An approach is presented that introduces the concept of countertransference to predoctoral interns and externs in a unique way during their professional training. This approach goes beyond a didactic presentation of the concept and even beyond discussion of case material in supervision. Through an experiential role-play process called Mimesis,…

College art students are an overlooked minority population whose culture, career motivations, and mental health risks have not been studied, and there has been little to no specialized outreach to this population. This article describes the stereotypes associated with fine art students and the data available that confirms or refutes those…

Relational cultural theory was examined in relation to body image in two samples of college women (n = 102) and men (n = 78) from a Midwestern university. Participants completed measures of mutuality and body image satisfaction. Results revealed that low mutuality with mothers and fathers predicted body dissatisfaction in both men and women, and…

To see if writing about former abuse reduced depression, somatic, and sleep complaints, 664 undergraduates were screened for past physical or sexual abuse. Of those abused, 88 consenting students were randomly assigned to no-writing control or writing (20 minutes on 4 different days) about abuse or trivial topics. All completed pre-, post-, and…

This study examined whether a new student organization, Active Minds, aimed at increasing awareness of "mental illness" and reducing stigma had an impact on students' stigma and willingness to seek psychological help. Three classes were recruited to become involved in the organization. In a pretest/posttest design, stigma and willingness to seek…

As a counterpoint to the oftentimes adversarial way that parents are viewed when they appear to be overinvolved in the lives of their college-aged students, this article advocates for the use of a family therapy perspective in university counseling centers. Benefits of this perspective include a broadening of the lens through which individual…

This description of counseling and psychotherapy services at Amherst College begins with our heritage from the "mental hygiene" movement of the nineteenth century, the founding of the first university mental health services and the later development of a counseling center tradition. By tracing the evolution at Amherst, from a brief counseling and…

University and college counseling services face growing demands for services and self-reported increases in the level of presenting psychopathology, including need for psychiatric hospitalization. However, challenges in communication often occur between the systems of an inpatient psychiatric unit and an outpatient college and/or university…

Studies support the observations by college psychotherapists that students returning from study abroad adventures often have a difficult time readjusting to being back "home." We consider what the internal developmental challenges might be that relate to this transitional step. We weave first-hand comments of students into our article.

Research indicates that many college students report posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or substance use disorder (SUD), yet there has been scant attention paid to the co-occurrence of these disorders in college students. This review examines the co-occurrence of PTSD and SUD in college students. Recommendations for counseling centers are…

This article examines some common assumptions made by clinicians about the relationship between intelligence and mental health difficulties. Drawing on work by Thomas Ogden (1976) and Alex Coren (1997) on academically successful students who present with serious mental health concerns, it aims to provide a psychodynamic, developmental…

This empirically based study sought to discover factors underlying diverse sources of information used to inform therapy practice, perceived salience of sources of evidence for clinical practice, importance of common factors to therapy efficiency, and beliefs about evidence-based practice, particularly in the form of evidence-supported treatments…

This article provides a case study of a project by the University of Delaware and the City of Newark to apply an environmental model to address the excessive use of alcohol by college students. Data about changes in the behavior and experiences of students over a 10-year period are compared. The authors discuss some of the practical implications…

This study examined multidimensional perfectionism and self-development. Two hundred seventy-one undergraduates completed a measure of multidimensional perfectionism and two Kohutian measures designed to measure aspects of self-development including social connectedness, social assurance, goal instability (idealization), and grandiosity. The…

This study is an investigation of the occurrence and awareness of violence in intimate partner relationships as reported by college students recruited by e-mail from a small Midwestern university. Students responded to an online survey using a modified version of the Conflict Tactics Scale 2. Data were collected on the occurrences of violent…