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Luísa Soares

Universidade da Madeira, Artes E Humanidades, Faculty Member

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Books by Luísa Soares

Democratizing Higher Education: International Comparative Perspectives

by Serviço de Psicologia Universidade da Madeira and Luísa Soares

South Europe Higher Education: Portugal and its Peripherical Regions., 2015

Capítulo: Psicologia na Madeira

by Catarina Faria, Serviço de Psicologia Universidade da Madeira, Luísa Soares, and Carla Vale Lucas

Livro: Que Saber(es) para o Século XXI. História, cultura e ciência na Madeira. Coordenadores... more Livro: Que Saber(es) para o Século XXI. História, cultura e ciência na Madeira.

Coordenadores: José Eduardo Franco e Cristina Trindade

Obra publicada no âmbito do projeto "Aprender a Madeira - Dicionário de História da Madeira", apoiado pelo Programa "Intervir +"

ISBN: 978 - 989 - 680 - 133 - 5

Cyberbullying … Some Reflections: From Childhood to Adulthood

Depression and anxiety are two mental illness associated with cyber surfers. In our twenty first ... more Depression and anxiety are two mental illness associated with cyber surfers. In our twenty first century society, new technologies dominate and also novel psychological illnesses have emerged. Cyberbullying is a behaviour mostly associated with young people and has become increasingly more problematic. On the other hand, recent studies have shown how technology is extremely useful in the work of psychologists. It is this stark duality of technological/cybernautic vs stimulation of positive aspects of new technologies that is thrown into discussion in this work. Cyberbullying is a highly interactive bullying behaviour which is a growing concern within Portuguese schools. Children or adolescents make up rumours and present them online, where the school population can view and comment on the rumors. Their goal is to covertly attack and ruin the reputation of the victim. This shows how social networks can be misused; a behaviour, which curiously occurs in younger children and has started to be seen in adults as well. At the psychological level, it is a devastating attack on a child, who is still immature, as well as on a teenager who has not yet reached his or her full development. There are few psychologists in Portugal and they need to exist in greater numbers in schools, companies, and hospitals to help reduce the damage of this new psychological phenomenon. Otherwise, these new generation of cyberbullies will go on to universities and work contexts - adopting similar behaviour. This is clearly not the future we want for our society.
Key Words: Cyberbullying, psychology, technology, children, adolescents, adulthood.

Papers by Luísa Soares

Bibliotherapy: A tool to promote children's psychological well-being

by Carla Vale Lucas and Luísa Soares

Journal of Poetry TherapyThe Interdisciplinary Journal of Practice, Theory, Research and Education,26,3 , 2013

The focus of this article is on bibliotherapy and child development. Particular attention is give... more The focus of this article is on bibliotherapy and child development. Particular attention is given to collaboration between psychologists and educators. The authors identify and discuss the benefits of bibliotherapy, provide guidelines for practice, and discuss implementation. Cautions, new directions, and particular issues relating to bibliotherapy in Portugal conclude this article.

Programa de Promoção do Desenvolvimento Sócio-cognitivo da Criança Parte 2: Intervenção com os pais

by Carla Vale Lucas and Luísa Soares

A cognição social é deveras importante para uma interacção social bem-sucedida, e consequentement... more A cognição social é deveras importante para uma interacção social bem-sucedida, e consequentemente, para o equilíbrio psicossocial dos indivíduos. Considerando a importância de tal, foi construído um programa de promoção do desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo das crianças, que aposta na resiliência moral e na competência social. Destina-se a dois grupos-alvo, com intervenções paralelas: pais de crianças até aos 12 anos e crianças dos 7 aos 12 anos. Abordam-se com maior ênfase os módulos de intervenção dirigidos aos pais, respondendo a questões como "Que impacto têm as interacções e as experiências proporcionadas pelas pessoas mais próximas da criança no seu desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo e de que modo é possível maximizar o seu potencial?" O objectivo final é enfatizar a importância do autoconhecimento dos pais e a urgência da estimulação das competências das crianças.

Programa de Promoção do Desenvolvimento Sócio-cognitivo da Criança Parte 1: Intervenção com crianças Program for the Promotion of Children's Socio-cognitive development Part 1: Children's Intervention

by Carla Vale Lucas and Luísa Soares

"De que forma se pode maximizar o potencial da criança em termos do seu desenvolvimento sócio-cog... more "De que forma se pode maximizar o potencial da criança em termos do seu desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo?" Partiu-se da pertinência desta questão e da consideração de que as relações entre as habilidades sócio-cognitivas e comportamentos pró-sociais podem ser mediadas por variáveis situacionais, para alicerçar a construção de um programa de promoção do desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo nas crianças, dirigido a dois grupos-alvo: pais com filhos até os 12 anos e crianças dos 6-12 anos, em programas de intervenção paralelos, visando maximizar o potencial da criança em termos do desenvolvimento de respostas empáticas e interacções pro-sociais. O presente artigo pretende, assim, apresentar o referido programa, dando especial ênfase aos módulos de intervenção destinados às crianças.

