Graduate training in clinical psychology: Student perspectives on selecting a program.

Although graduate programs in clinical psychology spend considerable energy and resources selecting students, there is limited information regarding the factors students consider important when they choose a training program. A review of recent literature found one study that looked at how first-year graduate students rated the importance of a number of factors in their decision-making process when selecting a clinical psychology training program (Walfish, Stenmark, Shealy, & Shealy, 1989). The current study extends this research by comparing reports from first-year graduate students enrolled in traditional “Boulder model” programs with those enrolled in professional “Vail model” programs. As part of a larger survey project, students answered questions about factors they considered important when they made decisions about applying to and selecting a graduate program to attend. Responses from students enrolled in traditional programs were compared with students attending professional programs. These differences are discussed, as well as their implications for program directors engaged in student recruitment and selection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training psychologists to assess, manage, and treat posttraumatic stress disorder: An examination of the National Center for PTSD Behavioral Science Division training program.

Most traumatized people do not get the care they need, making the demand for well-trained clinicians, researchers, and supervisors in the trauma field particularly acute. We describe the psychology training program at the Behavioral Science Division of the National Center for PTSD, provide a rationale for the training procedures we employ, and summarize the challenges we face. We suggest that the trauma field needs to establish training guidelines and criterion-based outcomes, and to conduct systematic evaluation of training program efficacy. As a first step toward these goals, we present information about our program and our unique clinical and professional context to assist those who intend to develop training programs and to allow existing training programs to compare and contrast practices. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

First impressions: A multicultural content analysis of professional psychology program Web sites.

With the ascension of the Internet as an information resource, Web sites are likely to be the first exposure applicants have to specific programs. The authors evaluated professional psychology program Web sites for ethnic and sexual orientation minority content, discovering that diversity content of Web sites was considerably less than in previously examined paper application materials. Clinical psychology programs were more likely to state a commitment to diversity training while counseling psychology programs were more likely to state a diversity minor/track. School psychology programs had the lowest diversity content on their Web pages. This article explores how graduate psychology program Web sites communicate multicultural information and offers recommendations on using the World Wide Web as a cost-effective tool to attract a diverse student body. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Reputation, halo, and ratings of counseling programs": Erratum.

Reports an error in the original article by R. W. Thoreson et al (Journal of Counseling Psychology, 1975[Sep], Vol 22[5], 446-450). On page 448, an error appears in Table 1. George Peabody College for Teachers, Nashville, Tennessee, is incorrectly listed as George Peabody University. It should also have an asterisk to indicate that the program was an APA-approved program in counseling psychology at the time the data for the study were collected. Peabody continues to have an accredited program under a new category called "Programs in Combined Scientific-Professional Psychology," which is characterized by a combination of "clinical, counseling, and school psychology." (The following abstract of this article originally appeared in record 1975-31894-001.) Tested the hypothesis that previous ratings of programs in psychology reflect both an experimental psychology and general institutional halo bias. A questionnaire similar to one used in an earlier study of graduate programs by H. D. Roose and C. J. Andersen (1970) was used to survey the responses of 598 professionals in the field of counseling psychology. Respondents were furnished with a listing of 70 doctoral programs in counseling psychology and other closely related programs and were asked to rate each of the programs. It was found that applied programs in counseling psychology received ratings that differed from overall ratings of psychology in general. Programs ranked as strong, good, and adequate are listed. Ratings were related to institutional halo, program age, rater knowledge of program, geographic location, and approved status by the American Psychological Association. Implications for program evaluation are discussed, and users of reputational ratings are cautioned about the need for supplemental information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Graduate training for managed care: A national survey of psychology and social work programs.

Although there is much discussion within the professional literature about the training needs of graduate students in response to managed care, little empirical research exists that assesses the extent to which graduate programs provide training opportunities in this field. The present study surveyed graduate program training directors in clinical psychology, counseling psychology, and social work about the training opportunities available for their graduate students. Almost 60% of the respondents indicated that they provide some type of training related to managed care. Implications and applications of these results are addressed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Practicums in consulting psychology: Working with doctoral clinical programs.

