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The article discusses the psychoanalytic training for clinical social workers in the U.S. The term psychoanalytic is used to describe mental phenomena and a method of treatment based on the assumption of an unconscious state in mental life. Psychoanalysis is viewed as a therapeutic method which aims at the revival and resolution of the deepest layers of infantile conflicts and correction of structural deficits. In the social worker's psychoanalytical training, it is important that it will include personal analysis so that there will be an exploration towards the patient's transferences.

This paper discusses a relatively undocumented movement by clinical social workers to gain mental health diagnostic privileges as part of their scope of practice across the United States. The primary purpose of this paper is to identify which states permit social workers to diagnose. Reviewers located the state regulatory codes on social work scope of practice to determine if diagnosis of mental disorders was permitted and contacted corresponding state boards and NASW chapters to understand diagnostic privileges and grassroots movements in this area. We found that only three states do not authorize social workers to diagnose mental disorders: Alabama, Pennsylvania, and Indiana. The secondary purpose is to determine what percentage of graduate social work programs require a mental health assessment course to understand how graduate students are being prepared to diagnose. A minimum of two reviewers evaluated social work curricula for Masters-level programs (N = 226) accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. A majority of programs offered or required coursework on the assessment of mental disorders. We also discuss the state training requirements as they apply to diagnosis. As clinical social workers begin to practice in new areas, it is worthwhile examining efforts in addressing policies to expand social work scope of practice. This paper provides examples of successful and unsuccessful efforts to expand scope of practice on diagnosis to inform future efforts to impact policy change as applied to professional practice. A coordinated effort to align academic requirements with clinical social work scope of practice and professional practice guidelines can better prepare the clinical social work workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth (ages 14–18), commonly referred as sexual and gender minority youth (SGMY) in the literature, experience elevated mental health risks and vulnerabilities (Almeida et al., J Youth Adolesc 38(7):1001–1014, 2009), including: depression (Martin-Storey and Crosnoe, J Adolesc 35(4):1001–1011, 2012; King et al., BMC Psychiatry 8:70, 2008), substance misuse (Mustanski et al., Am J Public Health 104(2):287–294, 2014), and increased suicidality (Marshal et al., J Adolesc Health 49:115–123, 2011; Marshal et al., J Youth Adolesc 42(8):1243–1256, 2013). Furthermore, there is a notable gap in the study of empirically supported mental health interventions for SGMY (Craig and Austin, Children Youth Serv Rev 64:136–144, 2016). This conceptual paper will explore the feasibility of mindfulness-based interventions as a mental health approach for SGMY. In light of the promising research evidence for mindfulness-based interventions (Tan, Clin Child Psychol Psychiatry 21(2):193–207, 2016), this paper proposes the use of mindfulness to help address mental health vulnerabilities experienced by SGMY. A brief review of the mindfulness-based intervention literature for youth will be provided. Finally, utilizing minority stress theory (Meyer, in Minority stress and mental health in gay men, Columbia University Press, New York, NY, 2003) and an affirmative-based practice conceptualization, adapting mindfulness-based interventions to address mental health issues among SGMY will be explored. Drawing on the author's clinical and community based experience working with SGMY, this paper will build a case for the systematic investigation of culturally-appropriate affirmative mindfulness-based interventions for SGMY. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online social work services (e.g., telemental health; telebehavioral health; virtual care; telehealth) present significant opportunities for clinical social workers to provide effective care to marginalized populations, such as LGBTQ+ youth. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increased focus on telehealth, and while there are excellent resources to guide ethics, standards, and legal decisions (NASW, n.d.), there is less guidance in the literature to specifically inform the adaptation of offline clinical skills to telehealth, particularly for LGBTQ+ youth. To address this gap, we present examples from our experience offering AFFIRM, an affirmative cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) group intervention now being delivered through telehealth. Specifically, this paper will: (a) describe the key considerations for the delivery of CBT via telehealth to youth; (b) detail specific clinical skills and strategies to enable successful online implementation; (c) describe the adaptation approach through a case study of cognitive restructuring with a transgender youth; (d) and offer specific guidance to support clinicians to adapt their clinical skills to the virtual environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The re-emergence of therapeutic uses for mind-altering, psychedelic drugs has brought the field of mental health to a new frontier in research, practice, and policymaking. In the past two decades dozens of clinical trials investigating therapeutic applications of psychedelics—including MDMA, psilocybin, and ketamine—have shown promising results in the treatment of trauma-related disorders, some