"Pandemic Dreams are Susceptible to Priming and Unrelated to COVID-19 Exposure"

"Surveys that have recruited participants through social media and news websites have led researchers and clinicians to conclude that the COVID-19 pandemic has precipitated a parallel pandemic of nightmares that reflect pandemic-induced psychological distress. Many of these surveys were administered to participants who intentionally opted into research knowing that the investigators were soliciting pandemic dream reports. This investigation surveyed 193 college students who were blind to the purpose of the study to assess the prevalence of pandemic dreams and to determine if the wording of the questions could shape responses. Fewer than half could recall a dream. Reports were brief, susceptible to priming, and unrelated to personal SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 exposure. Although this sample was not truly random, it is probably more representative of the US population than those recruited through thematic websites. Clinicians should be aware of problems inherent in survey research and understand how their words can shape client responses."

Inter-Rater Reliability of the California APS Interview for Decisional Abilities (IDA 3.0-CA)

There are few structured methods to assess a client's decisional ability, and none have been evaluated for use by Adult Protective Services (APS) workers. As part of a larger randomized-controlled trial to test the California APS Interview for Decisional Ability (IDA 3.0-CA), we sought to determine the reliability of the instrument. We assessed the extent to which trained APS personnel reached similar conclusions about a client’s decisional ability (i.e., inter-rater reliability) when presented with a client vignette and a completed IDA 3.0-CA form. First, we developed 12 client vignettes based on common client risks. Consideration was given to diversity in gender, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and geography. Second, five content experts familiar with development of the tool reviewed completed IDA 3.0-CA forms for each case. Based on reported case difficulty and level of agreement between experts, eight cases were selected to formally test the instrument’s reliability. Third, 39 APS personnel, who had trained to use the IDA 3.0-CA, reviewed completed IDA 3.0-CA forms and answered questions about the clients’ decisional ability for two randomly-assigned cases. For each case, we calculated the percent correct and inter-rater reliability (Cohen’s Kappa). The percent correct ranged from 67% to 100%, with an average of 87%. The inter-rater reliability for cases ranged from -0.01 to 1.00, with the average across cases of 0.66 (i.e., substantial inter-rater reliability). The results suggest that APS personnel using the IDA 3.0-CA have a high likelihood of reaching similar conclusions about a client’s decisional ability when provided the same client responses.

Career counselling with life design in a collectivist cultural context: An action research study

Large-scale macro forces are restructuring forms of work in urban India creating the need for alternative methods of career counselling. This research explores the application of a US-based approach to constructing careers i.e. Life-Design Career Counseling (i. e., LDC) with two mid-career professionals in India. Data consisted of client responses to different narrative career counselling exercises such as a lifeline activity, a career construction interview and semi-structured feedback interviews. Action research's focus on reflexivity helped integrate theory with practice to contribute to knowledge production and meaningful innovations within practice. Findings from this research underscored the importance of relationship, reflection and sense-making and the need for India to utilise a culturally resonant career intervention. The study holds value for career professionals, in India and beyond where LDC is still unexplored. Moreover, LDC practitioners in non-Western countries and collectivist societies will benefit from a contextual adaptation that encourages focus on client learning.

Quantifying Experiences with Telepractice for Aphasia Therapy: A Text Mining Analysis of Client Response Data

Measures of satisfaction following treatment for aphasia have been limited. The challenge associated with reduced verbal output among many persons with aphasia (PWA) has reportedly been a key reason measures of treatment satisfaction have been limited. A novel approach to measure treatment satisfaction is the use of content analysis (CA), which uses the presence of certain words, themes, or concepts to explore outcomes such as treatment satisfaction particularly among individuals who generate limited output. CA utilizes responses and response patterns to assign meaning to client responses. The aim of this study was to use CA to measure posttreatment satisfaction with a telepractice approach for aphasia treatment. Seventeen PWA received 12 treatment sessions over a 6-week period. At the conclusion of the treatment, CA was utilized to explore patient satisfaction with this treatment approach. The participants reported an overall positive sentiment for the telepractice approach. Two primary topics emerged which were healthcare provider and healthcare delivery, where text analysis revealed discussion of these topics to be centered around being “helpful” and “being effective.” This study demonstrated that CA can be an effective approach for determining satisfaction with aphasia treatment particularly among PWA with limited verbal abilities.