A randomized trial of teen online problem solving: efficacy in improving caregiver outcomes after brain injury.

Objective: To examine the results of a randomized clinical trial (RCT) of Teen Online Problem Solving (TOPS), an online problem solving therapy model, in increasing problem-solving skills and decreasing depressive symptoms and global distress for caregivers of adolescents with traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Method: Families of adolescents aged 11-18 who sustained a moderate to severe TBI between 3 and 19 months earlier were recruited from hospital trauma registries. Participants were assigned to receive a web-based, problem-solving intervention (TOPS, n = 20), or access to online resources pertaining to TBI (Internet Resource Comparison; IRC; n = 21).

A randomized trial of teen online problem solving for improving executive function deficits following pediatric traumatic brain injury.

Objective: To examine the efficacy of teen online problem solving (TOPS) in improving executive function (EF) deficits following traumatic brain injury (TBI) in adolescence.

Methods: Families of adolescents (aged 11-18 years) with moderate to severe TBI were recruited from the trauma registry of 2 tertiary-care children's hospitals and then randomly assigned to receive TOPS (n = 20), a cognitive-behavioral, skill-building intervention, or access to online resources regarding TBI (Internet resource comparison; n = 21). Parent and teen reports of EF were assessed at baseline and a posttreatment follow-up (mean = 7.

Criterion validity of the financial skills subscale of the direct assessment of functional status scale.

Among the severely mentally ill, some individuals with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder can manage their finances independently, while others depend upon a court-appointed guardian or a representative payee. The present study examined the criterion validity of the financial skills subscale of the Direct Assessment of Functional Status (DAFS) scale in classifying those who manage their finances independently from those who do not. Scores on the financial skills subscale of the DAFS scale of 25 severely mentally ill outpatients without a guardian/payee were compared to scores of 24 severely mentally ill outpatients with a guardian/payee; 25 non-mentally ill participants served as controls.

An online family intervention to reduce parental distress following pediatric brain injury.

This study examined whether an online problem-solving intervention could improve parental adjustment following pediatric traumatic brain injury (TBI). Families of children with moderate-to-severe TBI were recruited from the trauma registry of a large children's hospital and randomly assigned to receive online family problem solving therapy (FPS; n = 20) or Internet resources (IRC; n = 20) in addition to usual care. The FPS group reported significantly less global distress, depressive symptoms, and anxiety at follow-up than did the IRC group after controlling for baseline symptoms.

Can devices facilitate a hypnotic induction?

Historically, many devices were believed to have the ability to facilitate a hypnotic induction, but in time such devices proved to have no inherent facilitating properties other than a general placebo effect. To test the efficacy of a device called a "plasma ball" that may facilitate an induction by combining two sensory modalities simultaneously (visual and auditory), 42 college students who scored 6 and below on the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility, Form A (HGSHS:A) and completed a scale rating the realness of items, were selected for a second session. Participants were matched on hypnotizability scores and randomly assigned to experimental or standard eye fixation induction control condition.