Being a teen and learning how to surf anxiety: Integrating narrative methods with cognitive–behavioral therapy

by Carla Vale Lucas and Luísa Soares

Adolescence is a challenging stage due to the multiple and rapid changes that occur. In this pape... more Adolescence is a challenging stage due to the multiple and rapid changes that occur. In this paper, we present a clinical case of a teen with anxiety and hypochondriac symptoms. The therapeutic treatment, ongoing, was provided in 16 sessions. The intervention was based on the assumption that health anxiety results from processes that maintain catastrophic interpretations that for itself increases
anxiety. The principles of cognitive–behavioral and narrative therapy were applied in the intervention. The therapy involved providing psychoeducation, reducing the excessive focus given to the body, learning and training strategies to cope with anxiety, and constructing a life project. The case study shows the value of using metaphors as tools in the therapeutic process, and when facing life’s challenges. Also, it shows the importance of using reading and writing exercises to promote change and adjustment.

Keywords Adolescence; anxiety; case study; cognitive–behavioral therapy; health; hypochondriac symptoms; metaphor; narrative therapy

How can psychologists use social networks to reach community?

by Serviço de Psicologia Universidade da Madeira, Luísa Soares, Cristina Coelho, and Carla Vale Lucas

RUMOS - Revista Científica da Universidade do Mindelo, 1 (1-2), Dec 2014

The use of social networking and particularly, the use of Facebook, has been increasing in the la... more The use of social networking and particularly, the use of Facebook, has been increasing in the last years. It has been used for many specific goals, such as educational purposes and also to support communities, increasing the sense of belonging to a group. This paper aims to reflect on how psychologists can reach community through technology and social platforms. Particularly, we will reflect on the universities’ role, to promote community’s well-being and mental health by psychologists. We will focus on the social Facebook page of a Psychological Counseling Unit, from a Portuguese university that was created with the purpose of sharing posts with tips, strategies, motivational quotes and images that may help to promote wellness, both in academic and local community. We intend to reflect about the act of sharing positive meaningful posts; how it can stimulate the reflection on the individual potential, and have positive impact on users’ daily life, which really is the main goal of Positive Psychology. Attending to that, we believe that psychology services, and particularly universities, have the duty to promote social well-being and to educate communities for the importance of mental health and also to help people change thoughts and behaviors, thus being technology a useful way to do that.

Soares, L. & Pacheco, D. (2014). Co-work between University Teachers from Different Fields: Is it Possible to Build a Common Language? International Journal of Advanced Corporate Learning, 7, 3 (5-7).

by Serviço de Psicologia Universidade da Madeira and Luísa Soares

Some of the ideas/categories that resulted from this work suggest a common language should be bui... more Some of the ideas/categories that resulted from this work suggest a common language should be built between different professionals that work together: i) consider the human side of technology; ii) important behaviours for team work are complementarity, cohesion and synchronization; iii) attention to details motivates students; iv) stimulate new experiences/new thoughts; v) master four different abilities: inform, educate, inspire and entertain; vi) the essential will always remain, although times are changing and new fields of science are coming; vii) the web changed the way we work and learn and that´s more important than the way we interact with the contents of the web; viii) technology should improve teaching skills; ix) working together can be painful, so eliminating personnel barriers could result in a good cooperation/collaboration; x) team building; xi) create relevant contents; xii) build channels to reach all over the world; xiii) bridging programs can be very useful after a 1st graduation course where the main abilities from one area are already consolidated; xiv) Commitment to the team goals; xv) Psychologists are needed in teams and xv) dream university is the one that has pleasant and large spaces to be used by people and to inspire them.

