Daniel R. Boroto

An Expanded Approach to Educating Statistical Consultants

Abstract This article describes an expanded approach to the education of statistical consultants that is being implemented at Florida State University. Our program begins with a preconsulting course in which students first study general problem-solving techniques. Next these techniques are used in solving applied statistics “textbook” problems. Then problem formulation and research methods are studied. Finally the structure of consulting sessions is considered, along with interpersonal issues that arise in consulting. In the supervised consulting course, students work with actual clients in videotaped sessions, attend supervision sessions in which the tapes are reviewed, present case conferences, attend new material sessions, and complete a project. We conclude this article with preliminary evaluation data on the program and observations regarding what we have learned.

Promoting Statistics: On Becoming Valued and Utilized

A sense of dissatisfaction exists in the statistics profession stemming from a consensus that statisticians in all working environments are undervalued and undemtilized. This dissatisfaction is reflected in the last 10 ASA presidential addresses and in numerous conversations we have had with statisticians at professional meetings and workshops. Statisticians have reacted to their dissatisfaction with several proposals: develop a stronger professional identity by establishing professional certification, stamp out the misuse of statistics in widely available PC software packages, and mount marketing campaigns to remake the image of the statistician from number cmncher to mainstream societal decision maker. All of these are misguided. Looking outside the profession for solutions to problems in the areas of value and utilization will not be productive. In the words of Walt Kelly’s Pogo, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” The sources of these problems lie within the

Relationships among experience level and value orientation and the performance of paraprofessional telephone counselors

The effectiveness of indigenous paraprofessional helpers is thought to be partially due to the similarity in style and values between then and their clients. However, there is a concern that as they gain experience in an agency, their identification may shift from the clients to the agency. Also, there is a question as to how effective paraprofessionals (selected due to their shared values with a target population) are with value-dissimilar clients. Truax and Carkhuffs scales of facilitative conditions as well as a technique functioning scale were used to assess the helping behavior of paraprofessional telephone counselors at three levels of experience in response to value-similar and value-dissimilar simulated calls. The results indicate that performance generally improved with training and experience and that instead of a uniform deterioration with dissimilar value calls, a complex relationship existed between performance, values, and experience level.

The Family Distress Model: A conceptual and clinical application of Reiss' strong bonds finding

The Family Distress Model is grounded in the family problem-solving and social support literature, as well as family systems medicine. It identifies the developmental process that families experience in response to distress, integrating clinical and research findings about family responses to isolation and social support. The clinical utility of the model is described and a case example is provided.

The paraprofessional movement as a paradigm community psychology endeavor

Community psychology can be seen as a vigorous, action-oriented movement. It is, however, still in the developmental stage characterized by the continued attempts to specify the goals and parameters of the field. The growing paraprofessional movement shares similar origins to community psychology and appears to provide answers to some of the questions raised about the accomplishments of the practitioners of community psychology. Some of the stated goals of community psychology are briefly reviewed and the paraprofessional movement is described in greater detail in an attempt to demonstrate the relationship between the accomplishments and trends of the paraprofessional movement and the goals espoused by community psychologists.

The Family Outreach Model: Tools for Engaging and Working With Families in Distress

ABSTRACT The purpose of this article is to present a family intervention model to family service providers that builds on previous research in areas of social support and family problem solving. The Family Outreach Model provides a set of strategies for engaging and working with families in five phases of family coping at different points in time in the familys life. The strategies reflect intentional choices by family service providers about both collaborative and directive styles of therapeutic alliance and highlights ways to determine which style best fits with what specific families want and need, depending on the manner of family coping that it is using. Implications for programs and public policy are presented.

Locus of control in predicting differential response to a treatment for flight anxiety.

Response to an informational-experiential treatment for flight anxiety was compared for 5 internal and 6 external aerophobics. The treatment provided an understanding of the noises and events of a typical commercial flight by relating these to flying an airplane simulator. Locus of control was significantly related to outcome of treatment. Internal subjects reported both more control and less anxiety on an actual post-treatment commercial flight than did external subjects. The results support the contention that understanding is a form of control and that internal persons more effectively utilize control-oriented treatments.