The Therapist's Notebook: Homework, Handouts, and Activities for Use in Psychotherapy (Haworth Marriage and the Family)

Rating:
Summary: Good for Single System Designs
Review: I am always seeking books that include a wide range of psychometric instruments and can be used to instruct students regarding concepts such as reliability and validity. In addition, I prefer to use psychometric instruments that appear to have some practical application.

Within THE THERAPIST'S NOTEBOOK we find approximately 83 different instruments that appear to have direct application to clinical practice. Each instrument is discussed and the origin (i.e., methods of development, etc.) of each is cited. The format for the describing each instrument is uniform and quite creative. The authors do not employ standard psychometric jargon. For example, they do NOT use common psychometric terms such as "reliability" and "validity," but use clinical jargon -- "contraindications." Clinicians will appreciate the language, while academicians will giggle. For academicians, the language is imprecise. They want to know the reliability coefficient. Clinicians need to know what type of client the instrument is best suited. The bottom line is, clinicians learn a great deal of practical information, while at first glance academicians do not. Academicians need not fret, citations are available. Within the citations, one will probably find the details such as the precise coefficient.

Two additional points can be made. First, I think many of these instruments are the exact tools many clinicians seek for the use within single system designs. This is a GREAT book for those who use single system designs to evaluate the progress of their clients. Second, ALL of the instruments are COPYRIGHTED! This means that a clinician may NOT use any tools without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to do so.

All in all, this is a great book. I will include it within my closed reserve readings.

Rating:
Summary: Good for Single System Designs
Review: I am always seeking books that include a wide range of psychometric instruments and can be used to instruct students regarding concepts such as reliability and validity. In addition, I prefer to use psychometric instruments that appear to have some practical application.

Within THE THERAPIST'S NOTEBOOK we find approximately 83 different instruments that appear to have direct application to clinical practice. Each instrument is discussed and the origin (i.e., methods of development, etc.) of each is cited. The format for the describing each instrument is uniform and quite creative. The authors do not employ standard psychometric jargon. For example, they do NOT use common psychometric terms such as "reliability" and "validity," but use clinical jargon -- "contraindications." Clinicians will appreciate the language, while academicians will giggle. For academicians, the language is imprecise. They want to know the reliability coefficient. Clinicians need to know what type of client the instrument is best suited. The bottom line is, clinicians learn a great deal of practical information, while at first glance academicians do not. Academicians need not fret, citations are available. Within the citations, one will probably find the details such as the precise coefficient.

Two additional points can be made. First, I think many of these instruments are the exact tools many clinicians seek for the use within single system designs. This is a GREAT book for those who use single system designs to evaluate the progress of their clients. Second, ALL of the instruments are COPYRIGHTED! This means that a clinician may NOT use any tools without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to do so.

All in all, this is a great book. I will include it within my closed reserve readings.