forms of anxiety, and depression. These substances have also garnered preliminary support from the Food and Drug Administration, which has fast-tracked their development. As the field of psychedelic science continues to grow, a serious consideration of these novel treatments in the context of social work practice and values is imperative. This paper offers a brief overview of MDMA-, psilocybin-, and ketamine-assisted treatments, and presents an initial discussion of questions pertinent to social work practice raised by their use, including: safety, efficacy, theory of change, training needs, and social justice considerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although twenty-nine states in the United States of America have legalized medical cannabis, the stigma surrounding cannabis continues and few clinicians have been educated on its use and benefits. This paper presents the history of therapeutic cannabis use as well as the political perspectives and federal laws leading to ongoing stigmatization of this substance and its users. A summary of cannabis' therapeutic properties, and its potential use in the treatment of mental health problems is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper describes the group therapy model which has evolved over the past two years on the Child Psychiatry Inpatient Unit of North Carolina Memorial Hospital. It begins with a brief review of the literature concerning group therapy with latency-aged children. The setting and patient population are described. Vignettes from group sessions are used to illustrate techniques which have evolved to deal with this particular setting and population. These include a leadership style characterized by much clarification, modeling, and limit setting; extensive focus on beginning and terminating; clearly defined behavioral limits; the use of ‘time out’; and use of play materials requiring little skill or attention as anxiety binders as well as projective media; and observation and supervisory discussions open to all members of the treatment team. The paper concludes with a discussion of the potentials and limitations of group therapy in such a setting. The thesis is that this model is effective in diagnosing developmental levels, in developing interpersonal skills, in substituting verbalization for action, and in mastering separation anxieties, though the setting limits the extent to which controlled regression, transference, and group pressures can develop and be used to produce change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reflective supervision is a specialized approach to supervision essential to infant mental health (IMH) practice, a relationship-based approach to working with infant and toddlers and their families. This unique approach to supervision is rooted in reflective practice, which has been cited as an important component of social work field and practice education (CSWE in Educational policy and accreditation standards, https://www.cswe.org/getattachment/Accreditation/Standards-and-Policies/2015-EPAS/2015EPASandGlossary.pdf.aspx, 2015; Bogo in Clin Soc Work J 43:317-324, 2015; Franklin in Clin Superv 30(2):204-214, 2011; Hendricks et al. in Learning to teach: teaching to learn, Council on Social Work Education Press, Alexandria, 2013). Borne out of the findings from a reflective practice training series for social work field instructors, a 9-month reflective supervision group was piloted for field instructors with a goal of enhancing the field instructors' capacities for engaging their student interns in reflective practice. This reflective supervision group provided field instructors opportunities to engage in process-oriented group supervision, facilitated by a field director with a background in IMH, and focused on the field instructors' supervision of social work interns. This paper describes how this unique field instructor supervision group supports field instructors' use of the reflective practice capacities of curiosity, self-awareness, and use of parallel process. Specifically, an example of a field instructor's use of the reflective supervision group to address a challenging field supervision experience illustrates the powerful role of reflective practice in enhancing and expanding a field instructor's capacity to more fully support a social work intern's professional development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technological devices and the internet have become standard tools used by young people in their social, recreational and educational contexts. The utility of digital technology continues to expand and influence the ways young people socialize, learn about the world and develop and experiment with identity. The ability to remain in one's own home while also connecting with others can be perceived as safer than venturing out in the offline world; however, there are a variety of risks associated with online activities. Some youth may be more at risk of harm than others, such as youth with neurodevelopmental disorders including learning disabilities (LDs), autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD). There is an instinct for adults to be protective of children who struggle with disabilities, leading some parents to take an overprotective approach to their child's internet use. Parents can play a significant role in helping their children navigate the pitfalls associated with online use while enjoying the benefits it provides. In this paper, we discuss the characteristics of young people with neurodevelopmental disorders that may cause difficulties online and review the opportunities and risks associated with internet use. We then discuss ways for parents to provide effective and balanced guidance on internet use for their child by reviewing the literature and offering concepts on digital literacies. The