Related Posts

• Prioritizing Student Wellbeing: Mental Health Days

  

  This article is part of PAR’s Mental Health Awareness Month series, in which we will be focusing on the multifaceted issue of mental health in the U.S. Come back each week for more insight.  Before the pandemic, reports indicated a concerning increase in mental health issues among American youth, including rising feelings of sadness, hopelessness, and suicidal ideation. There was already an approximate 40% surge in these factors before the COVID-19 pandemic introduced additional stressors such as social isolation, disruptions in daily routines, and economic strain due to caregiver job losses. These stressors led to a significant increase in mental health emergencies, with a 24% increase in emergency department visits for mental health issues among children aged 5–11 and a 31% increase among those aged 12–17. Suspected suicide attempts among girls aged 12–17 also rose by 51% in 2021 compared to 2019.  The issue of chronic absenteeism, where students miss 10% or more of instructional days per year, has only added to the existing problems. Before the pandemic, in the academic year 2021–2022, more than 66% of students attended schools where ...

• When should a test be updated or revised?

  

  This week, Sierra Iwanicki, PhD, clinical psychologist and project director at PAR, explains the background to a question PAR often receives—when and why does a test need to be updated or revised?  PAR frequently receives questions about the need to update or revise the instruments we publish. We often look for guidance from published literature and professional organizations such as the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) and the American Psychological Association (APA) to help guide our decisions. Although there are no absolute rules regarding when to update or revise, these professional guidelines and ethical codes provide examples of situations that would prompt the need for test revision. Here is some of the guidance we follow when determining when and if a revision is necessary:  The Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing states that “revisions or amendments are necessary when new research data, significant changes in the domain, or new conditions of test use and interpretation suggest that the test is no longer optimal or fully appropriate for some of its intended uses” (pp. 83). The Standards also notes that the decision to revise or update psychological tests may be considered when there is a change in the conceptualization ...

• The Psychology Behind New Year's Resolutions

  

  As we embark on a new year, people worldwide are establishing their New Year's resolutions. Although resolutions may be time-honored tradition, many resist the urge as an endeavor that is bound to fail. Let’s delve a bit deeper into the psychology behind New Year’s resolutions and what helps people to achieve their goals.  According to a recent survey conducted by Forbes Health, the attitudes of 1,000 U.S. adults toward their New Year's resolutions and the types of goals they prioritize have undergone a significant shift.  Although fitness and weight loss remain popular for the new year, 36% of participants expressed a commitment to improving their mental health. In fact, 55% of participants acknowledged that mental health should be given equal significance as physical well-being in their resolutions for the coming year. So, as we move into 2024, prioritizing mental well-being may be the focus for many.   The psychology behind goal setting  The same Forbes Health poll also revealed that 60% of people feel pressured to set a New Year's resolution. Among these individuals, 37% have specific goals for 2024, and 66.5% plan to ...

• Evaluate change in individuals with ASD

  

  The newest additions to the PDD Behavior Inventory (PDDBI) product family are now available.  The PDDBI can better help you to document and evaluate change in individuals on the autism spectrum. The PDDBI is an informant-based rating scale that can be completed by parents and teachers to assess features of autism and responsiveness to intervention.  Unlike other measures for ASD, the PDDBI was developed to assess both problem behaviors as well as appropriate social, language, and learning/memory skills. It can be used in assessment, treatment planning, and monitoring. Two new reports and a manual supplement have just been released. PDDBI supplement provides practical insights  The just-released PDDBI Professional Manual Supplement: Advanced Score, Multirater, and Progress Monitoring Interpretation digital supplement provides practical insight into the reasoning behind the development of the new reports as well as their application in practice.  This new supplement provides guidance for calculation and interpretation of parent–teacher rating comparisons and tracking changes in scores over time using Reliable Change Indices. In addition, it includes guidance for advanced interpretation of the PDDBI, including interpretation of individual scores and clusters and comparisons between ...

• Tips for successful teleassessment with children

  

  This week’s blog was contributed by Carrie Champ Morera, PsyD, NCSP, LP. Carrie is a licensed school psychologist and the lead project and content director at PAR.  During in-person assessment sessions, you're in control of setting up the physical environment to make it conducive to success. When you work with children and adolescents via telehealth, specifically for teleassessment, you provide not only clinical services but also  guidance to prepare younger clients for their remote sessions. Failure to do so can interrupt telehealth treatment or teleassessment, decrease remote participation and engagement, and jeopardize the ideal conditions needed to establish rapport and build a therapeutic alliance.   Here are 10 tips to consider as you design and maintain a working teleassessment environment with children and adolescents.  Before your first remote session with your student, let them know what to expect. Replicate what you would do during an in-person session.  Before beginning teleassessment, ensure your client has all the materials they need. We developed a checklist to help you get started, available here.  Provide the client with a moment to adjust after entering the assessment space. Take your ...

• June 27 is PTSD Awareness Day

  

  After a traumatic event, it is common for individuals to experience stress reactions. However, when symptoms exist for longer than a few months, a person may be experiencing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). According to recent research, about 6 out of every 100 people (or 6% of the U.S. population) will have PTSD at some point in their lives. June 27 has been named PTSD Awareness Day to help more people understand the scope and impact of this disorder and to provide those affected with paths to healing.   What is PTSD? PTSD is a mental health condition that individuals may develop after experiencing or witnessing traumatic events. Although often associated with combat veterans, PTSD can impact any person of any age after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event.  Individuals with PTSD may experience nightmares or unwanted memories of the trauma, avoidance of situations that bring back memories of the trauma, heightened reactions, anxiety, or depressed mood that impact their ability to perform in their social life, work life, or other important activities.  PTSD is associated with a range of physical and psychological symptoms. In addition to the ...