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Carr, Alan
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Carr, Alan
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Carr, Alan
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- PublicationThe development of clinical psychology in the Republic of IrelandIn Ireland clinical psychology emerged in the mid-1950s as an integral part of the public health service for people with mental health problems and intellectual disability. The structure of the profession and training system which evolved were based on the UK model. The number of clinical psychologists, the range of specialisms in which they work and roles that clinical psychologist fulfil have developed significantly especially during the 21st century. PSI, psychologists within the public health service, and the four clinical psychology training programmes have worked together to foster the growth of the profession. Clinical psychology research and textbooks have been published by Irish clinical psychologists, and they have also had significant media presence. Clinical psychologists also had a significant impact on major societal issues such as CSA. Statutory registration is the next major profession development on the horizon for the profession of clinical psychology in the Republic of Ireland
1061 - PublicationDepression and power in marriageTo investigate the association between depression and power within marriage, 14 couples in which the female partner was depressed were compared with 14 non-depressed couples on a range of variables which assessed power bases, processes and outcomes, three domains identified in Cromwell & Olson's (1975) analysis of marital power.
211 - PublicationRecovery and relapse in multi-problem families following community-based multidisciplinary treatmentIn a comparative group outcome study of 47 multiproblem families which received treatment from multidisciplinary child and family mental health services teams and 47 waiting list controls, it was found that treated cases showed significant improvement over the course of three months during which they attended the service. Improvement occurred in children's behavioural adjustment and maternal psychological health. Waiting list controls did not improve significantly on either of these variables during the three month treatment period. However, mean scores of the treatment group at nine months follow-up were not significantly better than pretreatment scores, indicating that gains made during treatment were lost at follow-up. An analysis of the clinical significance of changes in children's adjustment showed that while 41% of children moved from the clinical to the normal range during the course of treatment, all had relapsed at six-month follow up. These results point to the importance of developing a chronic care rather than an acute care approach to service provision for multiproblem families.
140 - PublicationThe Beavers, McMaster and Circumplex Clinical Rating Scales: A study of their sensitivity, specificity and discriminant validityThe aim of the present study was to compare the discriminative validity (or the sensitivity and specificity) of three of the most prominent theoretically based clinical rating scales for family functioning. These scales are the Beavers Clinical Rating Scale which is derived from the Beavers Family Systems Model; the McMaster Clinical Rating Scale which is grounded in the McMaster Model of Family Functioning; and the Circumplex Clinical Rating Scale which developed from the Circumplex Model of Family Functioning.
738 - PublicationChildren and adolescentsMajor meta-analyses of trials of individual child psychotherapy, cognitive-behaviour therapy for children and family therapy have all yielded effect sizes of about 0.7 indicating that the average treated case, fares better than approximately 76% of untreated cases after therapy. The results of these meta-analyses are important because they justify the use of psychological interventions for treating children’s psychological problems. Broad band meta-analyses have yielded an unequivocally positive answer to the big question–Does child psychotherapy work? In contrast, tightly focused narrative reviews and small meta-analyses which examine the effectiveness of specific interventions with specific problems have addressed the narrower question–What works for whom with children and adolescents? The present paper addresses this question with particular reference to a number of the more common conduct and emotional problems which occur during childhood and adolescence.
344 - PublicationService needs of carers for people with intellectual disabilities: Profiles of high-need and low-need groupsA cluster analysis of responses of 78 carers of people with learning disabilities to service needs scales identified high-and low-need groups, each with distinct profiles. In comparison with the low-need group, the high-need group reported greater needs for familial social support; help explaining their child's handicap to others; assistance with leisure activities for their handicapped member; extrafamilial social support; financial assistance; information on services for families with a handicapped member; information on child development and management; and respite care and counselling. Those in the high-need group perceived the handicapped person for whom they cared to have more behavioural problems and safety skills deficits. The carers in the high-need group also had lower levels of perceived social support and higher levels of family stress. Although high-and low-need groups displayed these disparate psychosocial profiles, they were demographically similar and did not differ in terms of the level of disability of the handicapped people for whom they cared.
450 - PublicationSupporting parents of adolescent perpetrators of CSAThe importance of parental involvement in the treatment of their adolescent CSA perpetrators cannot be underestimated. One of the defining differences between the fields of adult and adolescent sexual offending is the fact that adolescents are still in a formative stage of development. Parents can still exercise a major influence in re-engaging children back on a normative developmental pathway and reducing future risk to a minimum. It is also important to include parents of adolescent CSA perpetrators in treatment programmes because it is well documented in Irish and international studies that some have significant problems.
419 - PublicationThe effect of supervisor and trainee therapist gender on supervision discourse.This literature suggests that male supervisors will tend to use more a more directive style and females to use a more collaborative style; that male trainee therapists will use a more resistant style and speak more than their female counterparts and that same gender supervisor-trainee therapist parings will be characterized by greater collaboration and co-operation. While these were our hypotheses, they were nested within the following four main questions which underpinned the design of the study. (1) What impact do the genders of supervisors and trainee therapists have on supervisor discourse style ? (2) What impact do the genders of supervisors and trainee therapists have on trainee therapist discourse style? (3) What impact do the genders of supervisors and trainee therapists have on combinations of particular supervisor and trainee therapist styles and on the degree to which the supervisor dominates the supervision discussion? (4) Are there significant relationship between supervisor and trainee therapist discourse variables within same gender and opposite gender supervisor and trainee therapist systems?
378 - PublicationEvidence based practice in counselling and psychotherapySince Eysenck's (1952) challenging claim over 40 years ago, that there is little evidence for the effectiveness of psychotherapy, there has been a mushrooming of empirical work on psychological intervention for a wide variety of problems. There is now considerable evidence for the efficacy of individually based psychotherapy and family based interventions for many intrapsychic, interpersonal and medical difficulties for both adults and children.
1242 - PublicationAssessment and treatment of criminogenic needsIn this chapter we will consider the assessment and treatment of criminogenic factors in young people who engage in sexually abusive behaviour. Evidence from the theoretical and research literature will be used to highlight the extent of this problem and the significant role played by a coercive style of family interaction in its aetiology. We put forward our view that a useful approach to tackling non-sexual criminal and antisocial behaviour among juvenile sexual offenders is with reference to the "what works" literature concerning young people who present with Conduct Disorder. Consistent with ideas presenting an aetiological role for dysfunctional family interaction in sexual and nonsexual criminal and antisocial behaviour, the what works literature provides an evidence base that points to a continuum of therapeutic response ranging from parental behavioural training, to functional family therapy, multi-systemic therapy, and special foster care placement. We conclude the chapter by illustrating a functional family therapy approach to assessing, formulating, and intervening with a young person whose sexually abusive behaviour is part of more general criminal and antisocial activities with reference to a case example.
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