Valdés Díaz, María

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idUS. Depósito de Investigación Universidad de Sevilla

Editorial Escrito por Administrator     Following the line established by the previous two volumes, we submit the third one, which deals with a monographic topic. On this occasion, we have decided to focus on “Current Trends in Disability: A Psychological Approach”, considering that it is a very relevant issue, and that interest in its research, far from diminishing, is on the increase, and it can even be stated that it has reawakened in past years, both in our country (seen in the recent introduction of the Dependence Act, and in the publication of the Act on Equal Opportunities, Non-Discrimination and Accessibility for Disabled People) and abroad (seen in the publication of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health, and in the year 2003 declared the “Year of disabled people in Europe”, etc.)  The journal, which is still sponsored by the Personality, Assessment and Psychological Treatment Department of University of Seville, is currently managed by a new management team that hopes to equal, at least, the work developed by the previous one, and that must continue offering specialized information about different aspects related to Clinical and Health Psychology.   It is quite encouraging that, among the pieces of work included in such an incipient electronic, free-access publication, we were able to rely on the contributions of specialists on disability as important as professors Antonio Aguado and his team, from Universidad de Oviedo, and Isabel Orjales, from Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (National University of Distance Learning).   The research “Una revisión actualizada de la situación de los estudiantes con discapacidad en la universidad” (An updated revision of the situation experienced by disabled students at university), led by Alcedo, with contributions by Aguado, Real, González y Rueda, places the reader within the reality people with disabilities (of different kinds) face when they enter a university context urged by the realization of their higher education. Following an outstanding theoretical contribution as well as of aspects in relation to the Spanish law on the subject, said research offers empirical data from different foreign campuses where disabled students take university courses. Likewise, the authors analyse the needs registered students from Universidad de Oviedo have, and they highlight the importance these institutions should give to accessibility, resource adjustment and technical assistance promotion. Although there is a major increase of devices and services developed for this kind of students, the authors emphasize that the independence allowed to universities, as well as the lack of legal materialization, make it difficult to comply with legal requirements. However, the research offers a series of guidelines aimed at mitigating discriminatory situations, and it is committed to a triple proposal to resolve issues related to structure (accessibility), statutes (legal measures), and relationships (integration).   The second piece of work mentioned is about “El tratamiento cognitivo en niños con trastorno por déficit de atención con hiperactividad (TDAH): revisión y nuevas aportaciones” (Cognitive Treatment of Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): revision and new contributions), whose author has extensive experience in this children’s disorder. Based on the presentation of various therapeutic models, highlighting the strong and weak points in each of them, this research broadens the self-instruction plan taken from the Meichenbaum Self-instruction Training Program, and its use for training tasks. Professor Orjales highlights the effectiveness of this model, and its positive impact from the clinical point of view. Nevertheless, she has discovered some failures in this self-instruction program, and she has directed her efforts towards broadening its phases. In this piece of work, she contributes an excellent account that gives the reader a general outlook on all the benefits of each of its components. She has also proved –and she confirms it- that it can become a major resource to improve cognitive performance when applied on children from 6 to 12 years old, but she highlights the need to use multidimensional programs on children with ADHD.   The research carried out by Lanzarote, Padilla and Rubio is focused on the analysis of Ten Outstanding References on the monographic topic. It centres on those pieces of work that –from a clinical and health perspective- deal with the current situation disabled people go through, taking into account the difference among countries; thus, it includes recent bibliography by Spanish as well as foreign authors. The authors try to cover  methodology, evaluation and treatment aspects in relation to the filed in question, and they do so using articles focused on conceptual and research matters. We believe that this article offers quite an extensive outlook on disability on a descriptive level, from a critical and constructive point of view. In this respect, their proposals in relation to the need for a consolidated interdisciplinary approach, as well as for prevention in high-risk populations, more professional training, greater work on the adjustment of evaluation means, and the promotion of the family as a resource and support facilitator, are quite though-provoking.   We hope that –through the deliberate reading of this monograph- all the professionals working in this field can continue providing more insight into an issue so relevant to society, and that we all move towards its development and progress.    

Current Trends in Disability: A Psychological Approach

https://idus.us.es/bitstream/handle/11441/60888/Editorial%20tendencias%20actuales.pdf?sequence=4&isAllowed=y

Current Trends in Disability: A Psychological Approach

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idUS. Depósito de Investigación Universidad de Sevilla