New England Psychologist
Legislation hopes to address shortage of school mental health providers
By Danielle Ray
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) is leading the introduction of the Mental Health Excellence in Schools Act, bipartisan legislation that if passed will address the shortage of mental health providers in schools by authorizing the Department of Education to partner with higher education institutions to help cover students’ costs at relevant graduate programs. “Throughout the pandemic, New Hampshire families and schools have voiced serious concerns about students’ mental health and the impact COVID-19 had on our kids,” Shaheen said. “Those conversations, coupled with my visit to Dover High School earlier this year, helped inspire my decision to introduce this bipartisan legislation [More]
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Columns
COVID-19: What might this be?
By Alan Bodnar Ph.D.
All you need for a good projective test is an ambiguous stimulus and a simple question, “What might this be?” If this sounds like the Rorschach, then you’re either an old-school psychologist like me or a student of the history of psychology. Like the Rorschach, most projective tests use visual stimuli to draw the subject’s attention in two directions at the same time – outward into the real or objective world and inward into the storehouse of memories and images that is uniquely ours, built up from all the details of our lives and what we have made of our [More]
My life in the library
By Alan Bodnar Ph.D.
When I retired from my hospital position nearly seven years ago, I moved my office to the public library. It was an easy move – no furniture to rearrange at home or haul across town to a new building, no rent to pay and a short commute for the pleasure of getting out of the house whenever I want to vary my routine. I’m here now, still masked against COVID and tapping the keys of my MacBook, the sole occupant of a table for four in the periodical room, writing in the late afternoon light pouring in from a wall [More]
The new normal
By John Grohol, Psy.D.
A year ago, I claimed that “the end of the pandemic is in sight.” In hindsight, I was being optimistic. While the pandemic rages on largely unchecked, the newer strains of the coronavirus appear to be less deadly – especially to those who are vaccinated and boosted. At least, for now. Masks have become uncommon, even in large indoor gatherings. Here in New England, I’m seeing less and less mask wearing in grocery and home improvement stores. I was in town meeting the other night in our elementary school’s auditorium/cafeteria and fewer than five percent of people were wearing masks. [More]
Cleaning the closet of doubt
By Alan Bodnar Ph.D.
Now that I can see the top of my desk again, it’s good to get back to the keyboard and set down in writing some thoughts about the everyday life of a retired psychologist. In case you’re wondering about the hidden desktop, it had been covered until recently by stuff that I’ve been cleaning out of the small room’s closet. The closet is original with the house so that makes it 73 years old, just one year younger than I am, and I have lived with it for the past 44 years since we first moved in. It started as [More]