Effects of Covert Modeling and Written Material on the Acquisition of a Counseling Strategy

This study investigated the efficacy of covert other modeling, covert self-modeling, and written material on the acquisition of a counseling strategy that involved developing goals. Thirty-six student counselors were assigned randomly to the following four treatment conditions: covert other model, covert self-model, written material, and delayed-treatment control. Written pretest, posttest, retention test measures, and role-play pre- and posttest measures were obtained. A repeated measures ANOVA revealed that performance on the written measures for the three treatment groups increased significantly from pre- to post- testing and from pre- to retention testing. On the role-play measure, the performance of the three treatment groups also increased significantly from pre- to posttesting. The performance of the control group on pre- and posttesting for the written and role-play measures did not increase significantly.     

Advances in Data Capture for Museum Collections

The article presents and compares three methodologies for the capture, or digitization, of data associated with specimens or artifacts in museum collections and describes the “grassroots” level application of computer technology. This approach of data capture is strategic and businesslike, uses the best tools available at the time, and is highly cost-effective. We suggest that the benefits are so significant that getting up-to-date equipment and training workers to use it should be given a high priority. Such equipment is frequently present, but is being used in a way that provides far less real benefit than is possible using the techniques described in this article.     

Counselor Training and Ethical Issues With Older Clients

Working with older adults requires specialized preparation in professional ethics. A rationale for including this training in the counseling curriculum and a possible approach to this instruction are presented.     

A NEW LOGICAL SCORING KEY FOR THE MINNESOTA TEACHER ATTITUDE INVENTORY1

This study tested three scoring keys for the MTAI—the published empirical key (E); a logical key with three different weights, i.e., + 1, 0, -1; and a new logical key with five different scoring weights, one for each of the five responses in MTAI items, i.e., +2, +1, 0, -1, -2. The latter, termed the pentachotomous-logical (P-L), provided scores with slightly higher internal consistency and a frequency distribution which is not so significantly skewed as the others and which provides greater spread among extreme positive and negative scores. Use of the P-L scoring weights would facilitate the psychological interpretation of the MTAI. However, conclusion that the P-L scoring key is an improvement must be tempered by the fact that an expected increase in construct validity was not found.