Vicki McKenzie

What resources matter to young people: The relationship between resources and coping style

Abstract A modified version of the conservation of Resources Evaluation (CORE) developed to measure adult resources to cope with stress was applied to young people. In this exploration of the relationship between the resources identified by young people and their coping styles, a sample of 172 secondary students completed the modified version of the Conservation of Resources Evaluation (CORE) and the long version of the Adolescent Coping Scale, focussed on a specific concern (ACS). The modified instrument was validated in the study, and a relationship was found between the degree to which students held the resources under consideration and the coping styles they used. Young people high in resources tended to use productive ACS strategies, while those young people with fewer resources report using fewer and more nonproductive ACS strategies. A resources approach to young peoples adaptation to their circumstances has educational and therapeutic implications.

Service use in children aged 6–8 years with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Objective This study investigated prevalence, types and predictors of professional service use in families of children identified with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in the community. Design Setting: children with ADHD were identified through 43 schools using parent and teacher screening questionnaires (Conners 3 ADHD Index) followed by case confirmation using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children Version IV. Parents completed a survey about professional service use in the last 12 months. Main outcome measures: data on variables potentially associated with service use were collected from parents (interview and questionnaires), teachers (questionnaires) and children (direct assessment). Logistic regression was used to examine predictors of service use in univariate and multivariable analyses. Results The sample comprised 179 children aged 6–8 years with ADHD. Over one-third (37%) had not received professional services in the last 12 months. The strongest predictors of service use were older child age (adjusted OR=3.0, 95% CI 1.0 to 8.9, p=0.05), and the degree to which the childs behaviour impacted on the family (adjusted OR=2.0, 95% CI 1.3 to 3.3, p=0.007), after controlling for ADHD subtype and severity, externalising comorbidities, academic achievement and parent-reported impairment. Conclusions A substantial proportion of children with ADHD are not accessing professional services. Our findings suggest that the childs age and the impact of the childs behaviour on the family are the strongest predictors of service use. Given the demonstrated benefits from various interventions in ADHD, there is a need to improve case identification and referral for services.

Resources loss, gain, investment, and coping in adolescents

Abstract Year 9 students from a Melbourne metropolitan secondary school (N = 176) completed the specific version of the Adolescent Coping Scale and a Resources Questionnaire on 10 resources valued by young people. Having and valuing of the 10 resources was associated with productive coping by adolescents. Having fewer resources and greater resource loss was related to use of nonproductive coping. Girls and boys managed their resources differently as part of their coping efforts. Investing in and gaining resources was reported by girls who coped productively and focused on solving their problems, but not by productively coping boys, nonproductively coping girls, or girls who reported avoiding negative emotional states when dealing with problems. The indications are that in counseling and in designing interventions aimed to improve resilience in young people, gender may have an impact on particular resources of value to the person, and the approach taken to developing resources may similarly vary.

Adolescent Mental Health in an Australian Context and Future Interventions

Abstract This article presents an overview of the literature on mental health in the adolescent population in Australia and includes the prevalence and epidemiology of mental health issues and an analysis of a range of school-based interventions. The presence of mental illness in young people has become a major health problem globally, and increasing interest has been toward showing how Australian youths in the general population are specifically affected. It is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the implications for mental illness in adolescents, and particularly in minority populations. Particularly troubling are reported suicide rates in this age group over the last decade. This article argues that the average age of onset for mental illness is falling, signifying that schools are fast becoming important environments for early identification and intervention programs. In recent years, a rapid increase in research has investigated the relationship between school connectedness and psychopathology. Empirical studies on school belonging and loneliness reveal considerable evidence that social connections play an essential role in the prevention of mental health issues and in the fostering of wellbeing. This article explores Australian studies on mental illness and its prevention and intervention in secondary schools. The article contributes to existing literature of mental illness in adolescents and has important practical implications for future intervention.

Self-assessment and instructor assessment: Contribution to supervision in a brief counselling skills training program

Whilst there are many critical elements in the teaching of micro-counselling skills, feedback is an essential component of an effective training program. This paper describes supervision linked to a program of instruction. More particularly it examines the relative merit and contribution of utilising both instructor rating and self-rating as a means of providing educative feedback during the process of supervision in a brief counselling training program. Instructor rating and self-rating measures were taken on two occasions, first at the commencement of a six-week training program and secondly at the completion of the course. It was found that instructor rating was consistently lower than self-rating, but both reflected an improvement in counselling skills acquisition. Students indicated an ability to be self-critical after a period of counselling training to the extent that instructor rating matched more closely self-rating, after the second interview.

From Teacher to School Psychologist: A Programme of Counsellor Training

In Victoria Guidance Officers provide school psychology and guidance services to families and schools. Most are located throughout Victorian centres which service local school communities and these by and large provide a generalist service which is supplemented by the service of statewide specialists.New recruits are drawn from the teaching service and those teachers with the necessary combination of experience, qualifications and personal qualities are eligible to apply. There is usually a new intake each year and this number varies according to staff ceilings and vacancies. In 1983 the intake was 45 trainee Guidance Officers which was the largest number of teachers ever recruited. These trainees were allocated to local centres where they would undertake their supervised apprenticeship, which together with the compulsory central training, would make them eligible in two years to become registered Guidance Officers.

Student Mental Health and Psychological Interventions in a School Setting

This chapter addresses the increasing community concern about student mental health and considers the role of the school psychologist in relation to this issue, both from a preventative and a treatment perspective. Intervention can be important and relevant at an individual, selective and universal level. Prevalence figures reveal that many students in schools will experience severe difficulties. Understanding and supporting students with these problems and disorders are an important task. At the same time school communities are challenged to consider ways to enhance the positive well-being of young people and develop a prevention focus alongside the focus on individual treatment. The school psychologist has a valuable role in a school context to work with teaching staff and school leadership to build a foundation of well-being and positive mental health policy and practice. The school can be considered a universal and accessible agency for implementation of prevention and early intervention in mental health disorders, and the school psychologist is a key player in this approach.