed, session-by-session guide that helps clinicians carefully assess and systematically treat obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). These authors have developed a comprehensive treatment for OCD that creatively combines psychoeducation and cognitive restructuring, with traditional exposure and response prevention techniques. The techniques described in this book draw primarily from the previous work of Aaron Beck, Edna Foa, Gail Steketee, and Paul Salkovskis. McGinn and Sanderson describe a patient diagnosed with OCD and weave this clinical material throughout the book to highlight the specific techniques presented. The first chapter of the book offers a succinct review of a cognitive-behavioral model of OCD. The authors describe the integration of the recent advances in employing cognitive restructuring with the traditional behavioral strategies. Each of the remaining eight chapters in the book is considered a session. This structure helps clinicians organize their treatment around several content areas and stages. It is understood by the reader that this treatment is not actually completed in 8 sessions but rather each is typically extended over several visits. Each session has its goals outlined at the beginning of each chapter which, when used later as a reference, helps the reader quickly review the highlights. Session I involves the assessment of OCD which contains two primary components. First, the authors review how to establish the diagnosis and which common comorbid conditions to consider. Second, is a review of general elements of any initial assessment as well as key elements in the assessment of OCD. For example, onset and course of the disorder, prior treatments, degree of insight, are some of the general domains of any assessment, whereas anxiety triggers (internal and external), avoidance behaviors, and ritualized thoughts and behaviors, are specific assessment areas relevant to OCD. …

Sport psychology training within a clinical psychology program and a department of intercollegiate athletics.

Sport psychology training within a clinical psychology program and a department of intercollegiate athletics.

Sport psychology training within a clinical psychology program and a department of intercollegiate athletics.

Sport psychology training within a clinical psychology program and a department of intercollegiate athletics.

Emory Cowen—A Man of Action

In 1971, I entered the Clinical Psychology program at the University of Rochester, and at that time, I wasn’t even aware that there was a field called Community Psychology. The late 1960s, however, had primed me for this ideology. I will never forget Emory’s presentation to our clinical class during our first month of graduate school. He told us that there would never be enough psychologists to meet the demands and needs for psychological services. He then mentioned that clinical outcome studies with different patient groups had not indicated any differences between professionals and paraprofessional therapists. For a moment, I had an uncomfortable feeling, perhaps my first professional identity crisis, for why would I want to become a clinical psychologist if my current natural skills were as good as someone with a more advanced degree? Emory reassured us that these findings were liberating, for there were now new roles available to us in training and supervising paraprofessionals, consulting to change agents, advocacy, and social policy analysis. I was hooked after one lecture. Emory had shown me and my classmates the possibilities of an expanded view of clinical psychology. Emory didn’t just provide the rhetoric for this new model; he actively developed and refined social and community interventions at the Primary Mental Health Project (PMHP). He showed us the potential of this new field and inspired us to action. After Emory’s lecture, I had heard that all fourth year students attended a year-long community psychology practicum, where students had the opportunity to collaborate with community-based programs. As a first-year student, I thought this was a wonderful idea for a course, and without asking Emory, I began attending this advanced course. Emory never asked why a first-year student would want to attend this advanced class, and this characterized his openness and willingness to let students progress at their own pace. I attended Emory’s research meetings at the PMHP for four years, and at these meetings, employees and graduate students were able to see Emory’s conceptual ideas translated into real-world

Insider's guide to graduate programs in clinical and counseling psychology

Insider's guide to graduate programs in clinical and counseling psychology

The beginnings of the clinical psychology programme at the Maudsley Hospital, 1947 to 1959

The beginnings of the clinical psychology programme at the Maudsley Hospital, 1947 to 1959

Development of a management practicum in a clinical psychology program.

Development of a management practicum in a clinical psychology program.

An examination of training model outcomes in clinical psychology programs.

An examination of training model outcomes in clinical psychology programs.

