Psychology 6080: Interventions with Children and Adolescents
Season/Year
Instructor:
Office:
Phone:
Email:
Class Time:
Class Room:
Office Hours:
or by appointment
Required Texts and Readings:
 Weisz, J.R., & Kazdin, A.E. (2010). Evidence-Based Psychotherapies for Children and Adolescents (2nd
edition). Guilford: New York.
 Assigned readings from published literature
Course Description and Objectives
This course will provide training in skills necessary for working effectively with children and adolescents who
present with mental health needs or health related/physical problems requiring mental health services. It will
cover how to develop, implement, and evaluate intervention programs for these populations. Behavioral
techniques and methods will be emphasized due to the empirical data supporting their validity. Practical, legal, and
ethical issues for working with children and adolescents in educational, mental health, and medical settings also
will be discussed. Finally, skills to evaluate treatment efficacy will be covered.
Objectives:
Students completing this course will demonstrate knowledge of:
 Developmental needs of children and adolescents with mental health problems.
 Common presenting problems of child and pediatric referrals.
 Special considerations in working in mental health, educational and medically based settings.
 A variety of intervention techniques utilized with these populations, with an emphasis on behavioral
techniques.
 The relationship between psychological interventions and medication.
 Application of child mental health law.
Students also will demonstrate skills to:
 Critically evaluate published research on treatment efficacy with children and adolescents.
 Present research findings both verbally and in writing.
 Develop step-by-step treatment protocols for a variety of presenting child/adol mental health problems.
 Evaluate the effectiveness of interventions utilized in clinical practice.
PSY 6080
Standard
#
CMHCJ-1
Clinical Mental
Health Counseling
Research &
Evaluation – Skills
& Practices
Interventions with Children & Adolescents
2009 CACREP Standards
Standard
Learning Activities & Experiences
Applies relevant research findings to inform the
practice of clinical mental health counseling.
Critiques of empirical evaluations of a
treatment method/technique; oral
presentation of studies and treatment
method; case studies with treatment
plan based on evidence-based methods.
Course Requirements
Class participation and activities. Students are expected to come to class, be prepared, and participate. As such,
please read all assigned material before class and come ready for some discussion and/or activities based on that
material. To facilitate your active participation, you are each required to post 1 question/comment on the D2L
discussion board for each day’s assigned readings (chapters and articles), beginning on DAY/DATE. These q/cs
must be posted by TIME on the day they are assigned to be covered in class and must be at least 100 words in
length. They can be a connected set of questions and comments; they can be conceptually-based or applicationbased, discussing how the readings apply to your clinical skills development or your growing understanding of
your field. The idea here is for you to read the material, think about it, and begin to apply it to your professional
world. Think critically. During some class days, we will engage in activities based on the reading materials. For
these activities, students are expected to work with each other during class to “use” what we are learning. Class
participation (postings and class activities/discussions) will be graded as all or none, meaning you either get credit
for participating or you don’t for each class period. For students who have perfect class participation credit (i.e.,
receive credit every class day), your final grade will be raised by half a letter grade (e.g., B+ to A-). Your final grade
will be lowered by half a letter grade (e.g., from an A to an A-) for every 3 class periods for which you receive no
participation credit. Feedback regarding class participation will be provided each class period so that you can alter
your behavior as needed.
Case studies. You will be given two case studies that describe a child or adolescent referral. You will be given
relevant assessment information; based on this information, you will develop an intervention plan to address the
presenting problem(s). The cases will be discussed briefly in class, and further instructions will be provided. Each
case study is worth 125 points. Due dates are DATE and DATE.
Research article reviews. To enhance your abilities to utilize published, empirical literature, you will select a
child/adolescent intervention technique, method, or program that is not covered in class. After receiving approval
from the instructor for your chosen topic, you will search the research literature for empirical studies evaluating
the efficacy and/or effectiveness of that intervention. You will select three (3) articles that involve an empirical
investigation of some form of the technique/program. All studies must have been published in the last 10 years.
You then will turn in a written summary and critique of each of the articles. The first article critique is due DATE;
critiques 2 and 3 are due on DATE. Each article critique is worth 50 pts.
