Book being reviewed:

DeVoss, J. A., & Andrews, M.F. (2006). School counselors as educational leaders. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.

Reviewer:
Christina Jurekovic

Curricular Areas:
Counselor Education, School Based License, Supervision

Subject Headings:
Elementary school, High school, Middle school, Social justice

Review:
School Counselors as Educational Leaders is a foundational guidebook uniquely suited for training 21st century school counseling students to become leaders and advocates. The purpose of this book was to serve as a training tool for school counselor educators and supervisors. DeVoss and Andrews (2006) began by providing a historical perspective on educational reforms that led to the Transforming School Counseling Initiative and the Educational Trust’s new vision for school counseling (2009a). Each chapter in the book included a case discussion of obstacles commonly faced by school counselors and practical applications for providing leadership as defined by the ASCA National Model. Exercises throughout the text guide school counseling students, ideally enrolled in practicum or internship, through self-assessment and reflection on various topics within educational leadership. Relevant websites and discussion questions at the end of every chapter encouraged readers to explore other resources, as well as, review and reflect on the chapter content.

Due to the elusive nature of school counseling leadership from the perspective of new school counselors, an important contribution of this book is the self-assessment and exploration exercises, which provided concrete ways for students to deepen their understanding of leadership in the school setting. For example, students are provided rating scales and inventories for assessing their assertiveness, leadership skills, and preparedness to serve as a leader. Students are also asked to explore theoretical foundations of leadership and practice integrating various leadership models with expected school counselor leadership behaviors. The authors encourage students to develop a leadership style that fits with their values, beliefs, and personal mission in life. A thorough exploration and assessment of students’ leadership skills, behaviors, and style culminates in an opportunity to create an individualized leadership improvement plan. At this point, mentorship is highlighted as a key ingredient for effective professional development as a leader. The authors also suggested that educational leadership include collaboration with various stakeholders and advocacy for students of color and low-income families. Practical strategies for collaborating with resistant coworkers and advocating for low-achieving students were provided near the end of the book, along with recommendations for creating a data-driven school counseling program. Accountability was touted as an avenue for closing the achievement gap, giving credibility to the voice of school counselors in educational reform.

The authors implore educational leaders, equipped with a strong theoretical foundation and practical strategies for implementing school counseling leadership and to courageously and diplomatically restructure their school counseling programs to serve the needs of all students. While the idea of leadership may be daunting to new school counselors, the authors provide an approachable, concrete guidebook for developing school counselors’ leadership skills and increasing their confidence as educational leaders. This book fills a gap in the literature on practical applications and training resources for school counseling leadership and would serve as an excellent guide for counselor educators seeking to formally train school counseling students to become educational leaders who advocate for the needs of all students.

Wubbolding, R. (2000). Reality therapy for the 21st century. New York: Routledge.

Reviewer:
Chris McNaught

Curricular Areas:
Assessment, Counselor Education, Helping Relationships/Counseling Theory, Supervision

Subject Headings:
Communication, Depression, Elementary school, Middle school, High school

Review:
Wubbolding presents a summary of Reality Therapy (RT) in twelve chapters. Starting with a group of case studies, Wubbolding challenges readers to examine their current beliefs and how they might interact with the clients in the case studies. The next three chapters explain the origins of Choice Theory and how RT is different than other therapeutic choices. Wubbolding moves into specific application of the therapy and interventions used. The author finishes with a research based rationale for the effectiveness of RT, citing a number of research studies that confirm the effectiveness of RT, while also stating the need for continued research. While RT is similar to REBT, the significant difference comes in the view of choice. RT "emphasizes choice as a means to more effective living rather than implying that a change in thinking is a prerequisite.” (p. 32) Choice Theory, upon which RT is based, comes from the idea that choice is a universal idea available to everyone. RT also has similarities with other counseling theories (p. 36-7): 1) People are essentially good. 2) People are responsible for their behavior and 3) behavior has a purpose. 4) Effective therapy is based on a positive counseling relationship.

