Hi everyone:
Thanks for your advice and suggestions on how to handle the student situation.
Because many of you have asked me to pass along any responses to my post, let
me provide a brief summary.
The majority of the non-clinical psychologists who responded stated that they
usually take these situations to their clinical colleagues and get their
advice. Some expressed surprise that as a clinical person I was unsure about
how to respond and was interested in the advice of others. Although I felt a
bit incompetent after reading some of the comments, I was heartened by the
clinical psychologists who responded.
Most of the clinical psychologists who responded stated that handling these
kinds of situation with students is difficult for them and produces a lot of
anxiety, despite all of their training and experience in mental health
treatment. One comment in particular was a good summary of the responses
from clinical psychologists: "I think one of the hardest adjustments I had to
teaching was having to use my clinical knowledge with student problems, and
trying to figure out how to approach them without being inappropriate or
engaging in a dual relationship." That comment certainly summed up my
experience in dealing with this situation.
Most people who responded stated that it would be important to address the
issue with the student. Some advocated a more direct approach while others
suggested a more indirect approach. While there are pros and cons to each of
these approaches, it seems that the type of relationship between the faculty
and student is an important factor to consider. In other words, if you have
a close relationship with a student, you might be able to more successfully
address the topic.
Some people mentioned that they keep a bunch of cards from student counseling
service in their office and distribute these to students who need them.
Others mentioned that they will at times volunteer to walk students to the
student counseling service.
Just to give you some feedback on my situation. The morning after I posted
my message to the list I talked to the student. I met with her privately in my
office and addressed the situation in a gently yet direct manner. She
discussed some of the problems she had been having and stated that she was
involved in treatment for these problems. She was somewhat anxious
discussing these issues with me (and I with her, although I don't think she
picked up on my anxiety--clinical training has given me a good "poker face"
when I need one!), but told me later that she was glad I brought this up with
her. She now feels that she has a stronger support network on campus.
Thanks again for your suggestions. Being a teacher is not just about
teaching facts to passive recipients, but is about developing empowering
relationships with our students that contributes to their overall development.
I hope these comments will help you with similar situations.
Rod Hetzel
> Quoting HART_CHRISTIAN <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>:
>
> > Hi Rod,
> >
> > Thanks for sharing this worrisome case. I can see your dilemma but I also
> > see that this presents an opportunity in life.
> >
> > You wrote "the bigger question here is what do we as faculty do when it
> > appears that our students have emotional or mental problems, but we are
> > not certain."
> >
> > I would counter that by asking "what do we do as human beings when it
> > appears that another human being in our proximity has emotional or mental
> > problems, but we are not sure?"
> >
> > Along the lines of a recent post from Louis Schmier, I try to act so that I
> > have as few regrets as possible so that if the next moment is my last, I
> can
> > minimize the "if only I had..."-feeling. I feel dishonest when fail to act
> > or at least inquire about the need for assistance, when I perceive the
> > potential need for it.
> >
> > Without even considering friends/relatives, over the course of my adult
> life
> > I have gone up to many strangers who appeared outwardly in distress. As
> you
> > can imagine, I have sometimes come away feeling foolish (the old woman who
> > fell turned out to emit a 5-foot radius of liquor fumes and had passed out;
> > the young man on the beach said he was fine!--despite the sobbing). But
> many
> > more times I have been "reinforced": the old man at the market turned out
> to
> > be lost and his daughter confirmed he had Alzheimer's after I drove him
> home
> > (using his ID for address); the student who in agitation tried to explain
> > why he HAD to get a passing grade despite a disintegrating family life
> until
> > I asked him if he really felt he deserved such a cruel punishment that he
> > should force himself to make the attempt rather than to say "not this
> > semester" (it had never occurred to him that he only had to please
> himself).
> >
> > In short, though I have often apologized in advance for intruding into
> > someone's privacy by asking questions (and reminding them that I have no
> > "legitimate" reason for asking), I have never once regretted it.
