Manuel J. Tejeda

MULTIDIMENSIONAL FAMILY THERAPY FOR ADOLESCENT DRUG ABUSE: RESULTS OF A RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL

Random assignment was made of 182 clinically referred marijuana- and alcohol-abusing adolescents to one of three treatments: multidimensional family therapy (MDFT), adolescent group therapy (AGT), and multifamily educational intervention (MEI). Each treatment represented a different theory base and treatment format. All treatments were based on a manual and were delivered on a once-a-week outpatient basis. The therapists were experienced community clinicians trained to model-specific competence prior to the study and then supervised throughout the clinical trial. A theory-based multimodal assessment strategy measured symptom changes and prosocial functioning at intake, termination, and 6 and 12 months following termination. Results indicate improvement among youths in all three treatments, with MDFT showing superior improvement overall. MDFT participants also demonstrated change at the 1-year follow-up period in the important prosocial factors of school/academic performance and family functioning as measured by behavioral ratings. Results support the efficacy of MDFT, a relatively short-term, multicomponent, multitarget, family-based intervention in significantly reducing adolescent drug abuse and facilitating adaptive and protective developmental processes.

The MLQ revisited: psychometric properties and recommendations

Abstract The Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) is one of the most widely used instruments to measure transformational and transactional leader behaviors in the organizational sciences. A review of this literature reveals inconsistent research findings, which may be due to the psychometric properties of the MLQ. Data from four samples of managers were employed to investigate the underlying factor structure of the MLQ. In independent samples, the data fail to support the hypothesized structure of the MLQ in first- and second-order confirmatory factor analyses (CFA). However, a reduced set of items from the MLQ appear to show preliminary evidence of construct and predictive validity. Implications for future research and theoretical development are discussed.

Perspectives on mentoring

Explores perspectives on mentoring, including the mentor, the protege and the organization. Emphasizes key benefits to each of these parties. Addresses the question of why mentors engage in mentoring. Discusses the role of leadership in the development of leader‐supported mentoring processes.

Facilitating Engagement of African American Male Adolescents in Family Therapy: A Cultural Theme Process Study.

This study suggests that systematic discussion of culturally salient content in therapy sessions can positively influence engagement (i.e., therapy participation and therapeutic alliance) with clinically referred African American adolescent males. In a sample of 18 African American adolescent males participating in 187 videotaped psychotherapy sessions, the in-session discussion of research derived, developmentally and culturally related content themes (anger/rage, alienation, respect, and journey from boyhood to manhood) were found to be positively associated with therapist-adolescent alliance and adolescent engagement. Discussions that focused on issues of trust and mistrust were found to negatively predict ratings of therapist-adolescent relationship, and discussions of racial identity/racial socialization were found to have no association with adolescent engagement. These findings provide clues about (a) how culturally responsive treatments can be developed, and (b) in this era of manualized therapies, the possibility of enhancing therapeutic outcomes by tailoring treatment protocols at specific levels of content focus and detail.

The need for research that is designed to support decisions in the delivery of mental health services.

M.E.P. Seligman (1995) argued that traditional approaches to mental health services research fail to provide useful information to consumers and practitioners, particularly in an environment increasingly dominated by managed care. The authors recommend 4 guidelines for designing a research program so that the results can support the decisions of the major stakeholders (clients-families, practitioners, service managers, and policymakers): (a) Research must be targeted and programmatic and encompass a strategy of complementary efficacy, effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness studies; (b) study design and measure selection must be sensitive to describe who, and in what context, is best served by which intervention; (c) the design must inform stakeholders as to the type and amount of effort that is required to achieve a behavioral criteria; and (d) the strategy should inform researchers how information should be formatted to best support the decisions of the key stakeholders.