This text might be useful for any counselor wanting more information about how to incorporate Reality Therapy in their practice, or as a refresher for current reality therapists. This book could be especially useful for graduate students working to discover their theory of choice. Reality Therapy is suited to clients with almost any issue; to limit its use to specific kinds of clients would be to minimize Glasser’s belief in its purpose: Reality Therapy is intended for clients who want something different. It can be used in individual sessions, group work and is especially effective in marriage and family therapy. RT is respectful of cultural identity and is taught in countries all over the world. The therapeutic techniques and interventions can be adapted and modified to work with any culture, including cultures of country, language, minority status, religion, ethnicity and political association. Wubbolding includes specific recommendations for several cultural groups, using transcripts to demonstrate how RT language changes with different clients from different cultures.

Stout, M. (2005). The sociopath next door: the ruthless versus the rest of us. New York: Broadway Books.

Reviewer:
Dina Eledge

Curricular Areas:
Assessment, Counselor Education, Helping Relationships/Counseling Theory, Rehabilitation Counseling

Subject Headings:
Family dynamics, Personality disorders, Prison, Relationships, Substance abuse-alcohol, Substance abuse-drugs

Review:
Individuals with antisocial personality disorder have a unique set of symptoms and behavior patterns that not only affect their own lives, but the lives of others they come in contact with. It is the potential danger faced by those who come into contact with these individuals that makes this disorder particularly dark and disturbing. Stout (2005) calls antisocial personality disorder (APD) "A non-correctable disfigurement of character that is now thought to be present in about 4 percent of the population.” Throughout this book, readers learn how to identify individuals who suffer from APD - also called sociopaths. One of the key characteristics of someone with this disorder is a complete absence of conscience. They can do anything at all without any shame, remorse or guilt. Other traits are poor judgment, failure to learn from experience, extreme egocentricity, incapacity for love, a lack of emotional responsiveness to others, impulsivity, insincerity, and superficial charm.

Antisocial Personality Disorder is commonly misdiagnosed and misunderstood. Clinicians often confuse this disorder with criminal behavior not associated with a personality disorder. The rate of co-morbidity is high and can present specific behavioral and prognostic challenges, depending upon the other condition. Treatment is tricky with these individuals, because the individual rarely comes to terms with the disorder, often blaming others for their behavior and predicament. However, there are a few options. CBT can help the individual begin to change maladaptive thought patterns in their relationships with others. Behavioral therapy might also be helpful in targeting and modifying the negative behavior. Antidepressants are sometimes prescribed to offset depression caused by the life circumstances often present in individuals with this disorder. Mood stabilizers may also help control some of the rage and anger these clients feel.

Since the prevalence and severity of Antisocial Personality Disorder is likely to be greater among incarcerated samples, this book is a must-read for forensic counselors in training and anyone interested in working with clients with personality disorders.

Jamison, K. R. (1995). An unquiet mind. New York: Vintage Books.

Reviewer:
Rachael Walling

Curricular Areas:
Counselor Education, Professional Identity

Subject Headings:
Bipolar disorders

Review:
Kay Redfield Jamison, Professor of Psychiatry, Co-Director of John Hopkins Mood Disorders Center, and board member of the National Network of Depression Centers has suffered from her own mental illness since she was seventeen. While pursuing her career in academic medicine and working with patients of mental illness, Jamison herself was struggling with Bipolar Disorder. She found herself acting out in violence, struggling with relationships, and riding the vicious roller coaster of Bipolar Disorder all while maintaining her professional character, hiding this from most of her co-workers.

In her book, An Unquiet Mind, Jamison brings us into her deepest cycles of Bipolar allowing one to understand the disease from a personal perspective. At times it seems as though Jamison is defeated by the disorder but then displays courage, strength and power to defeat the cruel mania and depression.

This exceptional personal memoir can assist a counselor in understanding how one may be able to work through a disorder, and also that mental illness can be anywhere. Even the most professional, proficient, and experienced individuals working to help those suffering from mental illness may be struggling themselves. Self-awareness, as well as awareness of those around us is extremely important especially to ensure proper care of clients.

At times it seems unethical that Jamison continued her work during strong episodes of the disorder, but she continued to research, treat, and teach. She resisted medication many times which is something counselors experience by their clients.

An Unquiet Mind is an exceptional book and a great read for anybody in the counseling field.

Gallo-Lopez, L., & Rubin, L. C. (Eds.). (2012). Play-based interventions for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders. New York, NY: Routledge.

