The Training of Receptionists

The role of the receptionist in the intake/therapeutic process has been largely ignored in the literature. However this role has been demonstrated in practice to have considerable importance. On the one hand an administrative position, the receptionist in a counselling agency is also required to talk with and to some extent “manage” people in crisis, elicit some information and yet not get into the client's request in detail. It is argued that because of these additional, specialised, potentially stressful tasks, the role and training of receptionists in counselling agencies should be reconsidered. Given the recent introduction of the Training Guarantee Legislation (1990), the welfare sector now has the opportunity to re-assess carefully the training and support needs of reception staff with a view to improving the counselling service as a whole.     

Turkey and the European Union: Modernizing a Traditional State?

This paper discusses the difficulties encountered when reforms are attempted to the administration of public policy in Turkey. This discussion is timely, since Turkey has recently stepped up its modernization agenda in its drive to gain membership of the European Union. The paper briefly examines the political and administrative structure of Turkey before discussing the influence of the EU on the country's modernization agenda.     

THE LIFE-CYCLE LABOR SUPPLY OF MARRIED WOMEN AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR HOUSEHOLD INCOME INEQUALITY

In a life-cycle model of married womens' labor supply the husband's expected lifetime income should have a greater effect on his wife's labor supply than should his current income. Using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics data, the husband's average lifetime income (over the panel years) does have a greater negative income effect than current income. However, this income effect has declined over time: the labor supply of wives is becoming less sensitive to their husbands' incomes. This declining elasticity would cause household income inequality to worsen over time, but has been offset by other factors.     

Workplace discrimination and traumatic brain injury: the national EEOC ADA research project

Using the Integrated Mission System of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the employment discrimination experience of Americans with traumatic brain injury is documented. Researchers compare and contrast the key dimensions of workplace discrimination involving Americans with traumatic brain injury and persons with other physical, sensory, and neurological impairments. Specifically, the researchers examine demographic characteristics of the charging parties; the industry designation, location, and size of employers against whom complaints are filed; the nature of discrimination (i.e., type of adverse action) alleged to occur; and the outcome or resolution of the investigations. Findings indicate that persons with traumatic brain injury were more likely to encounter discrimination after obtaining employment as opposed to during the hiring process. They were also more likely to encounter discrimination when they were younger or Caucasian or when employed in the Midwestern or Western United States. Implications are addressed.     

Social Entrepreneurship: An exploratory citation analysis

Research on Social Entrepreneurship became a growing field of interest during the past decades. However, as the heterogeneity of investigated topics is rather large the purpose of this contribution is to provide an overview of the current state of research on Social Entrepreneurship. In doing so previous research is structured to identify major contributions and thereby key discussion lines within this field. Based on a bibliometric citation analysis of 129 core papers and 5,228 cited references, five topic clusters are identified within the field of Social Entrepreneurship: 1) Definitions and conceptual approaches, 2) Impetus, 3) Personality, 4) Impact and performance, and 5) Future research agenda. By reflecting the literature of each discussion line, a framework for the advancement of Social Entrepreneurship research is provided.     

Commentary regarding parenting coordination in cases of high conflict disputes

There is oftentimes no distinction in disputed divorce or child custody cases between “high conflict” and “abusive” relationships. This commentary addresses the important distinction between high conflict divorce cases and cases of intimate partner violence (IPV) and highlights the differences between the two terms. It further explores the role of parenting coordination efforts in high conflict cases and how those efforts are not always appropriate in cases of abuse. There is also further discussion regarding the importance of appropriate training for parent coordinators and, at minimum, what that training should entail.     

Trauma Screening in Students Attending a Medical University

Abstract

Clinicians seldom assess trauma history in patients who seek treatment for psychological problems, yet trauma exposure is often related to psychological distress. Assessing trauma history can provide valuable information for treatment conceptualization and provision, although patients may not spontaneously share their histories because of embarrassment, avoidance, or other concerns. The authors compared 73 students at a southeastern US medical university who sought counseling and psychological services and completed intake paperwork without a trauma screen with 130 students whose intake procedures included trauma screening. They found that (a) patients who were specifically asked about trauma history were more likely to report such events, (b) previous physical assaults with a weapon were related to current psychological distress, and (c) physical assaults with or without a weapon were related to clinically significant psychological distress. These findings suggest that screening for lifetime trauma history should be a standard part of mental health screenings in similar medical university counseling centers.     

A Longitudinal Analysis of Parenting Practices,Couple Satisfaction,and Child Behavior Problems

This longitudinal study examined the relationship between couple relationship satisfaction, parenting practices, parent depression, and child problem behaviors. The study participants (n = 148) were part of a larger experimental study that examined the effectiveness of a brief family-centered intervention, the Family Check-Up model. Regression analysis results indicated that our proposed model accounted for 38% of the variance in child problem behavior at Time 2, with child problem behavior and couple relationship satisfaction at child age 2 years each accounting for a significant portion of the variance in child problem behavior at age 3. Couple relationship satisfaction directly predicted child behavior problems over time. Clinical and research implications are discussed.