Enrolling and retaining mothers of substance-exposed infants in drug abuse treatment

This study provided an experimental test of a drug abuse treatment enrollment and retention intervention in a sample of 103 Black mothers of substance-exposed infants. Significantly more women assigned to the Engaging Moms Program enrolled into drug abuse treatment than did women assigned to the control condition (88% vs. 46%). Sixty-seven percent of participants in the Engaging Moms Program received at least 4 weeks of drug abuse treatment compared with 38% of the control women. However, there were no differences between the groups 90 days following treatment entry. Logistic regressions revealed that readiness for treatment predicted both short-term and long-term treatment retention. The Engaging Moms Program has considerable promise in facilitating treatment entry and short-term retention, but it did not influence long-term retention.

The Protective Role of the Family and Social Support Network in a Sample of Hiv-Positive African American Women: Results of a Pilot Study

This study examined the role of family functioning and social support in protecting HIV-positive African American women from the adverse psychological consequences associated with deterioration in their CD4 cell count. Participants were 38 African American HIV-positive women who had recently given birth. Results demonstrated that changes in CD4 cell counts were inversely predictive of psychological distress and were moderated by family functioning and social support satisfaction. Women with good family functioning were less affected by changes in their CD4 cell counts, and women with poor family functioning were more emotionally responsive to changes in CD4 cell count. Unexpectedly, women from families where conflicts tended to be clearly laid out and discussed were also more responsive to both changes in CD4 cell counts. Interventions are recommended that increase a client’s social support satisfaction, foster an adaptive level of connectedness to family, and enhance the family’s range of conflict resolution styles.

An Efficient Tool for Screening for Maladaptive Family Functioning in Adolescent Drug Abusers: The Problem Oriented Screening Instrument for Teenagers

The assessment of maladaptive family functioning among adolescent drug abusers is particularly important because maladaptive family functioning has been linked to adolescent drug abuse/delinquent behaviors, and there are now highly effective family interventions available for treating these family dysfunctions. The purpose of the study reported in this article was to investigate the degree to which the Problem Oriented Screening Instrument for Teenagers screen for the family domain provides useful information regarding family functioning when used with clinic-referred youths with behavior problems. Participants in this study were 135 Hispanic and African-American youth referred for the treatment of severe behavior problems, including drug use. Our findings provide support for the usefulness of the 11-item POSIT family functioning screen. Data supporting the criterion validity of the POSIT Family screen, its ability to classify families correctly in terms of their family functioning, and its significant loading on the latent variable resulting from a confirmatory factor analysis all lend support to the usefulness of this screen of family functioning. In addition, analyses designed to explore the relationships between gender and race/ethnicity and the POSIT Family subscale showed that differences in scores by gender and race/ethnicity are not unique to the POSIT, but rather reflect similar differences in family functioning reported by the adolescent on more extensive family measures.

An examination of the validity of the Sex-Role Egalitarianism Scale (SRES-KK) using confirmatory factor analysis procedures

Validity of the Sex-Role Egalitarianism Scale (SRES) was examined employing LISREL confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) procedures for a managerial sample (N = 268) and for a student sample (N= 519). Results of the CFAs indicated that the proposed one- and five-dimensional models of the SRES did not fit the data from the managerial sample but were partially confirmed on the student sample. Further analyses suggested the use of a revised, five-item version of the SRES measure comprising an employment egalitarian dimension, based upon the conceptual definitions provided by the developers of the instrument. This measure was confirmed on both the managerial and student samples using LISREL CFA and represents a valid one-dimensional measure for future use in research on sex role egalitarianism with managerial samples.

Skeletons in the broom closet: exploring the discrimination of Pagans in the workplace

Paganism encompasses many faiths that have folk or ethnic origins and further represents an understudied minority despite being one of the fastest growing religions in the United States, Canada, and UK. The current research examines the experiences of Pagans at work in two studies. Study 1 reports on a series of narrative interviews into the lived experiences of Pagans in the workplace. Study 2 employs quantitative methods to examine hypotheses generated by Study 1. Findings suggest that workplace ridicule and discrimination against Pagans is commonplace, including higher levels of covert and overt victimization and lower job satisfaction among Pagans when compared to other mainline faiths in the workplace. Limitations, directions for future research, and implications for management are discussed.