Needs Assessment: A Proposal

This project includes a needs assessment and the development of a workshop designed to teach high school staff about the topic of self-injurious behavior. This project also included the conducting of a needs assessment with high school staff in the West Valley area to determine their understanding of self-injurious behavior. Participants included high school administrators, teachers, school psychologists, and school nurses. These participants were surveyed to assess their knowledge of the causes, symptoms, and treatments of SIB. Myths, fears, and stereotypes associated with this disorder were also assessed.

Findings from these surveys indicated that school staff were unclear regarding all issues involved in self-injurious behavior and there was a need for and an interest in participating in a self-injury workshop. The information gathered from the literature and these surveys was used to design a workshop to increase this group's awareness of self-injurious behavior in adolescents. This workshop also provides information such as the prevalence of self-mutilation among adolescence and co-morbidity. In addition, the workshop is designed to help school officials become aware of their own attitudes and understand the importance of providing a safe and comfortable atmosphere for students and staff when dealing with this problem.

Self-injurious behavior is the topic of this project. Definitions and cla

al status exam to determine psychotic symptoms, dissociative states, cognitive functioning, and intoxication; determine SIB details (frequency, duration, onset, antecedents and consequences, first, last, most severe, most typical incidents; evaluate and diagnose behaviors ruling out additional psychiatric diagnoses; rule out socio cultural variables; assess suicidal ideation, plans, and intents and risk factors; and determine medical complications and current medical needs. This thorough assessment is needed to determine treatment interventions and recommendations. Prevalence of Self-Injurious Behavior Nock and Prinstein (2004) reported that rates of SMB in the general adult population are 4% and rates of the adult psychiatric inpatient populations are 21%. Adolescence is a period of increased risk for SMB. It is also estimated that 14% to 39% of adolescents participate in SMB and of the adolescents in psychiatric inpatient settings, 40% to 61% participate in SMB (Kress, 2003). Kress (2003) reported that prevalence rates were once thought to be 1% of the general population and up to 5% of the psychiatric population. However, consistent with Nock and Prinstein (2004), more recent estimates show that 4% of the general popu

Category: Psychology - N