paper ends with a proposed intergenerational, parent-child group intervention that aims to help parents safeguard young people from online harms and offers opportunities for healthy online participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social workers provide much of the mental health treatment in the United States, and, given the ubiquity of trauma, most clinical social workers will provide treatment to trauma survivors during their careers. Therefore, trauma theory and practice must be included in MSW curricula and taught as a clinical course. This paper suggests that experienced clinician instructors teach trauma theory and practice classes using a case-based method. Bringing case material into the classroom helps prepare students for the complexities and challenges of treating survivors of trauma. To demonstrate how cases can help students connect theory to practice, the paper presents the treatment of a Central African asylum seeker recovering from trauma. The case emphasizes the centrality of the therapeutic relationship and illustrates the use of several evidence-supported trauma interventions along with core principles of social work practice. Finally, the paper suggests that social work educators consider developing a structured method of integrating cases into the trauma curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the use of empirically-supported mental health interventions to support vulnerable students in schools. It gives an overview of the empirically-supported intervention (ESI) approach and its goodness of fit with schools. Factors that influence whether schools adopt an ESI approach, such as national education reform policies and the availability of resources are explored. Two ESI's that have been shown to improve the lives of vulnerable youth are presented within a school social work case example. The paper concludes with implications and suggestions for future research, including efforts to educate school staff on the importance of adopting an ESI approach, where to locate ESI's, and further research on the cost-effectiveness of ESI's. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) survivors often face difficulties in their intimate relationships and struggle to engage in the process of couple therapy. Recent research has demonstrated that the negative interaction cycles of CSA survivors are more complex and entrenched than those of couples who do not present with a history of trauma (MacIntosh in J Couple Fam Psychoanal 3(2):188-207, 2013). This paper integrates the psychoanalytic concepts of repetition and enactment into the concept of the negative interaction cycle as articulated by Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), to provide an expanded understanding of these deeply entrenched dynamics in which the traumas of the past are embedded. The complex repetitions of early traumas in the negative interaction cycle of the couple are referred to as Dyadic Traumatic Reenactments (DTR). Two contrasting case studies are used to illustrate these concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the work of Professor Selma Fraiberg who became a leading figure in the field of infant mental health. Born in 1918 she first received an MSW in Social Work and then undertook her Analytic Training in Detroit Michigan. While she maintained her identity as a social worker throughout her life, she integrated insights from the fields of social work, psychoanalysis and developmental and ego psychology in her research and practice. This paper traces her development as a clinician, researcher, and educator. Three cases describe her ability to integrate social work methodologies with analytic insights. The cases describe the treatment of a latency age child at a time of social change, a clinical research study of the developmental risk of children blind from birth, and a groundbreaking study in the field of infant mental health. Her study of infants at developmental risk focused on the parent /infant relationship and parents were included in the treatment process so that they could become more attuned to their young child. Her work highlighted the intergenerational issues that shaped the parental capacity for empathic nurturance between parent and child. The article Ghosts in the Nursery incorporated the major theoretical concepts of the new theoretical approach to treatment and is still much read in graduate programs today. Although extensive new research has added to the field of infant mental health, her contributions are still relevant to research and practice today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to illustrate how neurobiological deficits and subcortical structures contribute to psychodynamic processes. Specifically, this paper seeks to enhance our clinical understanding of the consequence of such contributions by clarifying how a person might select and maintain dysfunctional behaviors or responses. Viewing the brain from an evolutionary perspective, with physical and mental survival as the goal of evolved brain function, specific dysfunctional behaviors are shown to be context and time dependent regulatory or modulatory procedures, which compensate for missing neural connections. This paper describes two courses of treatment with the same patient, first for procrastination and later for perversion. In each treatment deficits are identified and compensatory skills are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social workers are mental health first-responders in disaster events, yet that role has been relatively underemphasized in social work curriculum for agency-based practice. The recent increasing number of disaster-related events has challenged schools of social work to respond with curriculum and field placements that meet the student demand for education in disaster behavior