The quality of the verbal environment sets the stage for young children's developing perceptions of themselves and others. This document provides hands-on, practical advice for practitioners to support children's self-perception and coping skills by establishing and maintaining a positive verbal environment. Positive verbal environments enhance…

Poses 10 questions and provides answers that should help school administrators begin to cope with job-related stress. (WD)

The problem of human response to loss is complex. To approach understanding of this process it is valuable to use a number of models. Phenomenologically the application of a temporal matrix divides the reaction into three useful heuristic and empirical stages: initial, acute grief (1-3 months); mourning (1-2 years); and post-mourning, with no set…

Presents the concept of bibliotherapy and discusses the value of books--particularly modern fiction and poetry--for helping individuals to cope with death and other personal crises. Several specific titles are recommended for adults. (MES)

Loneliness is experienced by nearly everyone, although its frequency and intensity vary widely. Existential loneliness may derive from the universal experience of separation from the mother in leaving the womb; it is an intrinsic and organic reality of each life. The other kind of loneliness comes from self-rejection and self-alienation from…

Provides guidelines from social work perspective on how social workers and health care professionals can provide bereavement counseling for families whose relatives have died in emergency room. Discusses providing family with privacy and accessibility; keeping family informed; using understandable terminology; speaking directly about death;…

In family counseling, the therapist must take into account the developmental level and contextual framework of the family. Within the family, anger can occur over both intrapersonal and interpersonal issues. The therapist must determine the cause for the anger, how it is manifest, and what it represents. Some possible causes for anger within the…

Examines (1) a simple model of the origin, development, and effects of stress; (2) the 12 most important causes of stress found in a survey of Oregon school administrators; (3) coping strategies used by the administrators surveyed; and (4) management skills as a potential coping technique. (MCG)

A model is presented for analyzing the influence of culture on the coping behavior of families with disabled children, using examples from families in Norway and Botswana. The model considers culture's impact on the process of coping through emotional patterning, expectations of life and future, life experiences, and actual opportunities. (JDD)

Describes writing process of student-authored books, I Am the Author Books (ITAB), designed to move children through therapeutic process by assigning them to be experts in their own problem areas. Describes process of creating ITAB by narrating actual book guided by one of the authors working with fourth grade girl whose preschool-age sibling had…

Identifies demands that may pose a dilemma for elementary school counselors, categorizing these demands by their source: school principals, teachers, and parents. Provides specific examples for various types of demands presented by each source. Guidelines are provided to help counselor cope with dilemmas at the workplace. (NB)

Division E of the American Educational Research Association is concerned with counseling and human development, yet these two components often appear to be poorly integrated. The integration of counseling and human development, however, is important both for scientific advance and for the provision of better service. A major goal for both…

Discusses the problems faced by beginning teachers and suggests ways of making entry into the teaching profession less traumatic and more successful. (Author/WD)

Notes that, as the population ages, the number of adults with visual impairments grows proportionately. Explores the population of visually impaired adults and discusses suggestions for counselor education relevant to preparing counselors to meet the needs of adults with visual handicaps. (Author/NB)

University department chairs need to manage stress to their advantage. Myths pertaining to stress include: (1) stress is harmful; (2) stress should be avoided; (3) stress correlates with level of responsibility; (4) stress is predominantly a male phenomenon; and (5) there is one appropriate coping method. The Chair Stress Cycle provides a broad…