Neuroscience and Education: the potential for designing intervention programs - The case of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)

Neuroscience has been developing fascinating insights into the brain’s development, although, it ... more Neuroscience has been developing fascinating insights into the brain’s development, although, it has also been, a continuous scientific challenge. In our century, neuroscience is not just a theoretical field anymore, since it has been proved the practical utility on education, psychology, engineering, medicine and other specific areas. Neuroscience has been giving us important data about how people learn, what processes our brain suffer throughout the life course, and also is giving us now a new field called Neuroeducation. This new field shows us that it is possible to understand the brain functioning and develop efficient strategies to improve learning skills, through the interdisciplinary teamwork, with scientists, psychologist and educators. Although the major amount of research on neuroeducation focus on improvement in typical development brains, we believe that, in the future, neuroeducation can focus on the study on how brains with atypical characteristics and functioning can better learn, as it is the case of children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD).Research has been showing good results in different interventions, such as behavioral training, memory and verbal rehearsal training.
This paper discusses the relevance of recent findings in neuroscience and education, the new findings about FASD, and the emergence of neuroeducation, reflecting on how this integrated research can generate cognitive models to build better instruction, improve education and design effective interventions for children.

Changing the clinical narratives patients live by: A cognitive behavioral approach of a clinical case of paruresis

This is a psychological clinical case study of a young male, who suffered from paruresis. His pro... more This is a psychological clinical case study of a young male, who suffered from paruresis. His problematic narrative is about the fear of not being able to urinate in public toilets or in situations where others may be present or entered in the facility. This problem prevents him from living a normal life and affects his self-confidence. We present a comprehensive cognitive behavioral conceptualization of the problematic narrative and also we reflected on the therapeutic intervention process, its challenges and cognitive strategies. To date, he has progressively adopted more constructive alternative explanations around the problem and is changing the narrative he lives by. Additionally, he has felt more confident, partly due to the fact he can urinate outside the home more often and in different places, yet not all.

Pilot project for peer tutoring: a case study in a Portuguese university

Purpose – Tutoring or mentoring is a form of mutual and informal learning which has distant origi... more Purpose – Tutoring or mentoring is a form of mutual and informal learning which has distant origins. This is a way of sharing knowledge and experience which has been proved to be extremely useful in educational settings, particularly where there is a peer that plays the role of tutor. Despite its informal characteristic, tutoring should be a structured process, with defined goals and clear roles for both: tutors and tutees, those who benefit from tutoring. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – As this paper aims to explore a pilot project, it was used as a reflexive and practical methodology, in a case study, analyzing the number of participants attending the project as well as the contents of the training course.
Findings – In this first project in a Portuguese university, 35 students attended as candidates to tutor, participating in the training course, showing interest in helping their colleagues. Originality/value – This proposal for a tutoring program in a public higher institution aims to train college students to help other colleagues, giving academic support, helping in the adaptation to academic context, promoting autonomy in learning, sharing effective strategies and helping in maintenance of positive interpersonal relationships. These aspects are very important to promote academic success in higher education.

Conhecer as emoções: a aplicação e avaliação de um programa de intervenção

Narrative cognitive therapy and insecure/ambivalent attachment pattern: a clinical case of epilepsy

Goal agreement between client-therapist dyads

Programa Desenvolvimento Socio Emocional -Pais

A cognição social é deveras importante para uma interacção social bem-sucedida, e consequentement... more A cognição social é deveras importante para uma interacção social bem-sucedida, e consequentemente, para o equilíbrio psicossocial dos indivíduos. Considerando a importância de tal, foi construído um programa de promoção do desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo das crianças, que aposta na resiliência moral e na competência social. Destina-se a dois grupos-alvo, com intervenções paralelas: pais de crianças até aos 12 anos e crianças dos 7 aos 12 anos. Abordam-se com maior ênfase os módulos de intervenção dirigidos aos pais, respondendo a questões como "Que impacto têm as interacções e as experiências proporcionadas pelas pessoas mais próximas da criança no seu desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo e de que modo é possível maximizar o seu potencial?" O objectivo final é enfatizar a importância do autoconhecimento dos pais e a urgência da estimulação das competências das crianças.

Being a teen and learning how to surf anxiety

Adolescence is a challenging stage due to the multiple and rapid changes that occur. In this pape... more Adolescence is a challenging stage due to the multiple and rapid changes that occur. In this paper, we present a clinical case of a teen with anxiety and hypochondriac symptoms. The therapeutic treatment, ongoing, was provided in 16 sessions. The intervention was based on the assumption that health anxiety results from processes that maintain catastrophic interpretations that for itself increases anxiety. The principles of cognitive-behavioral and narrative therapy were applied in the intervention. The therapy involved providing psychoeducation, reducing the excessive focus given to the body, learning and training strategies to cope with anxiety, and constructing a life project. The case study shows the value of using metaphors as tools in the therapeutic process, and when facing life's challenges. Also, it shows the importance of using reading and writing exercises to promote change and adjustment.