health. This paper describes how a real-time education and training program for disaster response was created and adopted into an existing graduate social work school curriculum. It also details how new field placements were created, and others were transformed to focus on mental health counseling and disaster relief following a significant weather-related event. This case study demonstrates how resources were developed and leveraged to address the immediate needs of devastated communities, and it provides strategic information on the way that social work students worked to address both acute and longer-term symptoms and needs of victims and survivors through clinical training and supervision. Through the historical lens of disaster response and behavioral health, resiliency-building is shown to be the cornerstone of effective community networking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper traces the evolution of the concept of clinical social work and looks at where we are and where we are headed as clinical social workers. It reaffirms the view that clinical social workers intervene with clients presenting the full range of problems in a variety of facilities and in private practice and must draw on a broad knowledge base within a person-situation perspective and address the special needs of culturally diverse and oppressed populations. The paper also considers the move toward legal regulation, the role of private practice, the need for clinical doctoral education, the importance of new models for clinical research, and the significance of advocacy for a broad range of services to clients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the term ‘management’ connotes images of impersonal care, D. W. Winnicott repeatedly used this term to describe the responsive environmental holding that is central to all human development. Influenced by observations of how normal mothers and families address the physical and psychic needs of children, he and his wife, Clare, a distinguished British social worker, operationalized this concept in finding and supporting ‘facilitating environments’ with a wide range of disturbed children and adults. Using case material from a contemporary community program for the mentally ill, this paper will review the Winnicotts' important, but often neglected, perspectives on the environmental management of psychotic adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parents often seek help because of difficulties their infants have transitioning to and maintaining sleep. Sleep problems almost inevitably adversely impact parental sleep which can affect the parent's psychological state and the parent-infant relationship. This paper examines interventions for infant sleep problems within a context that includes recognition of maternal developmental needs. Clinical case material of mothers in different stages of adult development illustrates ways in which maternal developmental needs both influenced their children's sleep patterns that became problematic and the resolution of those sleep difficulties. An approach to infant sleep problems that encompasses the mother's developmental stage can broaden our understanding of mothers' reactions to their infants' sleep and be used to inform treatment. Developing sleep recommendations for infants and toddlers within a context that focuses on the developmental needs of both mother and child has the potential for improving sleep and promoting more positive parent-child relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is widely accepted that those who provide psychotherapy for others benefit from experience in the client role; most clinicians do, in fact, seek their own therapy, as a sizable body of research indicates. Yet these studies address only one side of the phenomenon: the impact of personal therapy, usually early in their careers, on clinicians' subsequent practice. Little is known about what happens when seasoned clinicians move in the other direction--from the 'therapist chair' into, or back into, the 'client chair.' These are a special group of clients, reacting to therapy in ways that other groups do not. As this qualitative study of 30 clinical social workers who have returned to the 'patient chair' indicates, there is a unique struggle for identity and control. The paper explores the impact of that struggle on the therapeutic dyad and therapeutic frame, and concludes with implications and suggestions for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social work students experience high levels of stress, which makes them vulnerable to stress-related disorders such as depression. Attachment security has been associated with better stress regulation. Another factor that is closely associated with attachment is mentalization, i.e., the ability to reflect about one's own and others' mental states, which may also influence the way people cope with stress. The main aim of the study was to investigate the impact of attachment and mentalization on stress, depression, and anxiety in social work students. 