The initial reliability and construct validity of the Autism Spectrum Disorder-Diagnostic (ASD-DC) in children

The aim of the present study was to examine the reliability and construct validity of a newly developed assessment scale designed to identify autism spectrum disorders in children: Autism Spectrum Disorder-Diagnostic for Children (ASD-DC). Participants were parents and caregivers of children between ages 2 and 16 years, who are typically developing or developmentally delayed. Participants were asked to complete several rating scales including the ASD-DC, a DSM-IV-TR/ICD-10 checklist, the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills in Youngsters (MESSY), and the Behavioral Assessment System for Children, Version 2 (BASC-2). In Study 1, the test-retest, inter-rater, and inter-item reliabilities of the ASD-DC was examined. After initial reliability analysis, the scale was reduced to 37 items. The ASD-DC was found to have good to excellent inter-rater reliability, and excellent test-retest reliability. The 37 item scale had excellent internal consistency (Ą = .99) and adequate item-scale correlations. In Study 2, the construct validity of the ASD-DC was investigated by evaluating the pattern of correlations (i.e., convergent and divergent validity) among the administered scales utilizing a correlation matrix. The ASD-DC converged with another measure of autism (i.e., DSM-IV-TR/ICD-10 checklist) and other associated symptoms of ASD. Further, divergence was observed when the ASD-DC was correlated with measures of social skills and functional communication. Based on the results of this initial study of the ASD-DC, the psychometric properties of this new scale are promising and warrant further investigation. Implications of these findings and future directions are discussed

Mania and intellectual disability: the course of mania symptoms in persons with disability over three years

Although bipolar disorder was one of the earliest described mental illnesses, there is a dearth of research on bipolar disorder in individuals with intellectual deficits. The present study aimed to extend this literature by comparing the presence and variation of manic symptoms over time of persons with intellectual deficits with and without bipolar disorder. Three groups of individuals participated: a bipolar group, a psychopathology group (other than bipolar disorder) and a control group. Two dependent measures of mania were taken from retrospective data, Mania subscale of the DASH-II and a Criterion-referenced subscale. The presence and consistency of mania symptom endorsements were analyzed over time and across groups. Results indicated that the bipolar group had greater mean endorsements on the Criterion-referenced subscale than the psychopathology and control groups. Further, manic symptom endorsements were more stable over time in the bipolar group than the other two groups. This pattern of serial correlations was inconsistent with hypotheses. These findings are tempered by the fact that the patterns of serial correlations in comparative anchor subscales were also unanticipated. In order to clarify these unexpected findings, research is needed to examine the accuracy of staff to report the frequency of symptomology

Is The Personal Theoretical? A Critical Incident Analysis of Student Theory Journals

Journal entries from 23 masters students enrolled in a counseling theories course were analyzed using Critical Incident methodology to identify students’ self-disclosures and connection to counseling theories. Seven different patterns of connecting theoretical information to personal experiences emerged. The authors present a discussion of how the findings and resulting framework can contribute to the teaching of counseling theory and the reflective process of identifying theoretical orientation

A critical review of Adlerian supervision: Illuminating the untapped potential

Authors conducted a critical review of the Adlerian clinical supervision literature published between 1989 and 2020. Results indicated that of the 13 identified articles, all of which were conceptual, there were three emergent topical trends, including a) Adlerian Psychology-based supervision models, b) second generation and/or integrated models, and c) supervision modalities. Careful examination of the theoretical underpinnings of Adlerian Psychology and its synthesis into clinical supervision exposed a significant yet rarely addressed issue in academia and practice: the fundamental theoretical differences within the Adlerian framework. Authors discuss the potential implications of these unacknowledged differences, including untapped potential for application of Adlerian supervision in counselor training and practice

Consensual Qualitative Research of LGB Persons’ Counseling Experiences Addressing Religious/Spiritual Foci

This article reports a Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR) analysis of the experiences of 12 participants who identified as LGB and received counseling that addressed religious/spiritual foci. Participants identified two primary and intersecting themes including an increased sense of agency and locus of control, as well as increased cognitive flexibility. Additional subthemes included manifestation of agency and locus of control intrapersonally, interpersonally, and globally. Subthemes of cognitive flexibility were also identified intrapersonally, interpersonally, and globally. Implications are discussed for counseling, counselor education, and future research

LGBTQ* Responsive Sand Tray: Creative Arts and Counseling

This article builds upon a heuristic framework for sand tray in supervision, multicultural focus areas, and the supervisory roles of teacher, consultant, and counselor to propose a framework for LGBTQ* responsive sand tray. This proposed framework provides supervisors with a creative arts-based structure to assist both counselors-in-training and practitioner supervisees in working with LGBTQ* persons, in a way that is culturally responsive and affirmative of their LGBTQ* identity. This article provides a group supervision case example and discussion to highlight to enactment and process of utilizing the proposed creative-arts framework

Empathy-In-Teaching as a Multidimensional Disposition in Counselor Education

Empathy is a disposition noted among established teaching competencies in counselor education. However, current descriptions of empathy are unidimensional and lack an operational definition for evaluating teaching dispositions. The term empathy-in-teaching is a multidimensional concept suitable for expanding our current understanding of empathy within the current teaching dispositions in counselor education. Implications for application of the concept of empathy-in-teaching within the current teaching dispositions and future research suggestions are offered

School Counselors Walking the Walk and Talking the Talk: A Grounded Theory of Effective Program Implementation

Comprehensive, developmental school counseling programming has been associated with numerous benefits for students and is considered current best practice. A qualitative, grounded theory study was conducted to investigate eight professional school counselors employed across grade level, geographic setting, and region within the United States. This article presents this research and the emergent model for successful comprehensive, developmental school counseling program implementation. Implications for school counselor education and practice, as well as future research, are discussed

Water Disconnection and Billing Policy in Central Illinois

Over ten percent of American households face unaffordable water bills. When households have overdue bills, they are usually subjected to service disconnection by the water utility. Water disconnection policy is set at the local level, which can result in spatial variation with respect to how lenient or strict disconnection policies are. Examining the case of the central Illinois region, this paper introduces a methodology for 1) chronicling this variation and 2) analyzing which populations are most affected by strict billing and disconnection policies