Date of Award
Summer 8-24-2024
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Organizational Unit
Morgridge College of Education, Teaching and Learning Sciences, Child, Family, and School Psychology
First Advisor
Cynthia E. Hazel
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
All Rights Reserved.
Keywords
Consultation, Mixed methods, Rural, School psychology, Trauma, Trauma-informed
Abstract
Rural youth are placed at greater risk for experiencing adverse childhood experiences, developing mental health disorders, and dying by suicide when compared with the general population. Due to a widespread need for better access to mental health treatment, many are left untreated. These concerns are often exacerbated by individual and systemic risk factors that are endemic to rural communities. Rural school districts are being asked to deliver mental health services to students, with school psychologists as key stakeholders. Though school psychologists are uniquely qualified to support this need, graduate programs typically do not provide adequate coursework and training on consultation and trauma-informed practices (TIPs). Moreover, rural school districts require community responsive approaches to consultation, and implementation of TIPs in rural districts has yet to be discussed thoroughly in the field. This mixed methods exploratory sequential study sought to bridge gaps in literature and practice by using a three-phased approach to develop the Community Responsive Trauma-Informed Consultation (CRT-IC) Professional Learning Series for Rural School Psychologists. The first qualitative phase gathered the lived experiences of 13 expert rural school psychologists who used consultation with teachers to support implementation of TIPs. In the second, development phase, the qualitative data was used to create the curriculum for the professional learning series, which targeted early career rural school psychologists who were interested yet inexperienced in engaging with this work. The third quantitative phase evaluated this curriculum by using a quasi-experimental single-group pre/post design with a one-month follow-up to assess changes in consultation self-efficacy (CSE), attitudes related to trauma-informed care (TIC), and professional quality of life of eight early career participants. This study is significant for the field because it highlighted how mixed methods designs can be utilized to develop community responsive professional learning opportunities for a specific subgroup of school psychologists. It also illuminated a trauma-informed approach to consultation that rural school psychologists can use to consult with teachers on TIPs, which may provide future directions for graduate training programs, professional learning training, key stakeholders, and research studies. Last, this study advanced understanding of the needs of rural school psychologists as school-based mental health providers who use consultation to support their school districts in being trauma-informed.
Copyright Date
8-2024
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
Rights Holder
Elly Q. Maras
Provenance
Received from Author
File Format
application/pdf
Language
English (eng)
Extent
383 pgs
File Size
9.0 MB
Recommended Citation
Maras, Elly Q., "Promoting Community Responsive, Trauma-Informed Consultation Practices in Rural School Communities: A Mixed Methods Exploratory Sequential Approach" (2024). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 2484.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/2484
Included in
Child Psychology Commons, Early Childhood Education Commons, Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies Commons, Rural Sociology Commons, School Psychology Commons, Social Work Commons
