John M. Laux

A further examination of antecedents of correctional staff life satisfaction

Abstract Working in corrections is not only a demanding job, but a socially important one. While a growing number of studies have examined how the work environment impacts the job stress, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment of staff, very few studies have examined how working in corrections impacts the life satisfaction of workers. The current study utilized OLS regression to examine the antecedents of life satisfaction among staff at a Midwestern private prison. Job satisfaction had a positive relationship with life satisfaction, while age, work on family conflict, family on work conflict, and job involvement all had statistically significant negative effects. Finally, perceptions of the level of financial rewards, job stress, organizational commitment, gender, race, educational level, tenure, supervisory status, position, marital status, and having children, all had non-significant associations with overall satisfaction with life.

The Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST): A Statistical Validation Analysis

Abstract This study extends the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST; M I, Selzer, 1971) literature base by examining 4 issues related to the validity of the MAST scores. Specifically, the authors ex a mine the validity of the MAST stores in light of the presence of impression management, participant demographic variables, and item endorsement infrequency.

Animal-Assisted Therapy and Rogers’ Core Components Among Middle School Students Receiving Counseling Services: A Descriptive Study

Animal-assisted therapy (AAT) is an effective counseling method, yet the reasons for this effectiveness are not well understood. It has been theorized but not empirically verified that AAT participants view therapy animals as possessing Carl Rogers’s core counselor characteristics (Friesen, 2010; Parish-Plass, 2008).This study examined the degree to which 312 middle school students in Grades 4 through 8 rated an AAT dog on Rogers’s core counselor characteristics using the Barrett-Lennard Relationship Inventory (1962). The findings show that the AAT dog was rated highly on the 3 Rogerian traits level of regard, empathy, and congruence.

Offenders Who Are Mothers with and without Experience in Prostitution: Differences in Historical Trauma, Current Stressors, and Physical and Mental Health Differences

BACKGROUND Women offenders are a growing population in the criminal justice system; most are mothers. A subset of these women have a history of prostitution. Despite more recent research identifying the needs of women offenders who are mothers, those with and without experience in prostitution are still generally represented in the literature as a homogenous group. METHODS This study examined the differences between mothers who indicated that they had engaged in prostitution with those who had not. The data were from a survey of offending mothers in a Midwestern city and was based on 889 respondents. Approximately 20% of the women indicated that they had engaged in prostitution at some point in their lives. FINDINGS Mothers with histories of prostitution reported more exposure to violence, witnessing crime, living in areas with high drug activity, and having a higher rate of physical and mental health problems. CONCLUSIONS Health care professionals who interact with mothers in the criminal justice system who have histories of prostitution should be careful to assess for a history of trauma and its psychological consequences. Along with increased health care needs, interventions are needed to help these women obtain basic needs such as stable housing outside of high crime and high drug-use areas and to receive targeted psychological services that respond to the unique trauma suffered by this subpopulation of offenders.

The Career Counseling Needs of Mothers in the Criminal Justice System.

The past 2 decades have produced a rapid increase in the numbers of incarcerated mothers. This study investigated both career development and the career counseling needs of mothers in the criminal justice system. A mixed-methods design was employed using both qualitative interviews (n = 1,161) and quantitative survey methods (n = 1,170). Identified needs included counseling regarding continuing education and vocational training, access to health care, and counseling to recover from work in the sex trade.

The Barnum Effect and Chaos Theory: Exploring College Student ACOA Traits

The literature both supports and challenges the notion that adult children of alcoholics are a distinct and homogenous group. College students (n = 200) were placed into one of four categories: Adult Children of Alcoholics, Adverse Childhood Event Group, Alcohol and Adverse Childhood Event Group, and the No Adverse Event Group. Participating college students then completed instruments that measured drug and alcohol use, adult children of alcoholics traits, defensiveness, impulsivity, and resistance to change. Differences surfaced on two instruments, the Drug Abuse Screening Inventory and the Children of Alcoholics Scale. Adult children of alcoholics were overrepresented as CAST+ and underrepresented as CAST–. The Alcohol and Adverse Event groups were underrepresented in the DAST+ category.

HIV/AIDS Knowledge Among Professional Counselors and Counseling Students in Ohio

Mental health issues faced by individuals living with HIV and AIDS require a continuum of unique counseling services. The need for professional counselors to work with HIV-positive clients is paramount as trained counselors encompass holistic and developmental perspectives. This study was designed as an introductory look at current knowledge-level of HIV/AIDS among counseling professionals to better understand educational needs of counseling students and professional counselors.

Perceived Leadership Preparation in Counselor Education Doctoral Students Who Are Members of the American Counseling Association in CACREP-Accredited Programs

The researchers examined the perceived leadership training of counselor education doctoral students (N = 228) regarding their leadership preparedness. The results indicated that the majority of the participants believed that they are receiving the training that will prepare them to be leaders in the domains of clinical counseling, research, teaching, clinical supervision, writing and publishing, professional advocacy, leading and managing people, and motivating others to accomplish a mission. Conversely, the findings suggest that the sample did not perceive that their training prepared them for leadership in the areas of managing an organization.

Refining Change Measure With the Rasch Model

This study was to develop a linear measure of change using University of Rhode Island Change Assessment items that represented Prochaska and DiClemente’s theory. The resulting Toledo Measure of Change is short, is easy to use, and provides reliable scores for identification of individuals’ stage of change and progression within that stage.

Development of a Screening Instrument for Post-Traumatic Symptoms

Traumatic events in Sri Lanka, such as a decade-long civil war and the 2004 tsunami, necessitate a language specific and time-efficient screening instrument for post-traumatic symptoms. The Sinhala version of the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (SIES-R) was administered to 438 adult participants. Internal consistency estimates for the total SIES-R and each subscales were acceptable (α = .70). A one-week test-retest reliability (n = 54) analysis provided evidence of temporal stability. Adjusted item-to-scale reliability estimates were less supportive. Confirmatory factor analysis using LISREL indicates a three factor structure best represents the SIES-R’s underlying factor structure. Results suggest the SIES-R as appropriate for screening of post-trauma symptoms in Sinhala speaking SriLankans in an urban area.