School Psychology International

The answer to the question is simple: no. The purpose of this paper is to encourage psychologists to intensify their efforts to think in international terms, in order to reduce world conflict and increase inter-human and international harmony.

The purpose of this study was to investigate in Brazilian adults five verbal creative strengths-emotions, fantasy, elaboration, unusual perspective and analogies-which were observed through a new scoring system for the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT) verbal form. Men and women in drama, journalism and psychology were compared on the expression of these creative strengths. Results indicated significant associations among four verbal strengths (emotions, fantasy, elaboration, unusual perspective), and the subjects' creative achievements in the verbal area as well as in different areas. The three professional groups differed in their expression of emotions, fantasy, unusual perspective, verbal creativity index, total creative achievements and in their verbal creative achievements. Sex difference was only observed on the creative strength fantasy. The intercorrelations observed among the subtests indicate that the new scoring method leads to an appropriate psychometric instrument.

This paper contains two proposals: the first is of a theoretical, general didactic character and the second of a quite practical kind. The first proposal displays a so-called 'task approach' to the teaching and learning process; the latter is considered mainly as a set (chain) of consecutive learning tasks put by the teacher during each lesson to his/her pupils. It is affirmed that teachers do not behave with total awareness in this most important domain. In order to change such a situation, it is necessary to offer them the opportunity to attend an appropriate course of inservice training, namely in improving their own systems (sets) of learning tasks addressed to pupils. This forms the content of the author's second, practical proposal.

A brief historical view of the education and of the somewhat new job of psychologist in Brazil, together with an analysis of the present situation of the school psychologist, shows substantial changes in this field. Data obtained from research carried out in primary schools in the city of Sao Paulo, focusing on the performance and the difficulties related to the school psychologist's work, training and professional situation, lead to the conclusion that it is necessary to define clearly the professional role of the school psychologist and to make both the population and the administration aware of their preventive activities.

The subject's perception of self in relation to test-item content affects test performance in ways that are not being measured directly by current testing procedures. In this study, 92 Indonesian students volunteered to evaluate each of the 552 items on the multi-scaled Lutheran Youth Research Inventory according to seven negative and one positive criteria. A review of the literature identified sensitive content areas likely to arouse negative feelings in self-disclosure. The Indonesian student responses are analysed to determine (1) the nature of the most objectionable items, and (2) the rates at which evaluation criteria were being used across all scales. Both procedure of 'testing the test' and the interpretation of Indonesian students' evaluations of test items are discussed as they relate to the accurate interpretation of test data from populations that are not testwise.

After a brief description of agencies and institutions concerned with child abuse in the Federal Republic of Germany, the approach to hospital-based management of child abuse used at the von Haunersche Children's Hospital of the University of Munich is outlined. This approach involves the recognition and management of child abuse within the paediatric hospital and, in addition, an attempt to extend the policy of a helping approach to the community via a working group with participants from all relevant institutions. At the hospital, the physician and hospital social worker work with the parents and offer them support, with the parents participating on a voluntary basis. A case conference is held with the physician, the social worker and representatives of all community agencies that have been involved with the family in the past. The current situation is assessed and a treatment plan developed. Data are presented on 34 children who were hospitalized during a three-year period from 1979 to 1982 for child abuse and neglect. Finally, the composition and work of the Working Group on Child Abuse in Munich are described. Since 1980 representatives of all agencies and institutions concerned have met regularly, with the long-term goal being development of a common approach for recognition and management of child abuse. The list of references includes the major publications in German.

The concept of 'intelligence' is challenged as a means of explaining learning failure. Hypothetical scientists set out to observe why children fail, and meet children who avoid learning from fear, whose life-style ill equips them to give attention to academic detail, who are headstrong and over-dependent, who assume dullness as a strategy, whose impulsivity causes them to bypass mentation by guessing. Therapy should aim at revealing and developing mental capabilities by improving the style of learning. Systematic means are needed for the assessment of learning style. Empirical studies validating the concept as a predictor of attainment are described and their results compared with the predictive value of IQ. An invitation is issued to participate in an international study of cultural differences in children's learning styles.

Counselling in Nigeria, as in most of West Africa, is still in its beginning stages of development. Indeed, one of the complaints found among the few psychologists in Nigeria is the lack of recognition of the field. And yet Nigerian adolescents have much need for the services of a sound guidance and counselling programme. They, like most adolescents everywhere, derive benefit from assistance with developmental concerns such as career choices, identity problems, self-image and self-confidence, and ambivalent feelings toward adult authorities. These problems, common to most young people, are compounded in a developing society where students are under considerable stress from competition for access to higher education and job opportunities. In many cases, they are also leading double lives an intellectual life of western ideas and values and a family life of traditional attitudes and expectations representative of rural and often functionally illiterate settings.