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Behavioral Treatment Programs (behavioral + treatment_program)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Psychology	75%

Selected Abstracts

Showing you can do it: Homework in therapy for children and adolescents with anxiety disorders

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 5 2002
Jennifer L. Hudson
This article discusses the application of homework tasks in an empirically supported treatment for children (aged 8,13 years) with anxiety disorders. Within this program, homework tasks,through practice and rehearsal in the child's natural environment,are an important ingredient to enable the child to increase his or her mastery of the information/skills covered in each session. The homework tasks also provide an opportunity for the therapist to check the child's grasp of the session content through unassisted application of the material. This article discusses issues that arise in the application of homework tasks with a child population (e.g., compliance). Homework in both child- and family-focused treatment is discussed. The issues addressed regarding homework, although raised in the context of anxious children in a cognitive behavioral treatment program, may be broadly applied to children in psychotherapy. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol/In Session 58: 525,534, 2002. [source]

Neuroadaptations of Cdk5 in Cholinergic Interneurons of the Nucleus Accumbens and Prefrontal Cortex of Inbred Alcohol-preferring Rats Following Voluntary Alcohol Drinking

ALCOHOLISM, Issue 8 2006
Marguerite Charlotte Camp
Background: Neurobiological studies have identified brain areas and related molecular mechanisms involved in alcohol abuse and dependence. Specific cell types in these brain areas and their role in alcohol-related behaviors, however, have not yet been identified. This study examined the involvement of cholinergic cells in inbred alcohol-preferring rats following 1 month of alcohol drinking. Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) immunoreactivity (IR), a marker of neuronal plasticity, was examined in cholinergic neurons of the nucleus accumbens (NuAcc) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) and other brain areas implicated in alcohol drinking, using dual immunocytochemical (ICC) procedures. Single Cdk5 IR was also examined in several brain areas implicated in alcohol drinking. Methods: The experimental group self-administered alcohol using a 2-bottle-choice test paradigm with unlimited access to 10% (v/v) alcohol and water for 23 h/d for 1 month. An average of 6 g/kg alcohol was consumed daily. Control animals received identical treatment, except that both bottles contained water. Rats were perfused and brain sections were processed for ICC procedures. Results: Alcohol drinking resulted in a 51% increase in Cdk5 IR cholinergic interneurons in the shell NuAcc, while in the PFC there was a 51% decrease in the percent of Cdk5 IR cholinergic interneurons in the infralimbic region and a 46% decrease in Cdk5 IR cholinergic interneurons in the prelimbic region. Additionally, single Cdk5 IR revealed a 42% increase in the central nucleus of the amygdala (CNA). Conclusions: This study identified Cdk5 neuroadaptation in cholinergic interneurons of the NuAcc and PFC and in other neurons of the CNA following 1 month of alcohol drinking. These findings contribute to our understanding of the cellular and molecular basis of alcohol drinking and toward the development of improved region and cell-specific pharmacotherapeutic and behavioral treatment programs for alcohol abuse and alcoholism. [source]

Feedback for improving staff training and performance in behavioral treatment programs,

BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS, Issue 1 2008
Lucius Arco
This paper reviewed observational studies that examined feedback for changing staff performance in behavioral treatment programs for clients with cognitive, developmental, or psychiatric disorders. The research findings were integrated into the main stages of staff training and management: pretraining, training, and posttraining. Specific recommendations for using feedback are made including defining process and outcome form and content before training, providing on-the-job supervisory feedback while staff practice self-generated outcome feedback until competency is demonstrated, and after training, maintaining self-generated feedback with emphasis on evaluating staff and client interactions with social validity measures. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]