Reviewer:
Jenifer Ware Balch

Curricular Areas:
Career Development, Counselor Education

Subject Headings:
Elementary school, Middle school, High school

Review:
Play-Based Interventions for Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders provides information regarding a wide variety of expressive, engaging, and play-based interventions to use when working with children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). It is divided into four parts: Foundations, Individualized Play-Based Interventions, Programmatic Play-Based Intervention, and Expressive/Creative Interventions. Within these four parts, there are 17 chapters that cover a variety of topics. The first chapters focus on general play, explaining the neurobiology of play and play in children with ASD. Three chapters focus on individual play therapy, each from a different theoretical perspective: child-centered, developmental, and Jungian. There are also several chapters devoted to integrating various types of expressive arts into the therapeutic process, including art therapy, music therapy, dance/movement therapy, and sand tray. Other play-based approaches are also covered, including canine-assisted play therapy, family theraplay, play and drama therapy, LEGO-based play therapy, and filial therapy. In addition to the aforementioned interventions, this book has three chapters devoted to specific programs: DIR Floortime, The PLAY Project, and The ACT Project.

This book is a wonderful resource for educators, supervisors, and practitioners working with children and adolescents with ASD. Educators can use this as a supplemental text for practicum and internship as well as courses about counseling children and adolescents, especially when covering special populations. This book can also be a great resource for supervisors to recommend to supervises, possibly practicing and reviewing specific techniques during supervision. Practitioners can use this resource as a guide to help further understand treatment approaches for clients. Each intervention chapter gives a brief overview and then discusses how the intervention can theoretically be applied to individuals with ASD. While there is not enough space in each chapter to provide all of the information necessary to implement the intervention, it is a good foundation for understanding the application to this specific population. If readers are not already familiar with the particular intervention, they can get a basic theoretical understanding from this book and then turn to other resources to learn more about specific implementation strategies.

Badenoch, B. (2008). Being a brain-wise therapist. New York, NY: W. W. Norton.

Reviewer:
Katie Purswell

Curricular Areas:
Non-Fiction

Subject Headings:
Adult

Review:
With the National Institute of Mental Health's new initiative that focuses on brain research, it is more important than ever that counselors have at least a minimal understanding of how the brain develops, particularly with regard to interpersonal relationships. Badenoch's (2008) book, Being a Brainwise Therapist, is one of the more accessible books that accomplishes this goal.

Badenoch integrates attachment style research with neurobiology in a way that requires no special scientific knowledge and has significant implications for clinical work. Additionally, Badenoch conceptualizes mood and personality disorders through an interpersonal neurobiology framework, emphasizing the ways the brain organizes the relational experiences of individuals with these diagnoses. Finally, Badenoch provides some practical guidelines for working with individuals, families, parents, and children from an interpersonal neurobiology perspective. Throughout her book, Badenoch focuses on the power of the therapeutic relationship in helping individuals with traumatic interpersonal histories heal. She explains how counselors can help clients literally rewire their brains through providing an attuned, responsive relationship that "disconfirms" many of the client's previous detrimental relational experiences. Badenoch's ability to clearly explain complex neurobiology concepts and apply them in practical ways makes this book a valuable asset to any counselor's bookshelf.

Siegel, D. J., & Bryson, T. P. (2012).The whole-brain child: 12 revolutionary strategies to nurture your child’s developing mind. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

Reviewer:
Kara Hurt

Curricular Areas:
Human Development, Marital/Couple/Family Counseling

Subject Headings:
Family dynamics, Heath/wellness

Review:
In this book Siegel and Bryson (2012) present their brain science approach to helping parents and caregivers understand how children’s brains grow and develop so that they can help support integration between all of a child’s areas of the brain. Siegel and Bryson suggest that through understanding the basic structures of the brain, parents and caregivers such as counselors can help children more effectively respond to difficult experiences and develop foundations for social, emotional, and mental wellness. The book begins with an introduction to the concept of integration, which is connecting the different areas of the brain for better emotional and cognitive functioning. Next, horizontal and vertical integration are explored with many real-to-life examples to help parents and caregivers identify situations in which their children may be struggling with these types of dis-integration. Next, the authors focus on memories and how to help children integrate difficult or traumatic experiences from the past. Then the authors explore children’s ability to develop mindfulness and use it to make more reasoned choices and experience greater control in their lives. The last chapter addresses social connectedness and personal identity. Every chapter also contains practical suggestions and examples for implementing the 12 strategies outlined in the book. Each chapter includes a section with helpful animated scenarios to demonstrate the topic to children. Importantly, the chapters also include a section that addresses integration for adults, which allows parents and caregivers the opportunity to thoughtfully reflect on their own life experiences that have shaped their social, emotional, and mental health.