Presentation. Based on the articles you utilize for your reviews, you will conduct a 20-25 minute presentation for
the class during the last week of class. This presentation should include a brief description of your
technique/program, a summary of the research articles you reviewed, and a discussion of the utility of the
technique/program. Your grade will be based on the type and accuracy of information presented as well as your
presentation style. The presentation is worth 100 points.
Grades
Case studies
Empirical Reviews (3 articles)
Presentation
2 x 125
3 x 50
1 x 100
250 pts
150 pts
100 pts
500 total points
Grades will be assigned on the following scale:
A: 460 - 500 total points
C+: 390 – 399 total points
A-: 450 – 459 total points
C: 360 – 389 total points
B+: 440 - 449 total points
C-: 350 – 359 total points
B: 410 – 439 total points
F: 349 or fewer points
B-: 400 – 409 total points
Tentative Course Schedule:
Mon
Mon
D
D
D
D
D
Course overview and introduction
Hx of child psychotherapy and Treatment Efficacy and Effectiveness
Ch. 1
La Greca, A.M., Silverman, W.K., & Lochman, J.E. (2009). Moving beyond efficacy and effectiveness in child and adolescent intervention
research. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 77, 377-382. doi: 10.1037/a0015954
Developmental Factors
Ch. 3
Legal and Ethical Issues
Ch. 2
Treatment of Fear and Anxiety Behaviors
Ch. 4, 5
D
D
D
D
D
Mon
D
D
D
D
D
D
Treatment of Fear and Anxiety Behaviors
Ch. 6
Trauma Recovery Interventions
Ch. 19
Silverman, W.K., et al. (2008). Evidence-based psychosocial treatments for children and adolescents exposed to traumatic events.
Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 37, 156-183. doi: 10.1080/15374410701818293
Interventions with Mood Related Problems: Individual and Group CBT
Ch. 7, 8, 9
DUE: Proposed Topic for Individual Presentations
Interventions with Mood Related Problems: Interpersonal Approaches
Ch. 10
Gaynor, S.T., Lawrence, P.S., & Nelson-Gray, R.O. (2006). Measuring homework compliance in cognitive-behavioral therapy for
adolescent depression. Behavior Modification, 30, 647-672. doi: 10.1177/0145504272979
Self-Mutilation and Cutting
Hazell, P.L., et al. (2009). Group therapy for repeated deliberate self-harm in adolescents: Failure of replication of a randomized trial.
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 48, 662-670.
Gonzales, A.H. & Bergstrom, L. (2013). Adolescent non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) interventions. Journal of Child & Adolescent
Psychiatric Nursing, 26, 124-130.
Gender Issues and Sexual Identity
Meyer-Bahlburg, H. F. (2002). Gender identity disorder in young boys: A parent- and peer-based treatment protocol. Clinical Child
Psychology and Psychiatry, 7, 360-376. doi: 10.1177/1359104502007003005
Menvielle, E. (2012). A comprehensive program for children with gender variant behaviors and gender identity disorder. Journal of
Homosexuality, 59, 357-368. doi: 10.1080/00918369.2012.653305
Tasker, F, & Wren, B. (2002). Editorial: Sexual Identity and Gender Identity: Understanding the difference. Clinical Child Psychology
and Psychiatry, 7, 315-319. doi: 10.1177/1359104502007003001
Pediatric Referrals: Interventions with Children with Chronic Illnesses
Sansom-Daly, U.M., Peate, M., Wakefield, C.E., Bryant, R.A., & Cohn, R.J. (2012). A systematic review of psychological interventions for
adolescents and young adults living with chronic illnesses. Health Psychology, 31, 380-393. doi: 10.1037/a0025977
Long, A., & Palermo, T.M. (2008). Brief Report: Web-based management of adolescent chronic pain: Development and usability testing
of an online family cognitive behavioral program. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 34, 511-516. doi: 10.1093/jpepsy/jsno82
Eating Disorders
Ch. 22
Loeb, K.L., Hirsch, A.M., Greif, R. Hildebrandt, T.B. (2009). Family based treatment of a 17-year old twin.... Journal of Clinical Child
