Dr. John Murphy Professor, University of Central Arkansas

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Current Research and Writing Projects

Current Research Projects 

  • Self-Modeling 

The impact of self-modeling on the acquisition of counseling skills. I am excited about this unique application of self-modeling because, among other reasons, this is the first formal study of the Center of Psychotherapeutic Change, a newly formed research lab within the Department of Psychology at the University of Central Arkansas. I co-direct this lab with Dr. Art Gillaspy. 

 

I am involved with several self-modeling studies at the time in areas including parent training and preschool settings, and have completed two self-modeling studies with Mike Davis—one study examined on-task behavior and the other study applied self-modeling to the use of sign language (published in the Journal of Systemic Therapies):

Murphy, J. J., & Davis, M. W. (2005). Video exceptions: An empirical case study of self-modeling with a developmentally disabled child. Journal of Systemic Therapies, 24, 66-79.

Eva Windsor, a School Psychology PhD student currently on internship, will soon be collecting data on the impact of self-modeled parenting skills on preschool children’s behavior. There are not many studies involving parents and the data should prove useful in planning and delivering parent support and training services.

  • Client-Driven/ Outcome-Informed Practice

I am preparing to research the use of client-based measures in schools. More specifically, I want to examine the use of the Outcome Rating Scale and Session Rating Scale. These are simple (one-minute) tools that can be used in every contact with students, parents, and teachers to assess their perceptions of outcome (progress) and alliance (the fit and usefulness of our services). These instruments are designed to give students and others a prominent voice in school-based intervention and counseling. I will keep you posted as the research unfolds.

Five projects are at various stages of development and implementation in our “Change-Focused Practice Research Lab” group (co-directed by John Murphy and Art Gillaspy and involving students from the School Psychology and Counseling Psychology PhD programs). Research projects include the following: social desirability of SRS ratings, concurrent and predictive validity of the SRS with adolescents in a school setting, and the impact of PCOMS on (among other things) retention and dropout rates in a community mental health agency. We are also initiating a comprehensive literature review and critique of research on the ORS and SRS. We are intent on scientifically examining the nuances and results of obtaining and honoring the feedback of clients and consumers including children, parents, and others who are sometimes excluded from having a voice in their own care.

Current Writing Projects 

PUBLICATIONS

  • The new Solution-Focused Counseling in Schools book was released by the American Counseling Association in February of 2008

         Murphy, J.J. (2008). Solution-focused counseling in schools (2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association. (www.counseling.org)

To order this book, go to the home page of this website and click on the book.

I purposely held off on completing a second edition of this book until I felt there was enough new and different material to warrant an updated edition. I’m happy to say that there was more than enough new material, and this is a new book in many ways. First, it has been widely expanded to include all grade levels along many new examples, updated research, and additional school-based applications of solution-focused practice. The new edition provides additional strategies for working with preschool and elementary students, as well as those who enter counseling as “mandated clients” who are there because someone else referred them. The chapter on relationship-building has been widely expanded to include numerous techniques for building strong alliances with students of all ages. The new and expanded appendices provide practical handouts, forms, crib sheets, and other tools for immediate application in schools.

Although the primary audience for the original book was front-line practitioners in schools, it has been very gratifying to see it adopted by many graduate training programs in counseling, psychology, and social work. Hopefully, the expanded scope of the book to include preschool/elementary students will further increase its usefulness to practitioners and training programs.           

  • Brief Intervention for School Problems: Outcome-Informed Strategies (2nd ed.) (with Barry Duncan) published by Guilford Press in 2007

Murphy, J. J. & Duncan, B. L. (2007). Brief intervention for school problems (2nd ed.): Outcome-informed strategies. New York: Guilford Press. (www.guilford.com)

To order this book, go to the home page of this website and click on the book.

Barry Duncan and I are very excited about this book, which outlines the latest developments in client-directed/outcome-informed work in schools. The book has been out since July of 2007, and the feedback has been very encouraging. It is truly a “new edition,” with many updated research findings and three entirely new chapters—one on outcome management in schools, another on issues pertaining to the medication, children, and schools, and a third on frequently asked questions about brief intervention in schools. The power of client feedback has been confirmed by research, and the book describes quick and easy ways to dramatically improve your intervention outcomes by harnessing the power of feedback from students, teachers, and parents. The book maintains the same conversational style of the original edition, with an even greater emphasis on respecting the resources and opinions of students, teachers, parents, and others involved in the task of changing school problems. The book contains many new client examples and fresh ideas about brief intervention. 

  • RECENT Book Chapters

Murphy, J. J. (in press). Movie magic: Building solutions from the client’s “greatest hits.” In J. Chang (Ed.), Clinical activities in child therapy: Creative applications in therapeutic practice.

Gillaspy, J. A., & Murphy, J. J. (in press). Incorporating outcome and session rating scales in solution-focused brief therapy. In C. Franklin, T. Trepper, W. Gingerich, & . McCollum, E. (Eds.), Solution-focused brief therapy: Research, practice, and training. New York: Oxford University Press.

Murphy, J. J. (in press). A client-directed, solution-focused brief therapist’s perspective on Ruth. In G. Corey, Case approach to counseling and psychotherapy (8th ed.), Belmont, CA: Thomson Higher Education. (invited section in a chapter on postmodern approaches to psychotherapy)

Murphy, J. J. (2008). Solution-focused counseling in schools. In VISTAS Online Submitted to G. Walz & R. Yep (Eds.), Vistas 2008: Perspectives on counseling. Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.

Murphy, J. J. (2008). Client-based assessment: A fast track to better outcomes. In G. Walz & R. Yep (Eds.), Compelling counseling interventions: Celebrating VISTAS’ fifth anniversary (pp. 239-248). Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.

Text Box:    Murphy, J. J. (2008). Best practices in conducting brief counseling with students. In A. Thomas & Grimes (Eds.), Best practices in school psychology (5th ed.) (pp. 1439-1456). Washington, DC: National Association of School Psychologists.                 I gladly accepted the invitation to describe a student-driven/outcome-informed approach to counseling in what has become the most popular book for school psychology practitioners.  Alex Thomas and Jeff Grimes tell me that this one will be the biggest and best of all the Best Practices books. A lot of writing in the last year or two, with more to come this Fall. Thank you for your continued support of this work and your feedback on the books and other writings. As hard as it is sometimes to stick with it and keep writing, the positive feedback from trainers and practitioners from all over the world is a  powerful incentive to keep “spreading the word” on positive, respectful approaches to young people who experience problems at school and elsewhere.