460 social work students completed the short version of the "Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised questionnaire" (ECR-RD8), "Relationship Questionnaire" (RQ-2), "Certainty About Mental States Questionnaire" (CAMSQ), "Perceived Stress Scale" (PSS-10) as well as the "Patient Health Questionnaire" (PHQ-9) and the "Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale" (GAD-7) in a cross-sectional research design. The majority of the current social work students (71.1%) were assigned to an insecure attachment style and reported noticeably high levels of stress, depression, and anxiety. Insecurely attached students showed even higher levels of stress, depression, and anxiety compared to securely attached students. Moreover, the results indicate that securely attached students have better mentalizing skills and that mentalizing skills (partially) mediated the effect of attachment security on perceived stress, depression, and anxiety. Due to the importance of mentalization for stress regulation, mental health, and the quality of relationships, programs promoting mentalization in social work students should be implemented in social work education programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is currently a growing research and clinical knowledge base regarding the application of Eastern traditions, especially mindfulness and other forms of meditation, to direct practice. As we incorporate new tools for intervention into our toolkit, it is important to expand our theoretical framework so that we can know when to utilize these tools, how their mechanism fits with the tools we already have, and what kinds of change or outcomes we should expect from utilizing them. These new tools are powerful across many experiences of distress, but clear guidelines are necessary to maximize their benefit. Berlin's cognitive-integrative perspective provides a framework that allows for reflective understanding and application of mind/body/spirit that is consistent with social work values and what we currently know about the underlying science of mind. Using concrete examples from direct practice, this paper will lay out the framework that is consonant with Siegel's interpersonal neurobiology, discussed in this volume, and also firmly rooted in the person-in-environment perspective that is characteristic of social work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence-based practice (EBP) is increasingly emphasized in social work, yet effective approaches for translating research evidence into social work practice remain elusive. Despite a growing body of evidence describing effective interventions with a variety of populations, social workers continue to encounter substantial challenges with incorporating knowledge gained from these intervention studies into their routine practice with clients. This paper presents the current research outlining the known barriers and promoters to using EBP in social work clinical practice. Because social workers practice within the context of organizations, we consider the barriers that exist at both the individual and organizational levels that affect clinical social work practice. In addition to addressing the various challenges to incorporating research evidence into practice, we will also discuss a variety of emergent opportunities accompanying the move toward EBP that can be leveraged by clinicians in their social work practice with clients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Each step of the refugee migratory journey has its own unique characteristics and mental health consequences, which require much attention from social work service providers. In an effort to provide quality service delivery for refugees, their premigration, migration and post-migration traumatic experiences need to be examined and understood beyond current narrow formulations. Integrating the concepts derived from refugee trauma and psychological distress literature, the author presents in this paper group-based interventions grounded in cultural competency, spirituality and strengths which will enable social workers to provide efficient service delivery and adopt a leadership role among service providers as advocates for refugees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The scarce empirical research into maternal filicide–suicide has resulted in a number of merely descriptive risk factors (depression, suicidality and psychosis) for the offender. The aim of this paper is to highlight the interaction amongst these risk factors via a case study of a woman who survived a filicide–suicide. We come to the conclusion that in order to better understand and prevent this type of crime, clinical social workers and other mental health professionals should take into account affect dysregulation as opposed to focusing merely on descriptive characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

John Bowlby developed attachment theory to explain connections between infant and caregiver behavior and how these impacted children’s behavior. Extended and researched heavily in a variety of contexts, attachment theory has advanced clinical thinking over time. Its core ideas regarding infant and caregiver connections are very useful to mental health practitioners today and have particular ramifications for clinical work with adults. This paper discusses the application of Bowlby’s attachment theory to the clinical treatment of adult depression and explores a relevant case example. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Use of self is a concept that is universally accepted yet equally ambiguous. Melding the professional self of what one knows (training, knowledge, techniques) with the personal self of who one is (personality traits, belief systems, and life experience) is a hallmark of skilled practice. This paper synthesizes seminal works regarding the concept of use of self and suggests a five-category typology for defining and describing use of self in social work practice. Drawing from the literature and practice wisdom gleaned from the author’s clinical, teaching, and supervisory observations, the article proposes that use of self can be operationally defined as: use of personality; use of belief system; use of relational dynamics; use of anxiety; and use of self-disclosure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how the psychotic experience of the penetration of destructive objects and a loss of boundaries appears in the delusions experienced by a woman who reported early sexual trauma. Through a close analysis of these psychotic experiences, this research seeks to