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The present study examined the therapeutic factors operating during a psychoeducational group intervention designed to promote school adjustment in first-grade students. The group members completed the Critical Incidents Questionnaire at home after every group session. The therapeutic factors were classified according to Bloch, Reibstein, Crouch, Holroyd, and Themen's taxonomy, although additional categories of critical incidents were applied. Results showed that guidance and acceptance were the most valued therapeutic factors. Cognitive factors were reported more often than behavioral or emotional ones. In addition, the presence of the therapeutic factors was more intense during the beginning and middle stage of the program, gradually giving their place to other categories of critical incidents. Overall, the emergence of therapeutic factors appears to be affected by the program's educational aspect. We suggest that a wider classification of factors is required to reflect the variety of critical incidents occurring during a psychoeducational group intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Research suggests that aggressive children are prone to over-attribute hostile intentions to peers. Aims: The current study investigated whether this attributional style can be altered using a Cognitive Bias Modification of Interpretations (CBM-I) procedure. Method: A sample of 10–12-year-olds selected for displaying aggressive behaviours was trained over three sessions to endorse benign rather than hostile attributions in response to ambiguous social scenarios. Results: Compared to a test-retest control group (n = 18), children receiving CBM-I (n = 16) were less likely to endorse hostile attributions and more likely to endorse benign attributions in response to a new set of ambiguous social situations. Furthermore, aggressive behaviour scores reduced more in the trained group than in the untrained controls. Children who received attribution training also reported less perceived anger and showed a trend to report more self-control than those in the control group. Conclusions: Implications of these findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research in counseling and psychotherapy groups firmly supports the view that a positive member-leader relationship is necessary for client change. However, studies that investigate the ingredients of this relationship are scarce. Forty elementary school children selected for displaying medium to high levels of social anxiety completed several scales measuring emotional traits, cognitions, and social skills, both before and after the termination of the intervention. The Barrett-Lennard Relationship Inventory tapping into members’ perception of facilitative attitudes of a leader (i.e. empathic understanding, congruence, and unconditional positive regard) was also administered twice (at session 3 and after the termination). It was found that a medium change in perception of group leader’s facilitative attitudes from the third to the last session was associated with the greatest reductions in social anxiety and depression scores. Moreover, children who perceived high group leader empathy, congruence, or regard at session 3 reported a significant increase in self-reported likeability, compared to children who evidenced a low perception of the same attitudes. The current findings appear to support the association of leader person-centered attitudes with counseling outcome in a psychoeducational group for social anxiety. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]