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The purpose of the present research was to test the utility of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) subscales in differentiating between children with Attentional Dificit Disorder (ADD) and children with other problems. Twenty-four children with ADD and a control group of 19 children with behavioral/emotional disorders were identified on the basis of historical background and intake interview. The results indicated that scores on three WISC-R subscales—Arithmetic, Digit Span, and Coding—were significantly lower among the ADD group. The practical implications of the findings are discussed.

An exhaustive test-retest reliability study was made of the intake interview used by Abraxas' residential drug program. The study is notable in that (1) 143 wide-ranging questionnaire variables were examined, (2) all tested clients were under court pressure, and (3) the second interview was given after an average of 8 months in treatment. Reliability coefficients for 50% of the 143 items were found to be greater than or equal to .70, 83 were greater than or equal to .50, and the lowest coefficient recorded was .24. Although the clients tended to suppress some sensitive material in the first interview, it was concluded that considerable self-reported information can be obtained from court-stipulated clients within a few days after admission.

The present study examined the effects of general and specific psychotherapy role induction on return rates and attendance in psychotherapy for substance-abusing clients. The subjects were 111 of 129 consecutive applicants to a community outpatient drug treatment center. Following a standard intake interview, clients received either a general psychotherapy role induction or a drug treatment specific role induction, or were placed in one of two control conditions. Results indicated that clients who received role induction procedures were more likely than controls to return after the intake interview. Furthermore, clients who received the drug treatment specific role induction returned at a significantly higher rate than all other clients. Analysis of attendance rates after 3 months showed that role induction had no effect on continuation in treatment.

Among the unsurpassed virtues of audiorecordings are their incorruptibility and their completeness. Word for word, laughters or sighs, stutters or stammers, irritated or soothing tone of voice, the duration of silences, all is faithfully and completely stored, to be studied and restudied at will. Although in use for over 50 years, audiorecordings of psychoanalyses or psychotherapies are not generally accepted by the analytic community. A recent exchange of arguments may be found in Frick (1985) and in Gill’s (1985) response to it (for a more recent review see Kachele et al., this volume).

A high proportion of clients unilaterally drop out of rehabilitation and psychological treatment programs. The purpose of the present study, conducted at a comprehensive rehabilitation center, was (a) to devise an intake interview that would differentiate those clients who would drop out from those who would remain in the program and (b) to interview the dropouts after termination to understand their reasons for leaving their treatment program. Dropouts' responses on these interviews were compared to those of a control group of successful clients who had been matched on demographic variables. The results of the initial interview indicated four factors that successfully identified potential dropouts: (a) unrealistically high expectations, (b) low levels of family support for the client's going to work, (c) parents not working outside the home, and (d) a history of few work responsibilities at home. The final interview suggested four major ways a center should try to reduce the dropout rate; (a) prepare the client for the center by establishing realistic expectations, (b) develop a sense of personal efficacy, (c) obtain family support, and (d) improve social interactions among clients at the center.

The Regional Intervention Program for Preschoolers and Parents (RIP) represents a pioneering effort in the treatment of families with young handicapped children. The program model is characterized by the use of parents as primary therapists for their own children, as trainers of fellow parents, and as implementors of the service delivery system’s daily operation. Founded in 1969 in Nashville, Tennessee, the current RIP network is composed of 21 certified programs in 15 communities in the United States, Canada, and Brazil.

Interview data on 77 hospitalized male psychiatric patients were compared to professional staffs' in vivo evaluations, trained judges' evaluations of video-taped role-plays, as well as patients' self-report evaluations of their social skill. The results on overall skill ratings showed good reliability between two senior research staff members who conducted the interviews (r = 0.66) and between the video judges (r = 0.92). While the convergent ratings of professionals corresponded significantly with the interview ratings, the self-report ratings did not. Agreement between raters and correspondence among rating sources are discussed in the context of the amount of structure in each observational setting.