Practical training in consulting psychology is sorely lacking in most doctoral programs. This article explores the role that practicums can play in the training and development of the consultant. A program case study in clinical and consulting psychology serves as the focus. Several examples of psychological consultation involving trainees are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cost effectiveness of clinical training in a community mental health center.

The future of professional psychology may well rest on psychology training programs successfully defending their existence in purely monetary terms. This article examines the effectiveness of the training program of an urban mental health center that includes an American Psychological Association-accredited psychology internship. The training program was found to produce net revenues for the facility and to meet the training needs of its participants. Variables related to producing a cost effective psychology training program are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Character and Fitness Requirements for Professional Psychologists: Training Directors' Perspectives.

Do directors of psychology training programs consider whether program applicants and students possess essential moral character and psychological fitness characteristics? A survey revealed that directors of clinical training (DCTs) in clinical and counseling psychology training programs are very concerned about both character and fitness. DCTs reported that evidence accrued during interviews and from undergraduate references is most salient preadmission and that behavior in the program and in clinical situations is most meaningful postadmission. The authors highlight the practices and perspectives of DCTs when it comes to evaluating character and fitness and conclude with several recommendations for training programs, licensing boards, and psychology training organizations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reputation, halo, and ratings of counseling programs.

Tested the hypothesis that previous ratings of programs in psychology reflect both an experimental psychology and general institutional halo bias. A questionnaire similar to one used in an earlier study of graduate programs by H. D. Roose and C. J. Andersen (1970) was used to survey the responses of 598 professionals in the field of counseling psychology. Respondents were furnished with a listing of 70 doctoral programs in counseling psychology and other closely related programs and were asked to rate each of the programs. It was found that applied programs in counseling psychology received ratings that differed from overall ratings of psychology in general. Programs ranked as strong, good, and adequate are listed. Ratings were related to institutional halo, program age, rater knowledge of program, geographic location, and approved status by the American Psychological Association. Implications for program evaluation are discussed, and users of reputational ratings are cautioned about the need for supplemental information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Awards for Distinguished Professional Contributions: Bruce D. Sales.

Cites Bruce D. Sales for the American Psychological Association's Awards for Distinguished Professional Contributions. Sales is recognized for his pioneering efforts in the development of psychology and law as a field of research, teaching, and practice. His contributions included founding the first psychology and law graduate training program, and has developing the first scholarly journal in the field. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Diversity training: Conceptual issues and practices for Canadian clinical psychology programs.

Conducted a systematic survey of Canadian clinical psychology programs to examine the extent and nature of diversity. Diversity was defined broadly as reflecting the vast number of possible individual differences (e.g., culture, nationality, ethnicity, colour, race, gender, religion, sexual preference, disability, economic disadvantage) that can affect clinical psychology knowledge, research, and practice. 20 Directors of Clinical Training (DCTs) at Canadian clinical psychology programs were asked about the extent to which various aspects of diversity training were deemed important or essential to their program, what training activities were required, and how effective different methods of training were viewed. The results revealed that DCTs varied widely in their opinion of how important diversity materials were, and that few programs require many different methods of training related to diversity. Further, the training methods more commonly adopted did not generally relate well with those that were seen as being most effective. Implications of the survey for training in clinical psychology are provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training in law and psychology: Models from the Villanova conference.

Although the domain of law and psychology is a burgeoning and popular field of study, there has never been a concerted effort to evaluate current training models or to develop newer, more effective ones. 48 invited participants attended a national conference held at Villanova Law School to remedy this deficiency. Working groups addressed issues of education and training for the undergraduate level; for doctoral-level programs in law and social science; for forensic clinical training; for joint-degree (JD/PhD–PsyD) programs; for those in practica, internships, and postdoctoral programs; and for continuing education. This article delineates levels and models of training in each of these areas. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Doctoral Programs in Psychology, 1957-1958.

Each fall the APA Education and Training Board sends to every graduate department with an approved program in clinical or in counseling psychology a detailed questionnaire. This questionnaire asks for information about the number of faculty members in the graduate training program, the number of full-time and part-time graduate students, the number of persons admitted to candidacy for the PhD, the number of PhDs granted the preceding year, and the number of graduate students admitted. This article presents a summary of the data obtained via these questionnaires. The authors suggest that for more precise information, a more complete questionnaire with carefully defined categories of training areas or subject matter would need to be answered by graduate departments, including both those with approved programs and those without them. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sport psychology training within a clinical psychology program and a department of intercollegiate athletics.