> Conversely,
> > I inevitably regret giving in to my fear and not intruding. In the end, I
> > have only to answer my own conscience.
> >
> > Now, having said that, if a student of *mine* appears to warrant a clinical
> > diagnosis (and is not in immediate danger), I make referrals. To me,
> "doing
> > the right thing" also means being mindful of "dual relationships." In that
> > case, doing the right thing means making sure a student knows that I care
> > enough not to ignore the obvious and then making an appropriate referral.
> >
> > Best wishes and good luck,
> > Christian
> >
> > P.S. Lest anyone think this is altruistic, it's not. It's just that I
> cannot
> > STAND that ache in my guts when I don't try to do the right thing but know
> > in my heart that I should. So you see, it's simply selfishness, really.
> >
> > Christian Hart, Ph.D.
> > Assistant Professor of Psychology
> > Department of Behavioral Studies
> > Santa Monica College
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Roderick D. Hetzel
> > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> > Sent: 10/26/00 12:14 PM
> > Subject: how to handle a student situation
> >
> > Hi everyone:
> >
> > I have a question about how to handle a situation. I noticed that one
> > of my teaching assistants (a female undergraduate student) had what
> > appeared to be numerous small cut marks (maybe about one to two inches
> > long) on top of four of her fingers (typically the part of the finger
> > that the wedding ring goes on), as well as small cut marks on the base
> > and side of her palm and the sides of her wrist. These marks only
> > appeared on her right fingers, hand, and wrists. She is right-hand
> > dominant.
> >
> > At first I thought these might have been marks made by a red pen, but on
> > closer inspection they seemed to be cuts. Looks like they might be cuts
> > from a razor blade or other sharp object. The cuts on the wrist are in
> > a lateral direction--they run perpendicular to the direction in which
> > the blood vessels run.
> >
> > I noticed them yesterday and they were still there today, although they
> > were not as noticeable and seemed to have healed some. When I saw them
> > yesterday I asked the student what happened to her hand and wrist. She
> > responded, "Oh, I don't know" and changed the subject. She seems to try
> > to hide these marks a little bit, but I haven't had problems noticing
> > them. This student is very bright, has a lot of responsibility in the
> > program, and has a lot of plans for the future with her career and her
> > boyfriend.
> >
> > My concern is that this student might be involved in self-mutilating
> > behavior. If this were a client of mine, I would not hesitate to ask
> > about it. And I would certainly ask a client if I were to see it.
> > However, because this is a teaching assistant--someone who essentially
> > works for me--I'm not sure how to handle this. It's possible that it is
> > not self-mutiliating behavior, but it raised my clinical antennae and
> > I'm not sure how to proceed. I'm also wondering if I'm reading too much
> > into this. Maybe they were just pen marks, maybe she got the marks for
> > someplace else.
> >
> > I suppose the bigger question here is what do we as faculty do when it
> > appears that our students have emotional or mental problems, but we are
> > not certain.
> >
> > All advice welcome!
> >
> > Rod
> >
> >
> > ___________________________________
> > Roderick D. Hetzel, Ph.D.
> > Rochester Institute of Technology
> > Department of Psychology
> > George Eastman Building
> > 18 Lomb Memorial Drive
> > Rochester, New York 14623
> > [EMAIL PROTECTED] (email)
> >
>
>
>
> ___________________________________
> Roderick D. Hetzel, Ph.D.
> Rochester Institute of Technology
> Department of Psychology
> George Eastman Building
> 18 Lomb Memorial Drive
> Rochester, New York 14623
> [EMAIL PROTECTED] (email)
>
___________________________________
Roderick D. Hetzel, Ph.D.
Rochester Institute of Technology
Department of Psychology
George Eastman Building
18 Lomb Memorial Drive
Rochester, New York 14623
[EMAIL PROTECTED] (email)
