Assessing Campus Alcohol Policies: Measuring Accessibility, Clarity, and Effectiveness.

BACKGROUND: Excessive alcohol consumption poses significant hazards to health and safety on college campuses. While substantial research exists regarding effective policies for preventing alcohol-related problems in the communities surrounding campuses, on-campus alcohol policies have received far less attention. METHODS: Official campus alcohol policies (CAPs) were retrieved from the websites of the 15 member schools of the Maryland Collaborative to Reduce College Drinking and Related Problems, a voluntary statewide collaborative. CAPs were assessed for accessibility, clarity, and effectiveness. In addition to assessing whether campuses were in compliance with federal regulations for comprehensiveness of policies, a measure of likely policy effectiveness was developed through the use of 2 Delphi panels drawing on alcohol policy researchers and on-campus and community practitioners, respectively. The panels rated 35 potential policies and 13 possible sanctions; lists of policies and sanctions were compiled primarily from what was already in existence at 1 or more member schools. RESULTS: For most campuses, the CAPs could be located within 30 seconds, but tended to be spread across multiple web pages. Language used to communicate the policies tended to be complex and above the reading level of someone with a high school education. At least half of the schools had less than half of the possible policies rated most or somewhat effective by the Delphi panels. Schools were more likely to employ the most effective sanctions, but somewhat and ineffective sanctions were also not uncommon. CONCLUSIONS: CAPs are an important element in reducing negative consequences of alcohol consumption on college campuses. A higher level of research scrutiny is warranted to understand the extent to which CAPs are associated with excessive drinking, but this research describes an evidence- and expert-informed assessment approach that colleges can use to regularly analyze and update their CAPS.

Measurement invariance and latent profiles of perfectionism in clients and nonclients.

The current study evaluated measurement invariance of the short Almost Perfect Scale-Revised (SAPS; Rice, Richardson, & Tueller, 2014) between large samples of 1,802 university counseling center clients and 1,040 university students. The clinical sample also completed the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms-62 (CCAPS-62; Locke et al., 2011), permitting tests to evaluate support for latent classes of adaptive, maladaptive, and nonperfectionists observed in other studies. Of particular interest was whether an "adaptive" group of perfectionists can be identified within a psychologically distressed sample of counseling center clients. Measurement invariance tests supported the 2-factor SAPS structure (Standards and Discrepancy) although scalar (intercept) noninvariance was observed. Within- and between-sample replication (similarity) analyses supported a 4-class model of perfectionists and nonperfectionists. Classes were distinguished by differing elevations of the 2 perfectionism factors that showed divergent patterns of psychological problems in the clinical sample. In the 4 classes that emerged in both samples, 1 class was consistent with a higher distress, maladaptive perfectionist group, whereas another class represented a less distressed adaptive perfectionist group. Two nonperfectionistic classes were consistent with groups of clients for whom perfectionistic strivings were not rated as important. As might be expected, there was a substantial difference in the frequencies of membership in the classes within- and between-samples, with proportionally fewer adaptive and more maladaptive perfectionists in the clinical sample than in this and other nonclinical university samples. Results have implications for the use of the SAPS as a screening and treatment planning instrument for use in university counseling centers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Construction and validation of the Multicultural Orientation Inventory-Group Version.

Given the continued racial/ethnic diversification of the United States, it is not uncommon for therapy groups to consist of members with diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds and various cultural identities. Scholars have underscored how this cultural diversity can directly impact many processes and outcomes of group-based interventions (Chen, Kakkad, & Balzano, 2008). However, there is presently a paucity of empirical research testing the relationship between cultural processes of therapy groups and members' outcomes. Moreover, no psychometrically sound measure of the cultural process that unfolds in group therapy currently exists. As such, this study sought to adapt the Multicultural Orientation Inventory to develop and validate the Multicultural Orientation Inventory-Group Version (MCO-G), a measure assessing the cultural humility, cultural comfort, and cultural missed opportunities in therapy groups. Data for this validation study consisted of 208 members of 49 therapy groups across 10 university counseling centers. Confirmatory factor analyses supported a 3-factor structure of the MCO-G Inventory, wherein the 3 factors corresponded with the underlying constructs of cultural humility, cultural comfort, and cultural missed opportunities. This study provides initial evidence for the estimated internal and convergent validity of the MCO-G, as measured by clients' perceptions of a higher-order group therapeutic factor and improvement in therapy. Results provide initial support for the psychometric properties of the MCO-G. Moreover, groups' cultural humility and cultural missed opportunities were related to members' improvement in therapy. Clinical implications and future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Clients' emotional instability and therapists' inferential flexibility predict therapists' session-by-session empathic accuracy.