illustrate how a psychotic personality organization, coupled with repeated early attacks on the integrity and boundaries of the self, can create a pervasive sense of being relentlessly pursued and penetrated by destructive objects. These delusions may serve multiple functions, as will be discussed. It is suggested that working through these experiences within the therapeutic relationship involves a gradual process of separating the inner from the outer, the destructive from the benevolent, so that a less fragmented, more integrated sense of self can emerge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the author presents detailed clinical material to portray the experience of intensive therapy shared with a young school-aged boy and his very troubled mother. The therapy involved a challenging combination of triadic sessions along with dyadic child-therapist sessions observed by the boy's mother from behind a one-way mirror. The discussion centers on the impact of complex transference and countertransference experiences and recommends conjoint sessions as the first option when treating young school-aged children in relationship with a highly troubled parent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes mental health risks to the birth-to-three foster care population. The paper describes risks of a relational and contextual nature. Relational risk factors, which have been previously identified by foster care researchers and clinicians, include the following: 1. Poor attachment signaling by foster infants and toddlers; 2. Discomfort with infant and toddler dependency by some foster parents; and 3. Regulatory problems of foster infants and toddlers. Contextual risk factors include the following: 1. Lack of coordinated and coherent efforts to help foster infants and toddlers and; 2. Lack of support for the parent- child relationship during placement. A case example and discussion is offered to illustrate these risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Southeast Asian refugees have suffered severe traumas, and face the challenges of adapting to a new and unfamiliar land. The paper identifies techniques for time-limited mental health treatment with this group. These include the initial task of establishing clinician credibility (by focusing on symptom reduction), assisting resettlement, and working through the traumas they suffered. In addition, the special challenges of working with refugees are addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cultural stigma of mental illness and substance abuse creates silence and barriers for some South Asian communities. While little is known about mental health challenges and substance use in South Asian (SA) females, it is especially important to understand the challenges and various obstacles that prevent formal treatment enrollment and retention. These include cultural stigma and patriarchal traditions whereby women's agency is removed, making treatment seeking and retention significantly harder. Treatment is often the "last resort," therefore social workers and clinicians have a small window of opportunity to engage SA female clients. The overarching framework of feminist therapy coupled with cultural humility are approaches that allow clinicians to be genuine and examine power and powerlessness with clients. These interventions build trust in the therapeutic relationship and empower the client to move toward liberatory change. Practitioners must also value the cultural traditions of collectivism, the influence of patriarchy, and the weight of cultural stigma. This article discusses interventions to engage and build therapeutic relationships with South Asian female clients and their unique challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although clinicians need to be able to rely on a conception of psychological health, it has been extraordinarily difficult to define health satisfactorily, especially from an adaptational perspective. This paper proposes viewing mental health as a highly developed capacity to create meaning with the content of the sense of self being highly differentiated, articulated and integrated. Examples of how this concept of "identity complexity" fits with clinical social work practice are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author proposes that the emotional impact of physical abuse of young children is predictable and occurs in a relatively orderly sequence. This sequence is described and a diagnostic tool for determining the depth of the impact is offered. The author proposes that this model may be used as a foundation to guide therapists in making effective clinical interventions with children in situations that often present themselves with great urgency and emotional pain. Treatment of the abusing parent, an essential part of the overall treatment plan for the child, is beyond the scope of this paper, which focuses exclusively on issues relating to children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to explore triangular dimensions in individual psychotherapy. In addition to serving as the dyadic object of transference projection and/or as ‘selfobject’ for a person in psychotherapy, the therapist may be called upon to help the patient work on relationships with certain early, important people or their representations and on the interplay between such relationships and the therapeutic one, that is, in a triangular configuration. Because patients' attempts to introduce ‘others’ into individual psychotherapy are sometimes experienced by therapists as ‘resistant’ rather than as integral to the therapeutic process, I propose an empathic reconsideration of such patient efforts to get us to help with the complicated dimensions of human relatedness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the meaning of empathy in clinical social work. It differentiates empathy from the related concepts of sympathy, insight, identification, and intuition. It examines the phenomenon of affect transmission, defines different types of empathy, describes major errors and postulates how empathy can be improved. Clinical illustrations are used throughout. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper will discuss the emotional developmental problems displayed by those who are deaf at birth. In order to provide an in-depth understanding of the emotional needs of the prelinguistic infant the distinctive perspectives and concerns of various developmental psychologies will be reviewed. The tremendous need for mental health and social work services for the deaf population and their families has been rarely discussed, therefore, the last stage of this presentation will provide some suggestions for clinical treatment and prevention programs for deaf individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines adolescents who are mourning the traumatic death of peers. A psychodynamic model is employed in offering crisis intervention to individuals and groups of grieving adolescents within a school setting. Case vignettes highlight the psychological impact of the death of a peer on an adolescent's functioning and ego development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, there has been an increased appreciation of the importance of the role of father in childhood development. The first part of the article presents a review of the psychoanalytic, developmental literature on the role of the preoedipal father, dividing it into two categories. One concerns father's functions and the other concerns the results of father's failures during the preoedipal period. The second part of the article deals with the author's clinical experience. The author worked for several years with a group of young Vietnam era veterans in a Veterans Administration Mental Hygiene Clinic. All of these patients exhibited psychopathology indicative of disturbances during the preoedipal period and failure to complete the separation-individuation process. Their histories revealed physically or emotionally absent fathers. In light of father's psychological impact on his son, the author combined this group with a group of older veterans, who were all fathers themselves. The group was led by a male-female cotherapy team. The paper reports the experience of the group after a period of a year. One of the primary effects of the group was that a simulated father-son group developed in which the older men carried out parental functions, generally associated with fathering. According to the literature cited, such functions facilitate the separation-individuation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anxiety may be so significant a block to problem-solving and the treatment process that clinicians, regardless of their treatment orientation, often find it useful to have tranquilizing medications prescribed for their clients as a concomitant to therapy. This paper reports on the practical application of group relaxation training as an anxiety management tool for clients at mental health centers. Besides teaching relaxation, this training, for which there are no contraindications listed in the Physicians Desk Reference, teaches body awareness and self-regulation, specificity and clarifying thoughts, and is a useful model for the rational, problem-solving process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the reasons for the inferior status of social work in relation to the other major mental health professions. The problem stems primarily from most social workers' difficulty in perceiving themselves as competent mental health professionals, a perception which then causes them to behave as though they are in fact subservient to psychiatrists and psychologists. They thus ensure their treatment as second-class psychotherapists. This subservient behavior was originally adaptive and helped the profession to survive; however, it has become unnecessary and self-destructive. The time has arrived for social workers to take themselves seriously and to make a conscious effort to communicate their worth actively. Recommendations for improvement of social work's image are offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the results of a study conducted to determine how BSW and MSW social work students differentially assess the relative prestige and effectiveness of casework, psychotherapy, and private practice in relation to thirteen other social work methods, and to ascertain what methods they would ideally like to practice upon graduation from their respective programs. The results indicate that undergraduate and graduate students view the average prestige and effectiveness of the three clinical methods quite differently. Also, the results reveal a very low correlation between what methods the students would like to practice and how they assess their prestige and effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social workers functioning within interdisciplinary settings are increasingly needful of good communication skills. This paper examines some basic principles of transactional analysis and suggests their application to interdisciplinary functioning. Important practice skill areas are outlined, along with suggestions for implementing these skills. Examples of interdisciplinary communication exchanges are given, as well as therapeutic inputs which can be made to facilitate good problem-solving communication. Special emphasis is given to the concepts of ego structure, contamination, communication transactions, importance of strokes, basic life positions, and games. The overall premise suggests that application of TA principles will enhance interdisciplinary communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]