Christian Psychology Graduate School's Impact on Marriage: Nonstudent Spouses Speak

Although many empirical studies have investigated marital distress and marital satisfaction, no research has been conducted on the impact of graduate school on marriage for students-in-training, particularly from the viewpoint of the nonstudent spouse. Using a qualitative research methodology, six male and six female spouses of third and fourth year graduate students at an APA-approved program in clinical psychology were subjects in the present study. Three hypotheses investigated were: (a) graduate training would have a detrimental effect on student marriages, (b) nonstudent spouses would report marital strain due to student spouses' emotional isolation and withdrawal, and (c) due to the process of acculturation into organized secular psychology, students' emphasis on personal religious faith would decrease. The first hypothesis was supported, the second was unsupported, and the third received mixed support. Three recommendations to support student marriages within graduate educational settings are offered in conclusion.

Diversity training: Conceptual issues and practices for Canadian clinical psychology programs.

Abstract This article presents recent arguments about the need for sensitivity to diversity issues in psychological practice, and for training programs to attend to these issues. The results of a survey related to the extent and nature of diversity training in Canadian clinical psychology programs are presented, in which diversity was defined broadly as reflecting the vast number of possible individual differences (e.g., culture, nationality, ethnicity, colour, race, gender, religion, sexual preference, disability, economic disadvantage) that can affect clinical psychology knowledge, research, and practice. Directors of Clinical Training (DCrs) at all Canadian clinical psychology programs were asked about the extent to which various aspects of diversity training were deemed important or essential to their program, what training activities were required, and how effective different methods of training were viewed. The results revealed that DCTs varied widely in their opinion of how important diversity materials were, and that few programs require many different methods of training related to diversity. Further, the training methods more commonly adopted did not generally relate well with those that were seen as being most effective. Implications of the survey for training in clinical psychology are provided. [Reference] References [Reference] Abney, V.D. (1996). Cultural competency in the field of child maltreatment. InJ. Briere, L. Berliner,J.A. Bulkley, C. Jenny, & T. Reid (Eds.), The APSAC handbook on child maltreatment (pp. 408-419). London: Sage. American Psychological Association. (1991). Guidelines for providers of psychological services to ethnic, linguistic, and culturally diverse populations. In H.F. Myers, P. Wohlford, L.P. Guzman, & RJ. Echemendia (Eds.), Ethnic minority perspectives on clinical training and services in psychology. Washington DC: American Psychological Association. [Reference] Aponte,J.F., & Clifford,J. (1995). Education and training issues for intervention with ethnic groups. InJ.F. Aponte, RY. Rivers, &J. Wohl (Eds.), Psychological interventions and cultural diversity (pp. 283-300). Needham Heights, NY: Allyn & Bacon. Arean, P.A., & Gallagher-Thompson, D. (1996). Issues and recommendations for the recruitment and retention of older ethnic minority adults into clinical research. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 64, 875-880. Bernal, M.E., & Castro, F.G. (1994). Are clinical psychologists prepared for service and research with ethnic minorities? Report of a decade of progress. American Psychologist, 49, 797-805. Canadian Psychological Association. (1991). Canadian code of ethics for psychologists. Ottawa: Author. Cheatham, H.E. (1994). A response. The Counseling Psychologist, 22, 290-295. Dana, R.H. (1995). Impact of the use of standard psychological assessment on the diagnosis and treatment of ethnic minorities. In J.F. Aponte, RY Rivers, and J. Wahl (Eds.), Psychological interventions and cultural diversity (pp. 57-73). Needham Heights, NY: Allyn Bacon. Esses, V.M. & Gardner, R.C. (1996). Multiculturalism in [Reference] Canada: Context and current status. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 28, 145-152. Fineman, N. (1991). The social construction of noncompliance: Implications for cross-cultural geriatric practice. Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology, 6, 219-227. Gray-Little, B. (1995). The assessment of psychopathology in racial and ethnic minorities. InJ.N. Butcher (Ed.), Clinical personality assessment: Practical approaches (pp. 140-157). New York: Oxford. Hall, C.C.I. (1997). Cultural malpractice: The growing obsolescence of psychology with the changing II.S. population. American Psychologist, 52, 642-651. [Reference] Harre, R. …