Clients' emotions often serve as a major focus for therapists' attention. Interestingly, little is known about the factors that facilitate or hinder therapists' accurate assessment of these emotions. We hypothesized that therapists' accuracy would be negatively tied to their clients' emotional fluctuation (i.e., instability) and positively tied to the therapists' own inferential fluctuation (i.e., flexibility) as well as to the clients' emotional intensity. Clients (N = 98/N = 76) received weekly psychodynamic psychotherapy at a university-based clinic. Following each session, clients reported their within-session emotions, and therapists provided their own assessment of their clients' emotions. As expected, when clients' emotions were more unstable, therapists were less accurate in tracking these emotions. Additionally, when therapists' assessments of their clients' emotions were more flexible, they were more accurate in tracking them. Our results help identify factors that predict accurate emotion perception within psychotherapy and may translate into actionable ideas for enhancing this accuracy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

A dyadic study of multicultural counseling competence.

Using the Kenny, Kashy, and Cook (2006) one-with-many method, we investigated client and counselor reports of counselors' level of multicultural counseling competence (MCC) across 4 therapy sessions at a university counseling center. Specifically, we analyzed the association between counselor MCC and client psychological well-being among 133 clients of color receiving psychotherapy from 24 counselors. We found that both client and counselor perspectives suggested that some counselors possessed generally higher MCC than others. Counselors' self-assessments of MCC, however, did not relate with their clients' assessments of counselor MCC-replicating findings from past studies of MCC. On average, counselors whose clients generally perceived them as more multiculturally competent did not report improved psychological well-being at the fourth session. Likewise, counselors who generally reported more MCC did not have clients who improved more in psychological well-being than would be expected over 4 sessions. Notably, at the dyad-level, clients who rated their counselor more highly on MCC than their counselors' other clients tended to report greater improvement in well-being. Suggestions for future MCC research involving dyadic analytic designs are described. (PsycINFO Database Record

Support for medical students with mental health problems: a conceptual model.

OBJECTIVE: Medical students experience higher prevalence of mental illness than age-matched controls and are less likely to access appropriate help when this happens. The aim of this study was to determine the range of strategies deployed by medical schools to support medical students with mental health concerns and to use this to identify distinct categories. METHODS: Websites and documents relating to all 32 UK medical schools were looked at, as were reports for quality assurance visits carried out by the General Medical Council (UK). A structured telephone interview was carried out with medical schools. Support services were examined by tracing the path that might be taken by a hypothetical student with mental health concerns of varying severity, seeing what was required and what was available at each stage. RESULTS: A range of support strategies is available to most medical students both from their medical school and from generic services in the university. Medical students will usually first contact a personal tutor or a senior member of faculty or be contacted by them as a result of concerns raised either via performance issues or by another student. While individual support interventions are mostly based on evidence of effectiveness, there is no unifying theory in terms of what constitutes effective support. To enable analysis of support interventions and comparison across providers, a six-stage conceptual model of prevention was developed. The six stages are the following: prevention, identification, referral, escalation, treatment, and reintegration. CONCLUSIONS: The staged model, derived from analysis of existing interventions, provides a framework for evaluation of current provision and comparison of different methods of delivery. Moreover, it provides a framework for future research.

"Measuring up" to ethical standards in service delivery to college students on the Autism Spectrum: A practical application of Powell's model for ethical practices in clinical phonetics and linguistics.

This paper examined an interdisciplinary college-based support programme, the Communication Coaching Program (CCP), designed for students diagnosed on the autism spectrum in light of six ethical constructs described by Powell. Collecting data to monitor the successes and ongoing needs of individual participants in the programme is of vital importance, of course, but only addresses a portion of the efficacy question. In addition, the authors, who co-direct the programme and represent different professional expertise and perspectives, recognize the importance of determining whether their evolving intervention model has also been successful in meeting the ethical standards of their respective professions. Careful review of the 4 years of the CCP's operation in terms of ethical constructs has yielded evidence that the CCP, although based on sound principles of theory and scholarship, should be further individualized to meet the particular needs of participants diagnosed with deficits in social communication and executive functioning skills.

[Medical and social evaluation of students' health state].

Low health level in the students examined served as a basis to elaborate scientifically justified program for health preservation space formation, that covers complex evaluation of the students' health state and life style with subsequent analysis of the data obtained, specification and realization of educational and health-improving prophylactic projects.

[Fundamentals of socio-hygienic monitoring of environmental conditions for students of higher education schools].

Socioeconomic transformations and the poor environment of an industrial megalopolis negatively affected quality of life and morbidity rates in students (n = 2160). Academic intensity contributed to an increase in overall morbidity and morbidity from nervous system involvement. The regional sociohygienic monitoring of high-school training conditions within the framework of the surveillance system substantiates programs to prevent worse health and life quality in high school students.

Unintended pregnancy and termination of studies among students in Anambra state, Nigeria: are secondary schools playing their part?

