All school counsellors employed by the State Department of Education in Queensland, Australia, were sent a questionnaire asking about their understanding of child sexual abuse, and their familiarity with procedures and current laws. Results from the 122 respondents (52 males and 70 females), show that they have diverse knowledge of child sexual abuse. There was uncertainty among them as to whether their school had a formal procedure for reporting cases. Most school counsellors have a general knowledge of the laws in Queensland on reporting suspected cases of abuse, but only a minority of them know what the laws require them to do. When asked to describe the laws in Queensland, counsellors who indicated they knew about the law, then described four differing laws. In terms of knowledge of child sexual abuse, females made more accurate statements about sexual abuse than males. Training does contribute to improving counsellors' knowledge of child sexual abuse.

School psychology reports typically include program recommendations for teachers to implement with their students. These recommendations, however, are not always followed up. This brief review identifies and discusses some of the factors which may account for this phenomenon. Lack of research in the field is evident, particularly in the Australian context. Issues of role identification of psychologists in the school system, and the expectations of them held by teaching staff are discussed.

The role and training of Queensland guidance officers appears to be set toward the practice end of the scientist-practitioner continuum. Yet data are presented which demonstrate that the expectations placed on many guidance officers are relatively sophisticated and specialised. Particularly in the areas of personal crisis counselling, family support and community-school development, today's guidance officers working in Queensland schools are required to demonstrate considerable specialisation. The profession seems to be facing a choice, attempt to develop into a group of true educational specialists with all the required training, supervision and in-service education or move to become a group of expert general practitioners. Some implications of these two options for the profession are explored.

The assessment of childhood depression is a function of the definition of depression, namely, a single-symptom, symptom cluster, or categorical approach. Furthermore, the assumptions associated with these approaches underpin the development and selection of assessment devices which fall into three main categories: self-report measures, parent, teacher and peer reports, and diagnostic clinical interviews. In describing, exemplifying, and evaluating these measurement techniques, their relationship with the definitional assumptions will be demonstrated through a critical review of the literature. The related and crucial issues of comorbidity and informant variability will also be examined.

This study investigated the effects of gender, personal experience with suicidal others and exposure to suicide awareness education upon suicide related knowledge and attitudes of 190 young adults and 52 older adults. Results showed that both the young and older adults indicated a substantial degree of personal experience with suicidal others, and despite displaying inadequate knowledge, possessed reasonable attitudes to adolescent suicide (e.g., need for education). Young adults' level of knowledge was found to vary as a function of gender (females displaying better knowledge than males), and having been exposed to school-based suicide curriculum. Differential gender effects also emerged in young adults' suicide-related attitudes with females indicating greater support for the inclusion of suicide education in schools. The implications of these findings for school-based suicide prevention efforts are discussed.

This exploratory study sought to differentiate 24 delinquent, 30 at-risk and 30 not at-risk adolescent males according to a multidimensional model of self-concept. Participants completed the Song and Hattie Test of Self-Concept (1992), which consists of seven dimensions of self-concept; namely, achievement self-concept, ability self-concept, classroom self-concept, family self-concept, peer self-concept, physical self-concept and confidence in self.

Significant differences between the not at-risk, at-risk and delinquent groups were found across six of the seven dimensions of self-concept. Implications of these findings suggest an effective procedure for differentiating between not at-risk and at-risk youth within the school context, prior to involvement with the Juvenile Justice system. The implications for intervention are discussed.

During the transition from secondary school to university many students experience stress associated with academic concerns and difficulties in coping with new academic and social demands. The present study investigated first year university students' level of academic stress across first semester and evaluated the coping strategies employed by students to deal with academic concerns. Students' level of academic stress was greater at the beginning of semester, during the transition period than at the end of semester, prior to the examination period. A positive relationship between academic stress and non-productive coping was also revealed. It was concluded that effective and timely assistance needs to be provided to students prior to, or during the transition period to make the commencement of university a positive experience.

Adverse life events and situations such as educational failure, social rejection, traumatic loss, family breakdown, abuse, migration and dislocation, natural and manmade disaster, chronic illness and death are not uncommon in the lives of children and adolescents. Considerable empirical evidence exists concerning both short- and long-term deleterious effects of such events on the mental health of children and adolescents. There is broad acceptance of the need to find means of preventing, or at least reducing, psychopathology associated with such events or situations. However, those working with children and adolescents are often overwhelmed by the expectation to provide for the legitimate needs of an individual child or adolescent, while having the daily responsibility for large groups of children, many of whom are distressed by adversity. Consequently, a valuable contribution to any program aimed at improving the mental health of children and young people would be the identification of a common aspect of adverse situations, the understanding of which could guide carers and educators in the provision of care for children and adolescents facing diverse life challenges. This paper argues that loss, and the grief associated with loss, is this common element. It reviews and integrates the literature concerning loss to enhance the understanding of families and practitioners of this central aspect of adverse life events.

This study aims to investigate the effect of a coping skills program ‘The Best of Coping: Bright Lives’ on adolescents' coping styles. This study also seeks to determine if groups of adolescents who are more or less resistant to depression show different gains from program participation.

Comparisons between changes in coping styles were made between groups of adolescents; those considered at-risk for and resistant to depression, those neither resistant or at-risk for depression, and a male and female group. All students, regardless of group membership, participated in the ‘The Best of Coping: Bright Lives’ program.

All participants completed the Adolescent Coping Scale, the Children's Attributional Style Questionnaire and the Perceived Control of Internal States pre and post program.

Results show a significant increase in Reference to Others coping post program, for all groups, particularly the males. The ‘at-risk’ group also appeared to show a decrease in the use of ‘Non-Productive’ coping post program, in comparison to the ‘resilient“ group.

It appears that positive program effects are greatest for adolescents who are prone to depression and use the most ineffective strategies. This indicates that the program effectively targets the adolescents that need the help the most.

This study explored the potential benefits of an eight-week relaxation training program for students in their final year of high school. The relaxation program was structured around the concept of applied relaxation, consisting of a blend of progressive muscle relaxation, cue-controlled, and rapid relaxation, whilst also incorporating a cognitive coping strategies component, and goal-directed visualisation. Treatment participants were compared with control group members on measures of anxiety, stress, and locus of control. Overall, the results support the efficacy of a school-based relaxation training program in reducing student stress and anxiety levels, but not on influencing locus of control orientation towards internality. Furthermore the results of this project indicate that it is possible to incorporate relaxation training within a preventative framework as part of the regular school curriculum.

This paper discusses the application of Gardner's (1983) theory of multiple intelligences to the counseling of children, particularly young children who appear as repeat offenders in the school system. Specifically this paper seeks to answer the question: Does Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences have an application to counseling, and if so how would this theory impact on counseling practice? The results of this study suggest that Gardner's theory does have application to professional counseling practice, particularly with children.