This study examined the relationships among demographics, personality variables, drug use, and early attrition from substance abuse treatment. Attrition was considered at two time intervals; immediately (after one visit) and after 2 months. One hundred consecutive admissions to a community drug-abuse treatment center were given the MCMI and the SCL-90R following a standard intake interview. Subjects were classified according to their primary drug of abuse, yielding 16 opiate, 16 amphetamine, 34 cocaine, and 29 marijuana abusers. ANOVA's, ANCOVA's, and chi-squares were performed to compare characteristics of the different groups. Immediate Dropouts were less likely to be court mandated than Remainers, but were not different on any other demographic or drug use variable. Remainers had higher scores than Immediate Dropouts on 7 MCMI scales. A significant interaction between drug type, symptom severity, and early attrition was found for amphetamine abusers with high levels of subjective distress as measured by the SCL-90R. These clients dropped out earlier than amphetamine abusers without elevated SCL-90R scores. Analysis also indicated that Long-Term Remainers were less likely to be employed than Dropouts. All other comparisons between these groups failed to produce significant differences. This study confirms earlier research which found a high rate of early attrition from treatment with substance-abusing clients. Results also indicate that severity of psychopathology is not key in predicting attrition; it is more the nature of the disorder that influences client dropout. It is argued that continuation in community treatment is problematic for most substances abusers, and treatment facilities should routinely employ attrition prevention procedures.

The Therapy Session Report, a parallel-structured response questionnaire, was utilized to study the feelings of inexperienced therapists. 57 college student applicants at a university counseling center reported on their perceptions of their therapists' feelings immediately following an intake interview. The 19 therapists, clinical psychology graduate students in training, also reported what they felt during the intake session. Factor analysis of patients' perceptions of their therapists' feelings resulted in four factors, the first two accounting for 85% of the common variance. Factor analysis of therapists' perceptions of their own feelings resulted in nine factors. Results suggest that, while patients view their therapists in generally negative or generally positive terms, inexperienced therapists experience considerable affective discomfort during their intake sessions.

Forty alcoholic inpatient men were used to evaluate the test-retest reliability and the validity of a new structured diagnostic interview. The Alcohol Research Center (ARC) Intake Interview was constructed from the Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (SADS) parts I and II and from the Diagnostic Interview Schedule family history section by extracting information on diagnoses most likely to be seen in alcoholic patients and by expanding the data set with questions relevant to alcohol and drug use. The test-retest reliability for patients' primary and secondary diagnoses included a kappa of 1.00 for the comparison of interviewers A and B (100% agreement) and of .76 for interviewers A and C. The validity of ARC Intake Interview patient diagnoses as compared to the SADS demonstrated an overall agreement between 91 and 100%. Reliabilities for labeling of families as positive or negative for specific illness in any first-degree relatives revealed a kappa of 1.00; validities on family diagnoses ranged from 77 to 100%, with the ARC Intake Interview identifying more illness in families than the SADS. Although further evaluation of the ARC Intake Interview is needed, this instrument is recommended to investigators attempting to evaluate the clinical course and treatment needs among alcoholics, especially those patients presenting with multiple diagnoses.

Provision of support services for learning disabled (LD) college students is a relatively new endeavour for many postsecondary institutions. In the 1970s, a handful of comprehensive college programs for LD students were initiated which opened the doors of higher education to LD students whose high school grades and college entrance examination scores would have ordinarily led to their rejection. Pressure from parents, professionals, and LD adults themselves, and fiscal instability because of declining enrolment provided additional impetus and made more institutions receptive to students with a history of learning disabilities. However, the most persuasive “argument” for offering support services to LD college students was the passage of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, sometimes called the civil rights statute of the disabled. The section states that: “No otherwise qualified handicapped individual shall, solely by reason of his handicap, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.” Section 504 means that most institutions of higher education are now required to ensure the right of qualified handicapped students to enter colleges and universities and to participate fully in all programs.

The reporting of a case history presents an immediate dilemma. Does one start from scratch with a new case and attempt to follow an ideal prescription, so as to achieve a model instance of assessment and treatment? Or does one report, with flaws included, an already completed case which was seen in routine fashion? Both approaches have merit. The former may serve as an unblemished treatment prototype, while the latter is probably closer to the reality of how clinicians actually work.

