Equine-assisted activities and therapies: enhancing the social worker’s armamentarium

Introduction: Equine-assisted activities and therapies (EAAT) have gained prominence as a viable therapeutic approach for a range of mental health and developmental problems, yet is not widely known and not conventionally provided within the social work educational curriculum. Thus, the purpose of this study is to provide a review of various certification bodies available to social workers in order to bring EAATs into their therapeutic work. Methods: A multi-stage process, including consultation with experts in the field and an online search was undertaken to locate certification programs for mental health professionals. Results: Seven certification organizations were identified; programs varied with respect to mental health pre-requisites, type of certification, training components, and cost. Discussion: There has been substantial growth in EAAT for children with mental health and developmental problems, and there are a range of certification types to select from. Factors to consider when choosing which type of certification to pursue, and barriers to certification are discussed.     

You Can't Get There From Here: Reaching the Outdoors in Senior Housing

By providing access to outdoor environments, exterior doors can enhance the sense of freedom in residential environments for aging. However, doorways may also present barriers to outdoor access. Using environmental audits, this study examined doorway problems at 68 assisted living facilities in three geographic regions. Results were compared with resident surveys (n = 1,128), staff surveys (n = 432), and resident focus groups (n = 76). Specific doorway issues were found to be associated with residents’ weekly minutes of walking, outdoor usage, and perceived ease of reaching outdoor areas. The main problems were door opening/closing, thresholds and landings, and self-locking doors. The findings indicate that exterior doorways often present barriers to assisted living residents, resulting in lower levels of walking and outdoor use. By discouraging these health-related behaviors, doorway problems may negatively affect residents’ health and well-being. Practice implications suggest that many existing doorway problems, such as high thresholds or excessive opening force, are easily remedied.     

Supportive Psychotherapy for Borderline Patients

SUMMARY

An imagined conversation between a clinician/teacher and a beginning therapist conveys the concept of a psychoanalytically informed supportive psychotherapy for borderline patients and incorporates the major hypotheses as to the origin of the disorder. Within a basically developmental point of view, the treatment recognizes the contributions of genetics, animal studies, neuroscience, early interpersonal relationships and the object relations that derive from them. The psychodynamics of a typical case are considered from all of these viewpoints, while the student-therapist is encouraged to keep in mind the basic concepts of psychoanalysis. These include: unconscious mental activity, transference, and the internalization of the therapist's attitude of respectful listening, which leads to the capacity to listen in that way to oneself and others.     

Needs Assessment for a University-Based Employee Assistance Program

Between 10-20 percent of the total employee population in any institution of higher education are troubled employees. The lack of visibility and the absence of structure, especially in faculty positions, are risk factors. Higher education has become proactive in developing Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) in response to organizational personnel problems. A needs assessment survey was conducted to ascertain the need for a university-based EAP in a state university in southern California. The findings suggested that EAP services were needed.     

We Don't Need Your Help,But Will You Please Fix Our Children

A Bowen Family Systems therapist employs concepts of triangles and the family projection process to view a child's symptoms as embedded in the broader family patterns. This article will examine the dynamics of two family therapy cases where parents anxiously asked for their children's symptoms to be fixed. These cases will be used to explore the common presentation in child and adolescent mental health, where the parents are concerned for their children but are also keen not to open their own ‘can of worms’. The presenting problem in the first case was violent hostility between adolescent sisters and in the second case was an adolescent's anorexia. Drawing on client feedback, I reflect on the therapy process behind the divergent outcomes. In case one, the parents were willing to address their own troubled relationship and family of origin, while in case two, the parents discontinued therapy when family of origin dynamics began to be explored. The article suggests how the therapist can evoke parents' curiosity about their role in anxious family patterns, without them feeling blamed.     

PSYCHOTHERAPY IN PRISON: THE FRAME IMPRISONED

Very little is written in the literature by or about clinicians providing psychotherapy in prison. This article will examine psychotherapy in prison through the criteria of Langs’ (Psychotherapy: A basic text. Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson) therapeutic frame. These criteria include: stability and neutrality of the therapeutic setting, therapist anonymity, fee consideration, and confidentiality. I will use my experiences from various prison settings to examine similarities and differences between psychotherapy inside and outside prison.I wish to thank Drs. Jacqueline Helfgott, David Lovell and Lorna Rhodes for their generous time and suggestions toward making this, originally lengthy article, manageable and readable. I am solely responsible for whatever shortcomings remain.     

冷战后韩国对美政策调整及其对中国安全的影响

韩美同盟是冷战的产物，韩国是在美国帮助下完成建国的，并在政治、经济、安全等各方面都极大地依赖于美国。对韩国而言，韩关同盟关系一直是韩国对外政策的基轴和重心。但是冷战后在东北亚地区新秩序的形成中，韩目也不甘平庸，逐渐摆脱以往唯美国马首是瞻的外交政策，在地区事务中不断增强自己的作用和影响，韩美关系的变化给中国安全带来不容忽视的影响。     

企业动态联盟的风险因素及评价研究

根据动态联盟特性,分析了联盟的各种风险因素.针对联盟风险的模糊性和复杂性,建立了多伙伴、多目标联盟风险评价的模糊线性分配模型,并用实例进行了说明.这种方法能较好地将定性和定量相结合,具有实用性和可操作性.     

论战略联盟相互信任的前置因素之一:双方力量的对比

良好的信任关系有利于提高竞争性联盟的绩效水平,力量对比关系是影响信任水平的前置因素之一。竞争性联盟各方力量的对比会影响联盟成员对未来的预期,当联盟内部力量对比均衡时,成员彼此注重长期行为,反之容易导致短期行为并使得信任关系破裂。本研究运用重复博弈理论解释了非均衡力量对比关系的竞争性联盟不利于联盟成员间信任关系的建立,而均衡力量对比关系的竞争性联盟则有利于联盟成员间的相互信任。     

技术联盟的共生模型及其稳定性分析

企业组建技术联盟根本的目的就是基于自己能力缺陷分散风险和降低研发成本,共享技术收益,企业技术联盟是一个典型的利益共生体。Logistic生物种群共生进化模型给技术联盟共生体提供了一个分析框架。分析结果表明:技术联盟企业通过分工形式形成各种关系,以激烈的竞争维持着共生模式的稳定性,遵守联盟规则、维护联盟整体利益最优将是联盟企业的最优选择,政府应该尽力提供政策上的支持,为联盟创造一个良好的外部环境。