This study evaluated whether dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) was more efficacious than treatment by nonbehavioral psychotherapy experts in reducing co-occurring Axis I disorders among suicidal individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD). Women with BPD and recent and repeated suicidal and/or self-injurious behavior (n = 101) were randomly assigned to 1 year of DBT or community treatment by experts (CTBE), plus 1 year of follow-up assessment. For substance dependence disorders (SDD), DBT patients were more likely to achieve full remission, spent more time in partial remission, spent less time meeting full criteria, and reported more drug- and alcohol-abstinent days than did CTBE patients. These findings suggest that improvements in co-occurring SDD among suicidal BPD patients are specific to DBT and cannot be attributed to general factors associated with nonbehavioral expert psychotherapy. Further, group differences in SDD remission were not explained by either psychotropic medication usage or changes in BPD criterion behaviors. DBT and CTBE did not significantly differ in the reduction of anxiety disorders, eating disorders, or major depressive disorder.

Existing literature suggests that graduate programs may not provide adequate training in working with suicidal clients. Therefore, we surveyed 238 predoctoral psychology interns and assessed the prevalence of clients engaging in suicidal behaviors and the amount of formal training in managing suicidal clients received. Results showed approximately 5% of participants indicated a client suicide and 99% indicated they had treated at least one suicidal client during their graduate training. In contrast, results demonstrated only 50% of the participants reported attending programs where formal training was offered. These findings suggest a continued need for increased formal training in managing suicidal clients in graduate psychology programs.

This study evaluated whether dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) was more efficacious than treatment by nonbehavioral psychotherapy experts in reducing co-occurring Axis I disorders among suicidal individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD). Women with BPD and recent and repeated suicidal and/or self-injurious behavior (n ϭ 101) were randomly assigned to 1 year of DBT or community treatment by experts (CTBE), plus 1 year of follow-up assessment. For substance dependence disorders (SDD), DBT patients were more likely to achieve full remission, spent more time in partial remission, spent less time meeting full criteria, and reported more drug-and alcohol-abstinent days than did CTBE patients. These findings suggest that improvements in co-occurring SDD among suicidal BPD patients are specific to DBT and cannot be attributed to general factors associated with nonbehavioral expert psychotherapy. Further, group differences in SDD remission were not explained by either psychotropic medication usage or changes in BPD criterion behaviors. DBT and CTBE did not significantly differ in the reduction of anxiety disorders, eating disorders, or major depressive disorder.

Current research supports the effectiveness of self-monitoring strategies for addressing academic and behavioral challenges within educational settings. Although variations in procedures exist, frequently implementation of self-monitoring involves some form of adult feedback as a method of establishing accurate self-monitoring. To date, however, researchers have not systematically evaluated whether adult feedback is a necessary component for self-monitoring to be effective. In the current investigation, the influence of adult feedback on the effectiveness of self-monitoring was analyzed. The participant was a 13-year-old student receiving educational services in a special education school at a residential facility for youth with conduct problems. The effectiveness of self-monitoring with and without adult feedback was compared. Results suggest that adult feedback may be an important component for establishing self-monitoring as an effective intervention for behavior problems exhibited in academic settings.

There exists a paucity of research on psychopathology among Juvenile Sex Offenders (JSOs) as measured by standardized instruments, particularly as compared to nonclinical and other clinical populations. The current investigation involved a comparison of scores on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Adolescent Version (MMPI-A) between a group of JSOs and non-sex offending delinquent peers. Thirty-six youth from a staff-secure residential facilitate participated, 18 JSOs and 18 non-sex offending delinquent peers. Results revealed that the mean score on clinical Scale 4 (Psychopathic Deviant) was in the clinically significant range for non-sex offending peers and not for JSOs, although the difference between the mean scores was not statistically significant. Chi-square analysis indicated that a significantly greater number of non-sex offending delinquents had scores in the clinical range on this scale as compared to JSOs. Results are discussed in the context of current research on psychopathology among JSOs.