This article addresses the practical problem of economically assessing a patient's support systems within the exigencies of a psychiatric emergency service and the limits of a routine intake interview. The methodology described includes an open-ended clinical interview, in both brief and expanded form, which can be integrated into standard clinic procedures and records. The focus of the interview, the Community Support Systems Assessment, is on the naturally occurring supports available to the patient, with sensitivity to the subcultural and clinical variations that influence the supports that might be expected. The instruments described are essentially clinical tools but serve research purposes as well.

Women with comorbid substance use disorders are an extremely vulnerable group having an increased relative risk of negative outcomes such as incarceration, morbidity and mortality. In Sweden, women with comorbid substance use disorders may be placed in compulsory care for substance abuse treatment. Clinical intake assessment procedures are a distinct aspect of clinical practice and are a foundation upon which client motivation and continued treatment occurs. The current study is a naturalistic quasi-experiment and aims to assess the five-year costs and benefits of a standard intake interview versus an extended psychological and psychiatric assessment for a group of chronic substance abusing women placed in compulsory care in Sweden between 1997 and 2000. Official register data on criminal activity, healthcare use, compulsory care stays and other services was retrieved and all resources used by study participants from date of index care episode was valued. In addition, the cost of providing the intake assessment was estimated. Results show that the extended assessment resulted in higher net costs over five years of between 256,000 and 557,000 SEK per person for women placed in care via the Law on Compulsory Care for Substance Abusers (LVM). Higher assessment costs made up a portion of this cost. The majority of this cost (47–57%) falls on the local municipality (social welfare) and 11.6–13.7% falls on the individual patient. Solid evidence supporting the clinical utility or incremental validity of assessment for improving treatment outcomes in this setting was not confirmed.

El objetivo de esta investigación fue conocer el perfil sociodemográfico y el patrón de uso de cocaína y crack, y su asociación con tabaco y otras sustancias entre usuarios que asisten a un tratamiento ambulatorio. Participaron 139 usuarios (87,3% hombres y 12,7% mujeres), que hicieron parte del 'Tratamiento breve para usuarios de cocaína' (TUBC), de la Facultad de Psicología de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM). Los instrumentos utilizados fueron el cuestionario de preselección y la entrevista inicial. Encontramos que hay diferencias en el perfil de los consumidores de coca y los de crack. Sigue siendo mayor la proporción de consumidores de coca que de crack; los consumidores de coca tienen mayor escolaridad que los consumidores de crack; la mayoría de ambos consumidores han conservado un empleo. Más usuarios de coca habían asistido a un tratamiento. Estos resultados son muy útiles para ampliar el conocimiento sobre las características que tienen este tipo de consumidores y ayudar a perfilar los tratamientos específicos que cada uno requiere. The aim of this investigation was to recognize the socio demographic profile of crack and cocaine consumers that have attended an ambulatory treatment. As a well as, to define the crack and cocaine usage patterns and their association with tobacco and other substances amongst these groups of consumers. 39 users took part in the investigation (87.3% men and 12.7 women) said participants had all received the Brief treatment for cocaine users (TUBC) at the faculty of psychology of the UNAM. The items used in this study were: a preselecting questionnaire and an intake interview. Our results showed that there are profile differences amongst cocaine and crack consumers. Firstly, the percentage of cocaine consumers is still higher than the percentage of those who take crack. Secondly, Cocaine consumers have a higher grade of education than crack consumers. Thirdly, there were more cocaine users that had previously attended a treatment. However, the majority of subjects in both groups had managed to maintain their Jobs. These results are very useful to widen the knowledge about the characteristics of each type of consumer; what is more, they help us define the specific treatment each type of consumer requires.

Most European countries have systematic health assessments of refugees with a main focus on infectious diseases. The aim of this study was to describe the broader health care needs identified in newly settled refugee children in a school health setting. The study population consisted of all 609 recently settled Non-European refugee and asylum-seeking children in the age range 6–15 years who were enrolled in the schools of Malmö, Sweden during the autumn semester of 2015, of which 265 had arrived in Sweden unaccompanied. The data were collected in a structured routine intake interview by an experienced school nurse. Almost half of the children had obvious untreated caries. For the unaccompanied children, prominent mental health needs were present in almost one in three. Previously unidentified vision and/or hearing problems were identified in one in ten and around 5% had a daily medication, and 4.5% of the unaccompanied children and 1.2% of the accompanied children were judged to be in need of immediate care and were referred accordingly. Newly settled refugee children in northern Europe have considerable health care needs apart from communicable diseases. School health services have a unique platform to identify and initiate this care.