and Adolescent Psychology, 38, 176-183. doi: 10.1080/15374410802575404
Interventions for Pediatric Obesity
Gilles, A., Cassano, M., Shepherd, E.J., Higgins, D., Hecker, J.E., & Nangle, D.W. (2008). Comparing active pediatric obesity treatments
using meta-analysis. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 37, 886-892. doi: 10.1080/15374410802359833
DUE: Research Article Critique #1
NO CLASS – Fall Break
Parent Education and Parenting Interventions: PCIT
Ch. 12
McDiarmid Nelson, M., Shanley, J.R., Funderburk, B.W., & Bard, E. (2012). Therapists’ attitudes toward evidence-based practices and
implementation of PCIT. Child Maltreatment, 17, 47-55. doi: 10.1177/1077559512436674
D
DUE: Case Study #1
Interventions for Oppositional Behavior and Conduct Problems: PMT and Incredible Years
Ch. 11, 13
Interventions for Oppositional Behavior and Conduct Problems: Anger Mgmt and MSFT
Ch. 15, 17
Interventions with Sexual Behavior Problems
D
Interventions with Sexual Offending Behaviors
D
D
Mon
D
D
Carpentier, M.Y., Silvosky, J.F., & Chaffin, M. (2006). Randomized trial of treatment for children with sexual behavior problems: Ten
year follow-up. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 74, 482-488. Doi: 10.1037/0022-006x.74.3.482
Pullman, L., & Seto, M.C. (2012). Assessment and treatment of adolescent sexual offenders: Implications of recent research on generalist
vs specialist explanations. Child Abuse and Neglect, 36, 203-209. doi: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2011.11.003
Worling, J.R.. Littlejohn, A., & Bookalam, D. (2010). 20-year prospective follow-up study of specialized treatment for adolescents who
offend sexually. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 28, 46-57. doi: 10.1002/bsl.912
Interventions with Attention Deficit / Hyperactive Behaviors
Ch. 18
Rajwan, E., Chacko, A., & Moeller, M. (2012). Nonpharmacological interventions for preschool ADHD: State of the evidence and
implications for practice. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 43, 520-526. doi: 10.1037/a0028812
Working with Children of Divorce
Sigal, A.B., Wolchik, S.A., Tein, J.Y., & Sandler, I.N (2012). Enhancing youth outcomes following parental divorce: A longitudinal study
of the New Beginnings Program on educational and occupational goals. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 41, 150165. doi: 10.1080/15374416.2012.651992
D
D
D
D
Mon
D
D
D
D
Toilet Training and Elimination Problem Interventions
Ch. 23
Van Dommelen, P.. et al. (2009). The short- and long-term effects of simple behavioral interventions for nocturnal enuresis in young
children: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Pediatrics, 154, 662-666. doi: 10.1016/j.peds.2008.12.001
Simon, J.L., & Thompson, R.H. (2006). The effects of undergarment type on the urinary continence of toddlers. Journal of Applied
Behavior Analysis, 39, 363-368. doi: 10.1901/jaba.2006.124-05
Interventions with Sleep-Related Behaviors
Tse, L. & Hall, W. (2008). A qualitative study of parents’ perceptions of a behavioural sleep intervention. Child: Care, Health and
Development, 34(2), 162-172. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2214.2007.00769.x
Ortiz, C. & McCormick, L. (2007). Behavioral parent training approaches for the treatment of bedtime compliance in young children.
Journal of Early and Intensive Behavioral Interventions, 4, 511-525.
Burke, R. V., Kuhn, B.R., & Peterson, J. L. (2004). Brief report: A “storybook” ending to children’s bedtime problems: The use of a
rewarding social story… Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 29, 389-396. doi: 10.1093/jpepsy/jsho42
Interventions with Autism/PDD
Ch. 20, 21
DUE: Research Article Critiques 2 and 3
Pulling it all together: What do we know and where do we go?
Ch. 28, 31, 35
Presentations
NO CLASS – Thanksgiving Break
Presentations
DUE: Case Study #2
(TIME) Final Exam Day - Presentations