Continuity and Change in Role Definitions and Training Models of School Psychologists in Israel.

In accordance with one of the major challenges of psychology research and practice worldwide, school psychology in Israel has setas its aim the promotion of the emotional well-being of students. These aims are achieved through psychological evaluation and intervention, at the systemic and individual-student level. School psychology emerged in Israel in the 1930s, as a relatively narrow field, focused mainly on the placement of students in special education settings. Over the decades, major changes occurred in Israeli society, including waves of immigration, coping with security situations and additional socio-political challenges. In light of these transformations, the discipline grew and broadened, encompassing additional areas of professional practice. The training of school psychologists evolved in relation to these processes. From unsystematic training procedures, mostly embedded in child-clinical psychology and relying on on-the-job training, to a well-established system of graduate school programs producing dozens of school psychologists every year. Academic pre-service training is followed by a post-graduate internship in the public-school system. The developments in the field of school psychology brought about a host of challenges and dilemmas. These issues are discussed in relation to the broad aim of school psychology in Israel: the promotion of the emotional well-being of all students.

Theory of mind, severity of autistic symptoms and parental correlates in children and adolescents with Asperger syndrome.

This study addresses the theory of mind (ToM) ability of Asperger's syndrome/high-functioning autism (AS/HFA) children and their parents and the severity of the autistic symptoms. Fifty-three families, each consisting of a mother, father and a child, participated in this study (N=159). The 53 children in the sample included 25 children diagnosed with AS/HFA and 28 typically developing (TD) children. The Social Attribution Task (SAT) and tests assessing autistic symptoms were used. AS/HFA children had lower scores than TD children on three of the SAT indices (Person, ToM Affective, and Salience). Fathers of AS/HFA children did not have lower scores than fathers of TD children on the SAT task, whereas mothers of AS/HFA children had lower scores on the Person index, a pattern similar to seen in their children, suggesting a possible genetic contribution of mothers to ToM deficit in AS/HFA children.

Social Understanding in Israeli-Jewish, Israeli-Palestinian, Palestinian, and Jordanian 5-year-old Children: Moral Judgments and Stereotypes.

An empirical investigation was conducted of young Palestinian, Jordanian, Israeli-Palestinian, and Israeli-Jewish children's (N = 433; M = 5.7 years of age) cultural stereotypes and their evaluations of peer intergroup exclusion based upon a number of different factors, including being from a different country and speaking a different language. Children in this study live in a geographical region that has a history of cultural and religious tension, violence, and extreme intergroup conflict. Our findings revealed that the negative consequences of living with intergroup tension are related to the use of stereotypes. At the same time, the results for moral judgments and evaluations about excluding peers provided positive results about the young children's inclusive views regarding peer interactions.

The personal service gap: factors affecting adolescents' willingness to seek help.

The study explores adolescents' attitudes toward seeking help for emotional problems. The personal service gap is examined by asking adolescents about their willingness to refer themselves and others to formal (psychologists) and informal (friends) help sources, using a within-subjects design. The study included 662 Israeli adolescents in the 10th and 12th grades. The results indicate that adolescents refer peers more than themselves to a psychologist and to a friend. They are also more willing to refer themselves and peers to a friend rather than to a psychologist. Barriers to seeking psychological help are explored and significant correlations between perceptions of psychological benefit, problem severity and barriers to help seeking are described. Recommendations for increasing adolescents' awareness and use of help sources are suggested.

The effects of sleep restriction and extension on school-age children: what a difference an hour makes.

This study assessed the effects of modest sleep restriction and extension on children's neurobehavioral functioning (NBF). The sleep of 77 children (age: M = 10.6 years; range = 9.1-12.2 years) was monitored for 5 nights with activity monitors. These children (39 boys and 38 girls) were all attending regular 4th- and 6th-grade classes. Their NBF was assessed using computerized tests on the 2nd day of their normal sleep schedule. On the 3rd evening, the children were asked to extend or restrict their sleep by an hour on the following 3 nights. Their NBF was reassessed on the 6th day following the experimental sleep manipulation. Sleep restriction led to improved sleep quality and to reduced reported alertness. The sleep manipulation led to significant differential effects on NBF measures. These effects may have significant developmental and clinical implications.

Young Israelis' reactions to the Rabin assassination: two perspectives.

The study analyzed the responses of 713 Israeli adolescents, aged 12-17, to 3 open questions regarding their behavior following Rabin's assassination. Participants' explanations for their own behavior and for the youth's behavior as a whole were analyzed and compared. Adolescents responded mainly with pain and authentic grief. Because explanations were elicited from two different perspectives, results of the comparison were discussed with reference to the actor--observer hypothesis (E. E. Jones & R. E. Nisbett, 1972). Participants' responses were also analyzed as a function of gender, age and political stance. Girls, older children, and supporters of Rabin's peace policy expressed their grief more strongly.

Sleep, neurobehavioral functioning, and behavior problems in school-age children.

The aim of this study was to examine the associations between sleep and neurobehavioral functioning (NBF) in school-age children. These variables were assessed for 135 unreferred, healthy school children (69 boys and 66 girls), from second-, fourth-, and sixth-grade classes. Objective assessment methods were used on the participants in their regular home settings. Sleep was monitored using actigraphy for 5 consecutive nights; and NBF was assessed using a computerized neurobehavioral evaluation system, administered twice, at different times of the day. Significant correlations between sleep-quality measures and NBF measures were found, particularly in the younger age group. Children with fragmented sleep were characterized by lower performance on NBF measures, particularly those associated with more complex tasks such as a continuous performance test and a symbol-digit substitution test. These children also had higher rates of behavior problems as reported by their parents on the Child Behavior Checklist. These results highlight the association between sleep quality, NBF, and behavior regulation in child development; and raise important questions about the origins of these associations and their developmental and clinical significance.