Diferentes Estilos de Clientes y Construcción de la Alianza con un Terapeuta

El objetivo principal del presente estudio es la comprensión del desarrollo en la co-construcción... more El objetivo principal del presente estudio es la comprensión del desarrollo en la co-construcción de la alianza terapéutica en la fase inicial del proceso terapéutico con 19 clientes con diferentes estilos y un terapeuta. Se utilizó el estilo de afrontamiento del cliente, su resistencia (Cuestionario para Evaluar la Personalidad del Cliente -C.E.P.C., Beutler, 2000) y el Inventario de la Alianza Terapéutica (Working Alliance Inventory-WAI). Los clientes parecen aumentar sus niveles de externalización, más que sus niveles de internalización durante el proceso terapéutico. También fue interesante determinar si los clientes que abandonaron terapia presentaban un perfil específico y altos niveles de resistencia. Los niveles de externalización de los clientes que permanecieron en terapia aumentaron más que los niveles de internalización, y estos clientes presentaron menores niveles de resistencia. La relación terapéutica es la dimensión con un acuerdo absoluto entre el terapeuta y los clientes.

PROGRAMA PILOTO DE INTERVENÇÃO PARA PAIS DE CRIANÇAS COM PROBLEMAS DE OBESIDADE

A obesidade infantil é considerada uma das grandes preocupações de saúde pública, a nível mundial... more A obesidade infantil é considerada uma das grandes preocupações de saúde pública, a nível mundial e nacional, devido aos problemas de saúde e psicossociais que acarreta, a médio e a longo prazo. No entanto, a literatura científica portuguesa que se debruça sobre esta temática revela uma carência de programas apropriados para lidar com este problema. Com o intuito de colmatar esta falha, este trabalho tem como objectivo a criação de um programa de intervenção para pais de crianças com problemas de obesidade. Pretende-se contribuir para a promoção da qualidade de vida e do bem-estar da criança, bem como proporcionar o seu desenvolvimento pleno e harmonioso, através da sensibilização e da envolvência dos pais no processo de educar os filhos para a saúde.

Democratizing Higher Education: International Comparative Perspectives

by Serviço de Psicologia Universidade da Madeira and Luísa Soares

South Europe Higher Education: Portugal and its Peripherical Regions., 2015

Capítulo: Psicologia na Madeira

by Catarina Faria, Serviço de Psicologia Universidade da Madeira, Luísa Soares, and Carla Vale Lucas

Livro: Que Saber(es) para o Século XXI. História, cultura e ciência na Madeira. Coordenadores... more Livro: Que Saber(es) para o Século XXI. História, cultura e ciência na Madeira.

Coordenadores: José Eduardo Franco e Cristina Trindade

Obra publicada no âmbito do projeto "Aprender a Madeira - Dicionário de História da Madeira", apoiado pelo Programa "Intervir +"

ISBN: 978 - 989 - 680 - 133 - 5

Cyberbullying … Some Reflections: From Childhood to Adulthood

Depression and anxiety are two mental illness associated with cyber surfers. In our twenty first ... more Depression and anxiety are two mental illness associated with cyber surfers. In our twenty first century society, new technologies dominate and also novel psychological illnesses have emerged. Cyberbullying is a behaviour mostly associated with young people and has become increasingly more problematic. On the other hand, recent studies have shown how technology is extremely useful in the work of psychologists. It is this stark duality of technological/cybernautic vs stimulation of positive aspects of new technologies that is thrown into discussion in this work. Cyberbullying is a highly interactive bullying behaviour which is a growing concern within Portuguese schools. Children or adolescents make up rumours and present them online, where the school population can view and comment on the rumors. Their goal is to covertly attack and ruin the reputation of the victim. This shows how social networks can be misused; a behaviour, which curiously occurs in younger children and has started to be seen in adults as well. At the psychological level, it is a devastating attack on a child, who is still immature, as well as on a teenager who has not yet reached his or her full development. There are few psychologists in Portugal and they need to exist in greater numbers in schools, companies, and hospitals to help reduce the damage of this new psychological phenomenon. Otherwise, these new generation of cyberbullies will go on to universities and work contexts - adopting similar behaviour. This is clearly not the future we want for our society.
Key Words: Cyberbullying, psychology, technology, children, adolescents, adulthood.

Bibliotherapy: A tool to promote children's psychological well-being

by Carla Vale Lucas and Luísa Soares

Journal of Poetry TherapyThe Interdisciplinary Journal of Practice, Theory, Research and Education,26,3 , 2013

The focus of this article is on bibliotherapy and child development. Particular attention is give... more The focus of this article is on bibliotherapy and child development. Particular attention is given to collaboration between psychologists and educators. The authors identify and discuss the benefits of bibliotherapy, provide guidelines for practice, and discuss implementation. Cautions, new directions, and particular issues relating to bibliotherapy in Portugal conclude this article.