This study evaluated efforts of secondary schools to prevent unintended pregnancy among students and their reactions to pregnant students before and after delivery. A cross-sectional survey of 46 teachers in three public and two private schools in Anambra state, Nigeria was carried out. Information was collected using self-administered questionnaire. Of all the teachers in the study, 87% reported unintended pregnancies among students in the previous 3 years. Expulsion (43%) and suspension (28%) were the most common reactions. Private schools were more likely to expel pregnant students than public schools. Following the delivery of their babies, 43% discontinued their education in the same school, whereas 37% continued their education in a different school. Counselling was given before suspension or expulsion in 4% of public schools and 15% of private schools. Majority of the schools (61%) did not have sex education as part of their schools' curriculum. Students should be re-admitted in order to ensure continuity of their academic development, prevent unemployment and mitigate poverty-induced repeat pregnancy.

Exploring the study skills and accommodations used by college student survivors of traumatic brain injury.

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE: Survivors of severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) recovering sufficiently to attend post-secondary institutions often display learning skills differing from those of traditional students; because of this, many use formal and informal accommodations and learning strategies to support academic performance and social integration. Professionals know little about how accommodations and learning strategies affect educational experiences of college student survivors, how best to apply accommodations and learning strategies, how much survivors embrace them, the extent to which they facilitate college success or how they evolve over time. The purpose of this study was to explore these issues. RESEARCH DESIGN: The researchers collected and analysed qualitative data using a multiple case study design. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Collected data included interviews, artifacts and field notes from four college student survivors, members of their families, college instructors and personnel from institution's offices for students with disabilities. MAIN OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Findings suggest challenges, learning strategies, future perspectives and the need for academic accommodations fluctuate and evolve for many years post-injury. Findings also suggest some survivors perceive their learning capabilities more positively than do others associated with them, leading to questions about whether over-accommodation occurs and the potential negative ramifications associated with this practice.

Development and Effects of College-Based Lifestyle Modification Program for Menstrual Health of Young Adult Women with Irregular Menses: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Purpose: This study was conducted to develop the 'College-based Lifestyle Modification Program' (College-based LMP) for young adult women with irregular menstruation and examine its effects after intervention. Methods: The College-based LMP consisted of small group education, individual physical exercise counseling/training, individual diet counseling, and feedback and support. Participants were comprised of 38 females who reported less than 10 irregular menstruations in a year and were randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups. The primary outcome variables consisted of menstrual cycle index (MCI), sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), and androgenic profile (testosterone-T, free androgen index-FAI), while the outcome variables included premenstrual symptoms (PMS), menstrual volume, body composition parameters, glycemic parameters (fasting blood sugar-FBS, insulin, HOMA-IR), sleep duration, perceived stress, and nutrient intake.. Results: There were no significant differences in primary outcome variables (MCI, SHBG, T, and FAI). In the variables, there were no significant differences except for the partial domain of PMS (symptoms of depression and anxiety) and sleep duration. Conclusions: The study was significant in that it demonstrated the importance of lifestyle, which could provide ordinary young adult women with healthy menstruation. The College-based LMP needs to be elaborated with further studies.

Measuring the development of integrative care communication patterns and cross-disciplinary knowledge at a university clinic: a baseline cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: The initiation of multiple clinical programs within a previously single-purpose health care institution brings multiple health care providers together under one roof. A baseline cross-sectional survey was undertaken to measure the development of integrative care communication patterns and cross-disciplinary knowledge at a health sciences university clinic. METHODS: This study was conducted by means of 3 separate surveys administered to all complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) faculty clinicians, CAM student interns, and patients attending CAM therapy at a university clinic (National University of Health Sciences, Lombard, Ill). The CAM therapies included acupuncture and Oriental medicine, chiropractic medicine/doctor of chiropractic, massage therapy, and naturopathic medicine/naturopathic doctor. RESULTS: Consultations between practitioners, including clinicians and interns, of different professions were predominantly informal in nature. The highest level of familiarity was with chiropractic philosophy; the lowest level was with naturopathic philosophy. Clinicians were very familiar with the philosophies of the other professions, with interns and patients being variably familiar with the other professions' philosophies. Less than 20% of patients reported being referred to another care provider. Clinicians, interns, and patients indicated that they would like additional opportunities to take advantage of multiple professions working together. CONCLUSIONS: This study is an initial assessment of the knowledge, communication patterns, and actions within the clinic during these early stages of integration. Recommendations for integrating both clinical care and educational processes within a multiple professions university are considered.

New accreditation program: university health network's experience with Qmentum.

In 2008, University Health Network was surveyed using Accreditation Canada's new Qmentum program. The following article describes UHN's experience rolling out the program to over 12,000 staff, physicians and volunteers. The article also outlines key challenges and lessons learned by the multi-site organization, with a focus on staff engagement, on-site survey preparation and sustainability moving forward. Staff feedback on the Qmentum program was extremely positive, and forecast results from Accreditation Canada were excellent.