Stefanía Ægisdóttir

The Meta-Analysis of Clinical Judgment Project: Fifty-Six Years of Accumulated Research on Clinical Versus Statistical Prediction:

Clinical predictions made by mental health practitioners are compared with those using statistical approaches. Sixty-seven studies were identified from a comprehensive search of 56 years of research; 92 effect sizes were derived from these studies. The overall effect of clinical versus statistical prediction showed a somewhat greater accuracy for statistical methods. The most stringent sample of studies, from which 48 effect sizes were extracted, indicated a 13% increase in accuracy using statistical versus clinical methods. Several variables influenced this overall effect. Clinical and statistical prediction accuracy varied by type of prediction, the setting in which predictor data were gathered, the type of statistical formula used, and the amount of information available to the clinicians and the formulas. Recommendations are provided about when and under what conditions counseling psychologists might use statistical formulas as well as when they can rely on clinical methods. Implications for clinical judgment research and training are discussed.

Methodological Issues in Cross-Cultural Counseling Research: Equivalence, Bias, and Translations

Concerns about the cross-cultural validity of constructs are discussed, including equivalence, bias, and translation procedures. Methods to enhance equivalence are described, as are strategies to evaluate and minimize types of bias. Recommendations for translating instruments are also presented. To illustrate some challenges of cross-cultural counseling research, translation procedures employed in studies published in five counseling journals are evaluated. In 15 of 615 empirical articles, a translation of instruments was performed. In 9 studies, there was some effort to enhance and evaluate equivalence between language versions of the measures employed. In contrast, 2 studies did not report using thorough translation and verification procedures, and 4 studies employed a moderate degree of rigorousness. Suggestions for strengthening translation methodologies and enhancing the rigor of cross-cultural counseling research are provided. To conduct cross-culturally valid research and deliver culturally appropriate services, counseling psychologists must generate and rely on methodologically sound cross-cultural studies. This article provides a schema for performing such studies.

Should I Pack My Umbrella? Clinical Versus Statistical Prediction of Mental Health Decisions

In this rejoinder, the authors respond to the insightful commentary of Strohmer and Arm, Chwalisz, and Hilton, Harris, and Rice about the meta-analysis on statistical versus clinical prediction techniques for mental health judgments. The authors address issues including the availability of statistical prediction techniques for real-life psychology applications, the development of these prediction techniques for future applications, and the training of counseling and other psychologists in using statistical prediction techniques. Many of these issues are couched in the historical debate about clinical versus statistical prediction.

Beliefs About Psychological Services (BAPS): development and psychometric properties

A scale to measure attitudes towards seeking psychological help was developed (Beliefs About Psychological Services [BAPS]) and evaluated. This scale was based on items gathered from students, colleagues, and the authors when asked about common positive and negative attitudes toward psychologists and their services. Items were also based on the Fischer and Turner (1970) Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Services (ATSPPH) measure. Three studies are reported describing the construction and evaluation of the psychometric properties of the BAPS. The BAPS is an 18-item measure consisting of three subscales: Intent, Stigma Tolerance, and Expertness. Support was found for the reliability and validity of the measure.

Examining Internationalization in U.S. Counseling Psychology Training Programs

The purpose of this study was to gather more information about the process of internationalization in U.S. counseling psychology programs. Participants included 26 training directors and 83 doctoral students, representing 32 of the 63 APA-accredited counseling psychology programs. Results suggested that the presence of international training opportunities did not increase from 2007 to 2010, with the exception that internationalism was increasingly being incorporated into the definition of multiculturalism. Results also suggested that in several areas, training directors and doctoral students differed in their knowledge of whether international training opportunities were present in their programs, and the degree to which they believed such opportunities were integrated. Finally, results suggested that respondents’ attitudes were generally favorable toward internationalization. The implications for counseling psychology training programs as well as recommendations for improving internationalization efforts are discussed.

Icelanders’ and U.S. Nationals’ Expectations about Counseling The Role of Nationality, Sex, and Holland’s Typology

This study compared counseling expectations of Icelandic and U.S. college students, investigated counseling expectations as a function of sex, and explored the relationship between counseling expectations and Holland’s typology. It was discovered that the Icelandic students expected greater expertise from the counselor than did the U.S. students and the U.S. students expected the counseling conditions to be more facilitative than did the Icelandic students. Also, women, as compared with men, expected counseling to be more facilitative of change and expected to be more personally committed to the counseling process, whereas men expected more counselor expertise. A canonical correlation analysis revealed a significant relationship between counseling expectations and Holland’s Social and Realistic personality types for the U.S. students and Holland’s Social type for the Icelandic students.

Time Keeps on Ticking The Experience of Clinical Judgment

In this rejoinder, the authors respond to reactions by Ridley and Shaw-Ridley and by Lichtenberg to their meta-analysis on the effects of experience on clinical judgment decision making accuracy.