Ten studies concerned with developing culturally sensitive programs for mental health treatment of American minority groups are presented. Chapters 1-5 discuss variables to be considered when creating such programs. Work in cross-cultural settings has raised questions about the validity of some of the newly developed psychiatric diagnostic…

This paper presents an overview of the evolution of the Yale University Child Study Center's School Development Program (SDP) since its implementation in New Haven, Connecticut in 1968. The needs of inner city school children are discussed, and results of parent and staff surveys are presented. A critique of alternative school improvement…

Most studies investigating the decision to seek mental health care have focused on socio-demographic differences in health utilization behavior rather than psychological variables. To evaluate three psychological explanations of help-seeking behavior, i.e., the health belief model, the socio-cultural perspective, and an ego psychological approach,…

These symposium papers describe various aspects of the Camp Logan, South Carolina, program, a therapeutic summer residential program for children, ages 8-14, who have significant behavior problems. The philosophy and advantages of the therapeutic camping model are discussed, e.g., structure during the summer, controlled though informal…

This report, based on a survey conducted during the summer and fall of 1986, identifies culturally sensitive training programs for professionals, paraprofessionals, and others who provide mental health services to refugees. An introductory section discusses the language, cultural, racial, experiential, and socioeconomic factors of refugee mental…

Refugee movements impose tremendous psychological and physical trauma on survivors, making refugees a high risk group for psychopathology and psychosocial adjustment problems. This paper explores the traditional impediments to developing prevention programs for refugees and describes public mental health strategies that could be used for different…

Jefferson County School District, the largest school district in Colorado, commissioned a study to examine the type and extent of mental health needs of elementary school children, the impact of these needs, and appropriate recommendations for the district. Elementary schools were ranked according to estimated socioeconomic status of the students…

This manual is a programed learning tool for mental health professionals which teaches child and adolescent patient management skills to be used in a residential psychiatric care setting. The introduction to the paper describes the basic differences between adult and child psychiatry; behaviors that are abnormal for adults, such as having…

Community mental health centers have been faced with mandates to introduce new programs or improve old ones often without the necessary information or expertise to implement such changes. Community mental health centers (N=39) were studied to identify the nature and extent of information use and factors related to information use. Experts visited…

A consultant is often an effective source of assistance for an agency undergoing change. Community mental health centers (N=80) randomly assigned to treatment and control groups were studied to determine the impact of problem-oriented consultation on problem solution, and the characteristics of both consultant and consultee which are critical in…

This paper describes the program and research related to the "Making It" series of 18 multi-media divorce workshops co-sponsored by a community mental health center (CMHC) and a chapter of Parents without Partners (PWP). An introductory section discusses the rationale for larger scale community intervention and epidemiological research. The…

This publication was developed to provide guidelines for persons conducting continuing education programs for community mental health caregivers. (This would include persons primarily involved in the delivery of health, educational, and social welfare services who also are involved in the psychosocial functioning of their clients.) Following a…

This paper draws on the emerging literature on consultation and education (C and E) information systems as well as on experiences from an in-progress research project on consultation and education in four comprehensive community mental health centers. It (1) provides a brief review of the literature and state of the art of information systems for…

Traditionally, measures of psychological symptomology have been employed as the most useful criteria for identifying needs in specific communities, including measures derived from clinical screening inventories. A path analytic model of the relationships among indicators of need was derived from a survey of 1495 residents from four catchment areas…

This paper reports the progress of an ongoing clinical research project on prevention services for at risk infants of mentally ill mothers. This project extends the prevention focus of early education programs into the mental health field. Previous research findings indicate that maximum preventive effects are achieved when programs (a) begin…