A simple before-and-after time-series analysis was employed to study the effect of magazine advertising on vasectomy acceptance in Sao Paulo Brazil. The study design used the single Pro-Pater Sao Paulo clinic and a single intervention i.e. the mass media promotional campaign. Service statistics for the years 1984-85 provided the baseline; clinic performance was continuously monitored during the intervention and for a 12-month postintervention period. The formal campaign was initiated during September 1985. 4 advertisements ran for 10 weeks in 8 magazines. By the end of the study the patient file included 3403 records for the baseline period 1475 records for the campaign and 5388 records for the post-campaign period. The telephone calls file contained 4393 records and the letters file 386 records. A clear impact of the advertising campaign was demonstrated both in terms of total number of telephone calls received and in terms of referral source. The advertisements generated 32% of all telephone calls received 47% of calls received during the campaign itself and 9-10% of the calls received in the 2nd half of the post-campaign year. As referrals by advertisements dropped off they were replaced in part by increased referrals from traditional sources providing the 1st evidence of a "multiplier effect." Magazine referrals were significantly less likely to schedule an intake interview than were callers referred by traditional sources -- 51% versus 78%. Clinic performance was positively and significantly affected by the advertising campaign. The mean daily number of new clients doubled during the campaign as compared to the baseline period and remained 60% higher in the post-campaign period. The mean daily number of vasectomies performed increased 76% from the baseline to the campaign period and stabilized at a level 54% higher than baseline during the post-campaign period. 18% of the new clients arriving during the campaign reporting having seen a magazine advertisement; this figure was 4 of the new clients in the post-campaign period. New clients referred by the campaign were on the average 1 year older than those referred by traditional sources. Number of living children did not vary by period. The mean educational level rose slightly during the campaign after which it returned to baseline levels. The cost of the advertising campaign was offset by the additional revenue gained from the increase in vasectomies performed. In sum the study findings support the conclusion that mass media that mass media advertising as an effective and cost-effective means to increase the demand for vasectomy services in Sao Paulo Brazil.

The present study assessed the effects of rationales for therapy on perceptions of a problem of clinical depression by 46 male and 38 female college students who were randomly assigned to one of three experimental groups varied as to the therapeutic rationale presented for a problem of severe non-reactive depression in a middle-aged woman. One rationale was in accord with classical psychoanalysis with the cause of the depression described in terms of unresolved unconscious conflicts and the recommended treatment involving insight. The second rationale was tailored according to rationalemotive therapy depicting long-standing habits of faulry thinking as the cause of the problem and describing the necessity of learning more reasonable interpretations of events as the recommended treaunent. The third experimental group was exposed to a norationale condition. All subjects listened to an audio recording of the case hiscoty and a simulated intake interview between the client and the treating psychologist (JPW). Neither rationale was labeled as psychoanalysis or rational-emotive therapy in the audio recordings or in subsequent rating scales although each had been reviewed and modified by a licensed clinical psychologist of that orientation. Following these taped presentations, subjects completed 28 Likert-type rating scales pertaining to the client's problems and adjustment and in the two therapeutic groups nine additional ratings concerning the rationales and treating psychologist. In a posttest-only control-group design data were analyzed via one-way analyses of variance and Newman-Keuls tests for significant differences, among means. A considerable number of significant resulrs emerged (all ps < .05 or .01). In scoring the questionnaires, various ratings pertaining to similar areas were combined. In all, of a total of 27 comparisons made, 14 attained statistical significance. In general subjects exposed to a treaunent rationale tended to view the client's problem as more understandable than subjects hearing no rationale. While both treatments were perceived favorably, subjects hearing the rationale of rational-emotive therapy indicated more faith in ueatment, saw the client as more likely to improve and likely to improve in a significantly shorter time period than did subjects hearing a psychoanalytic rationale. While clients undergoing actual ueatment might perceive these rationales differently, these results are consistent with others (1, 2) which demonstrate that rationales for therapy influence credibility and expectanq regarding treatment.