Monitor on Psychology - December 2011 - (Page 72)

called Growing Up FAST (Families and Adolescents Surviving and Thriving), his program makes parents and caregivers an integral part of treatment; focuses on the strengths of the child and family instead of their weaknesses; and asks families to identify the issues they want to work on. The intervention also helps juvenile offenders avoid problem behaviors and develop effective life strategies, for example, by asking the youth and adult family members to define what it means to be a successful adult and what steps are needed to get there. Program implementers — who may include psychologists, social workers, family therapists, school guidance counselors, paraprofessionals and parent advocates — coach caretakers in helping the child meet those goals. Financial Services for you… Make the most of your APA membership. APA offers specialized products and services for you, most at reduced rates for members. Let APA help connect you to the best financial services for you. Bank of America Implementers also help the young person face and learn from the problem that got him or her into trouble, and think about alternatives to that action. Meanwhile, parents or caretakers are invited to ask as many questions about the incident as they want. This exercise tends to reveal additional information that the family needs to address, such as a child’s clandestine substance use. Juvenile offenders who participate in the program are 50 percent to 65 percent less likely to be arrested again than matched peers who did not go through the program, according to a 2000 article by Gavazzi and colleagues in Aggression and Violent Behavior. Gavazzi has trained approximately 650 mental health professionals, paraprofessionals and others in five states in the model, and more recently, has modified the framework for use in school systems, discussed in his 2010 book “Strong Families, Successful Students.” In Gavazzi’s view, part of why the program works is its ability to illuminate what is driving the young person’s behavior, whether it is negligent parenting, substance use or emotional difficulties within the family. “Criminal activity is often just a symptom of a much larger set of things that are going on,” he says. Progress in Connecticut In a similar vein, a program in Connecticut developed by Yale University psychologist Elena Grigorenko, PhD, is helping young people already in the criminal justice system learn from and take responsibility for their actions. Grigorenko used an American Psychological Foundation grant to create a 10-week behavioral intervention that uses writing assignments, role play and guided discussions to help more serious young offenders understand and “own” the behavior that landed them in trouble. Her model is now being used throughout Connecticut in both detention and probation centers, and has led to the creation of an assessment device — the situation-judgment inventory — being used to monitor youth compliance and socially oriented changes in thinking and behavior while they’re in detention. Meanwhile, another statewide Monitor on psychology • DeceMber 2011 (auto loans, checking and savings accounts, credit cards, loans, money market and CD accounts) www.bankofamerica.com/apa; http://www.apa.org/membership/finance.aspx ADP (payroll, tax, and HR services) Joshua_Waller@adp.com (301) 296-7836 http://www.apa.org/membership/adp.aspx Elavon (credit card and electronic payment processing) 1-800-546-1831 http://www.apapracticecentral.org/ce/tools/ payment-processing.aspx www.twitter.com/APAbenefits For more information on all APA benefits visit: http://www.apa.org/membership/discounts.aspx 72 http://www.bankofamerica.com/apa http://www.apa.org/membership/finance.aspx http://www.apa.org/membership/adp.aspx http://www.apapracticecentral.org/ce/tools/payment-processing.aspx http://www.apapracticecentral.org/ce/tools/payment-processing.aspx http://www.twitter.com/APAbenefits http://www.apa.org/membership/discounts.aspx

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Monitor on Psychology - December 2011

Monitor on Psychology - December 2011
Letters
President’s Column
Contents
From the CEO
Willpower Pioneer Wins $100,000 Grawemeyer Prize
Single-Sex Schooling Called Into Question by Prominent Researchers
Maternal Depression Stunts Childhood Growth, Research Suggests
For Boys, Sharing May Seem Like a Waste of Time
Good News for Postdoc Applicants
In Brief
Treatment Guideline Development Now Under Way
Government Relations Update
Psychologist Named Va Mental Health Chief
The Limits of Eyewitness Testimony
Judicial Notebook
Random Sample
Time Capsule
Deconstructing Suicide
Questionnaire
A Focus on Interdisciplinarity
A Time of ‘Enormous Change’
The Science Behind Team Science
Good Science Requires Good Conflict
A New Paradigm of Care
Speaking of Education
Science Directions
New Labels, New Attitudes?
Psychologist Profile
Early Career Psychology
Unintended Consequences
Better Options for Troubled Teens
Saving Lives, One Organ at a Time
New Journal Editors
APA News
Division Spotlight
Guidelines for the Conduct of President-Elect Nominations and Elections
American Psychological Foundation
Personalities

Monitor on Psychology - December 2011