Many applicants to clinical and counseling psychology programs are interested in receiving the training needed to practice competently in the professional specialty area of sport psychology. In this article, the authors describe a collaborative training and service relationship between an APA-accredited clinical psychology program and an intercollegiate athletics department. Sport Psychology Services provides performance enhancement, program evaluation, and mental health services to the athletic department. In return, graduate students receive applied training, financial support, and opportunities to conduct research. The authors present program evaluation data and offer practical guidelines to graduate programs wishing to establish similar training opportunities. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training child clinical predoctoral interns and postdoctoral fellows in ethics and professional issues: An experiential model.

The purpose of this article is to outline an experiential professional issues and ethics seminar program developed for predoctoral psychology interns and postdoctoral fellows in the child psychology training program at Stanford University Medical School. It is imperative that trainees develop a comprehensive and practical understanding of both ethical principles and professional issues before completing their academic and clinical training in psychology. A review of this seminar program may help other internship and postdoctoral training programs develop or fine-tune their methods of educating trainees in both professional issues and ethics. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Challenges to Professional Psychology Education in the 21st Century: Response to Peterson.

Professional psychology education faces many critical challenges brought about by the major changes occurring in the health care arena. This article shows that professional schools and programs have a good record of responding to these challenges and of taking proactive steps sponding to prepare their graduates for new health care roles and delivery systems. Data on admissions to psychology doctoral training programs demonstrate little support for the toral concerns raised by Donald R. Peterson (2003, this issue) about the preparation of students for graduate training in professional programs. Although quality concerns are important to investigate, such examination best resides with portant the American Psychological Association's Committee on Accreditation, which has the promotion of quality and excellence in professional psychology education and training as its major goal and responsibility. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

New directions for graduate training in consulting psychology.

This article develops the theme that the field of consulting psychology needs its own doctoral training programs. The work of Division 13 (Consulting Psychology) of the American Psychological Association in identifying model doctoral training programs in consulting psychology is described. Alternative training models to reach the same core competencies are also discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The ambiguous nature of clinical training and its impact on the development of student clinicians.

This article, written from the perspective of a graduate-level clinician, examines the ambiguous nature of clinical work with particular focus on the anxiety it creates for psychology graduate students and the role it plays in fostering the development of critical thinking skills and confidence in clinical decision making. This article also addresses the ambiguous nature of clinical psychology training programs, in general, especially during the first year of training. Experiences that increased and decreased the level of ambiguity in the author's own training program are described as well as suggestions for making the process of becoming a professional psychologist one that is clearer and easier to handle. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training Psychology Interns in Primary Behavioral Health Care.

This article describes a training program for primary behavioral health care (PBHC) for clinical psychology interns. The authors discuss the rationale for integrating mental health into primary care and the need for additional training programs at the predoctoral internship level. A review of relevant literature suggests that effective functioning in primary care requires competence in (a) generalist psychology, (b) health psychology, (c) interdisciplinary team functioning, and (d) skills specific to primary care. The authors advocate for a relatively intensive training program to address these areas. Common intern training difficulties observed during 3 years of program implementation are discussed. Practical, lessons-learned recommendations that address these problem areas provide guidance for others seeking to develop a PBHC training program. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Educational and training models in forensic psychology.

The field of forensic psychology has experienced remarkable growth over the past three decades. Perhaps the best evidence of this growth is the number of forensic psychology training programs currently enrolling students. Those interested in forensic psychology can choose from several types of programs aimed at different educational outcomes. In addition, opportunities for postdoctoral fellowships, continuing education, and respecialization have become increasingly more available. Despite the increased availability of forensic psychology training programs, there is little consensus regarding the core substantive components of these programs. This article will summarize the existing educational and training models in forensic psychology programs and then identify a core set of competencies that should be considered for inclusion in doctoral-level forensic psychology training curricula to adequately prepare students for the increasingly varied roles assumed by forensic psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)