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Biomedical subjects

A C Smets

Publications and source records attributed to A C Smets.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1988

Systems and symptoms: family cohesion/adaptability and childhood behavior problems.

The relation between family systems and child symptomatology was examined among children aged 6 to 11 and adolescents aged 12 to 16 who had been referred for clinical services. On the basis of an assessment of family cohesion and adaptability, the families were divided into three groups: extreme, midrange, and balanced. Problem behaviors were assessed with a symptoms checklist, and the child's self-esteem was also measured. Families in the balanced range had children with fewer symptoms than did midrange or extreme families; this relation was less strong among families with adolescents. Self-esteem and symptoms were negatively correlated in these samples. Self-esteem did not moderate the relation between systems and symptoms but was independently related to family functioning. These results suggest the operation of bilateral processes within the family that link cohesion and adaptability, on the one hand, with low self-esteem and indications of psychopathology, on the other.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

A group treatment program for adolescent sex offenders: five steps toward resolution.

This article describes a five-step group therapy program for adolescent sex offenders. The key elements of this approach are peer interaction and a system of incentives to move on in therapy, both of which are believed to be crucial in treating adolescents most effectively. While progressing through the steps, the participants acknowledge their adjudication, detail their offenses and personal sexual development, enhance their insights into their behavior and sexuality at large and plan how to avoid offending again. This paper describes the program of a rural outpatient guidance clinic in which a male-female therapist team met with several groups of boys (21 boys). The group program is part of a total treatment approach which also includes assessment, individual and family therapy.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1982

Family and staff attitudes toward family involvement in the treatment of hospitalized chronic patients.

Attitudes of staff members and families toward family involvement in treatment of hospitalized chronic mental patients were explored using a 17-item questionnaire. Family members of 23 patients at a rural health center completed the questionnaire, which focused on attitudes toward and knowledge of important variables in the treatment of their relative. Five clinical staff members responded to four of the items, and statistical correlations between family and staff responses were computed for those items. The results indicated that two-thirds of the family members showed knowledge, concern, and willingness to be involved in patient treatment, but a lack of agreement between staff members and between staff and families on crucial treatment variables was considered to jeopardize family involvement. The author recommends that internal staff disagreements first be identified and resolved and that measures then be taken to encourage staff to involve the family in the patient's treatment.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