This book would be directly applicable to the work of all counselors who work with children or parents of children, either in private practice, agencies, or schools. Counselors in community agencies or private practice may consider using this text as a foundation for psychoeducational groups or parent training seminars, beyond referring to the book as a resource for parents. Elementary school counselors may consider creating a curriculum to include aspects of the Whole Brain Child that can be implements at different grade levels. This text seamlessly dovetails with Siegel’s other books on interpersonal neurobiology such as Mindsight and The Developing Mind. Moreover, the philosophy of the whole brain child is congruent with many play therapy approaches such as Child Centered Play Therapy and Child-Parent Relationship Therapy. The text is written in such a way that the authors have created a safe space for parents to reflect on their parenting and other life experiences without judgment or reprimand. The authors also seem to have taken great care to make the interpersonal neurobiology accessible to a variety of adults from parents to professionals. This book is an excellent referral source for all adults but care should be taken to ensure that parents and caregivers are given the opportunity to obtain support and process any difficult emotional experiences that may come up should they choose to engage in personal reflections guided by the book.

Gaus, V. L. (2007). Cognitive-behavioral therapy for adult asperger syndrome. New York, NY: Guilford.

Reviewer:
Jaime Castillo

Curricular Areas:
Assessment

Subject Headings:
Cognitive disorders

Review:
This book provides the reader with an in depth look into the definition, conceptualization, assessment, treatment, and obstacles experienced when working with Adult Asperger Syndrome (AS). Guas (2007) notes that there is a growing need for mental health practitioners who are equipped to work with this adult population as much of the research and practice within autism spectrum disorders has been geared towards children. The job of the therapist, as Gaus (2007) states, is not to change the personality of the individual, but to modify the cognitions that create the distress. Overall, this involves (a) teaching new behavioral skills that were never learned, (b) teaching compensatory strategies for deficits that cannot be changed, (c) facilitating self-acceptance, and (d) teaching strategies to decrease or prevent symptoms of comorbid mental health issues (Gaus, 2007). Definitions and common myths of AS are discussed in the first chapter. Chapter two provides Beck’s Cognitive Theory as a framework to conceptualize core vulnerabilities and maladaptive schemas experienced in AS. Chapter three focuses on completing initial assessments, and Chapter four on developing an individualized treatment plan. Both chapters offer templates for practitioners to use when formulating hypotheses and for developing an individualized hypothesis-based treatment plan. The chapters on intervention, six and seven, provide a number of worksheets that can address social and coping skill development, as well as for reframing dysfunctional beliefs and schemas. In the concluding chapters, Gaus (2007) addresses interdisciplinary approaches, potential obstacles practitioners might face, and strategies to ending treatment.

This book is an incredible resource for those interested in learning more about working with adult AS. Counselors, counselor educators, and students may use this text to become familiar with the core issues of AS, and effective interventions that could be implemented. For example, The Hidden Curriculum (Myles et al., 2004) and/or Social Stories (Gray, 1995) are two great resources recommended for practitioners to use with clients who have social skill deficits. Counselors will find interventions to increase time management, problem-solving, and relaxation skills, as well as strategies to decrease perseveration, useful in their work with adult AS clients. Counselor Educators may use this text to supplement practicum or internship courses as an example of how CBT theoretical frameworks can be applied to clinical practice. A limitation of this resource is the lack of discussion regarding how treatment with individuals of different cultural backgrounds might be encountered. Therefore, a discussion broadening the ecological perspective of adult AS individuals would have been beneficial. This text is a great resource for educators and practitioners to inform their clinical work; furthermore, counselors may also recommend this text to adult AS clients and their families as a supplemental reading during treatment.