Journal of clinical psychology
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Past research has established that practicing doctoral level psychologists tend to cluster in metropolitan areas, leaving the rural population gravely underserved. Discussions of this problem have assumed that psychologists hold negative attitudes toward rural work for many reasons, leading to a supply shortage. The present study attempts to examine the accuracy of this hypothesis by examining attitudes of current doctoral students in clinical psychology. ⋯ A follow-up study was conducted to determine if the shortage of rural psychologists might be attributed to a lack of demand from rural employers. A search of three popular job resources revealed that few rural jobs were advertised, indicating weak demand for psychologists in rural areas. Results indicate that efforts to recruit psychologists to rural areas should be rethought, and increasing the visibility of available opportunities for psychologists should be made a priority.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
The effects of the transcendental meditation program on mindfulness.
Mindfulness is associated with low levels of neuroticism, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, as well as high levels of self-esteem and satisfaction with life (Brown & Ryan, 2003). As part of a 3-month randomized waitlist-controlled trial of the effects of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) program on university students (N=295), we examined the impact of TM practice on mindfulness as measured by the Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills (KIMS; Baer, Smith, & Allen, 2004). ⋯ All KIMS subscales were positively intercorrelated at pretreatment, and there were no differences over time or as a function of treatment condition in subscale intercorrelations. Therefore, previously published findings of a positive correlation between subscales measuring the skills of observing and accepting-without-judgment one's inner experiences only among those with meditation experience may have reflected a self-selection effect rather than a change in the relation of these mindfulness components resulting directly from meditation practice.
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The study and practice of mindfulness is rapidly expanding in Western psychology. Recently developed self-report measures of mindfulness were derived from Western operationalizations and cross-cultural validation of many of these measures is lacking, particularly in Buddhist cultures. ⋯ Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis models fit to the data revealed that the KIMS lacked configural invariance across groups, which precluded subsequent invariance tests, and although the MAAS demonstrated configural, metric, and partial scalar invariance, there was no significant latent mean MAAS difference between Thais and Americans. These findings suggest that Eastern and Western conceptualizations of mindfulness may have important differences.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Brief problem-solving training for family caregivers of persons with recent-onset spinal cord injuries: a randomized controlled trial.
Our objective was to examine the effectiveness of a brief individualized problem-solving intervention for family with caregivers of persons with recent-onset spinal cord injury (SCI). Family caregivers were randomly assigned to a usual care control group (N=30) or an intervention group (N=30) in which participants were to receive three face-to-face problem-solving training sessions (PST), educational materials, and telephone contacts as requested over the first year of caregiving. The participants included 60 caregivers (49 women, 11 men). ⋯ There was also some indication that the intervention had beneficial effects on caregiver social and physical functioning. An intervention for new caregivers featuring brief PST, education, and contact may be associated with lower dysfunctional problem-solving styles over time and may promote certain aspects of caregiver quality of life. We also discuss limitations and implications of the present study.
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As the newest generation of veterans returns home from their duties abroad, many face the individual and interpersonal aftereffects of duty-related traumatic experiences. Despite the established association between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and relationship problems, there is a lack of evidence-based conjoint treatments that target both PTSD and relationship distress. ⋯ The authors summarize knowledge on the association between PTSD and relationship functioning, as well as recent research on veterans and their partners. Following an overview of CBCT for PTSD, the authors present a case study to illustrate the application of CBCT to an Operation Enduring and Iraqi Freedom couple.