Programa de Promoção do Desenvolvimento Sócio-cognitivo da Criança Parte 2: Intervenção com os pais

by Carla Vale Lucas and Luísa Soares

A cognição social é deveras importante para uma interacção social bem-sucedida, e consequentement... more A cognição social é deveras importante para uma interacção social bem-sucedida, e consequentemente, para o equilíbrio psicossocial dos indivíduos. Considerando a importância de tal, foi construído um programa de promoção do desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo das crianças, que aposta na resiliência moral e na competência social. Destina-se a dois grupos-alvo, com intervenções paralelas: pais de crianças até aos 12 anos e crianças dos 7 aos 12 anos. Abordam-se com maior ênfase os módulos de intervenção dirigidos aos pais, respondendo a questões como "Que impacto têm as interacções e as experiências proporcionadas pelas pessoas mais próximas da criança no seu desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo e de que modo é possível maximizar o seu potencial?" O objectivo final é enfatizar a importância do autoconhecimento dos pais e a urgência da estimulação das competências das crianças.

Programa de Promoção do Desenvolvimento Sócio-cognitivo da Criança Parte 1: Intervenção com crianças Program for the Promotion of Children's Socio-cognitive development Part 1: Children's Intervention

by Carla Vale Lucas and Luísa Soares

"De que forma se pode maximizar o potencial da criança em termos do seu desenvolvimento sócio-cog... more "De que forma se pode maximizar o potencial da criança em termos do seu desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo?" Partiu-se da pertinência desta questão e da consideração de que as relações entre as habilidades sócio-cognitivas e comportamentos pró-sociais podem ser mediadas por variáveis situacionais, para alicerçar a construção de um programa de promoção do desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo nas crianças, dirigido a dois grupos-alvo: pais com filhos até os 12 anos e crianças dos 6-12 anos, em programas de intervenção paralelos, visando maximizar o potencial da criança em termos do desenvolvimento de respostas empáticas e interacções pro-sociais. O presente artigo pretende, assim, apresentar o referido programa, dando especial ênfase aos módulos de intervenção destinados às crianças.

Being a teen and learning how to surf anxiety: Integrating narrative methods with cognitive–behavioral therapy

by Carla Vale Lucas and Luísa Soares

Adolescence is a challenging stage due to the multiple and rapid changes that occur. In this pape... more Adolescence is a challenging stage due to the multiple and rapid changes that occur. In this paper, we present a clinical case of a teen with anxiety and hypochondriac symptoms. The therapeutic treatment, ongoing, was provided in 16 sessions. The intervention was based on the assumption that health anxiety results from processes that maintain catastrophic interpretations that for itself increases
anxiety. The principles of cognitive–behavioral and narrative therapy were applied in the intervention. The therapy involved providing psychoeducation, reducing the excessive focus given to the body, learning and training strategies to cope with anxiety, and constructing a life project. The case study shows the value of using metaphors as tools in the therapeutic process, and when facing life’s challenges. Also, it shows the importance of using reading and writing exercises to promote change and adjustment.

Keywords Adolescence; anxiety; case study; cognitive–behavioral therapy; health; hypochondriac symptoms; metaphor; narrative therapy

How can psychologists use social networks to reach community?

by Serviço de Psicologia Universidade da Madeira, Luísa Soares, Cristina Coelho, and Carla Vale Lucas

RUMOS - Revista Científica da Universidade do Mindelo, 1 (1-2), Dec 2014

The use of social networking and particularly, the use of Facebook, has been increasing in the la... more The use of social networking and particularly, the use of Facebook, has been increasing in the last years. It has been used for many specific goals, such as educational purposes and also to support communities, increasing the sense of belonging to a group. This paper aims to reflect on how psychologists can reach community through technology and social platforms. Particularly, we will reflect on the universities’ role, to promote community’s well-being and mental health by psychologists. We will focus on the social Facebook page of a Psychological Counseling Unit, from a Portuguese university that was created with the purpose of sharing posts with tips, strategies, motivational quotes and images that may help to promote wellness, both in academic and local community. We intend to reflect about the act of sharing positive meaningful posts; how it can stimulate the reflection on the individual potential, and have positive impact on users’ daily life, which really is the main goal of Positive Psychology. Attending to that, we believe that psychology services, and particularly universities, have the duty to promote social well-being and to educate communities for the importance of mental health and also to help people change thoughts and behaviors, thus being technology a useful way to do that.

Soares, L. & Pacheco, D. (2014). Co-work between University Teachers from Different Fields: Is it Possible to Build a Common Language? International Journal of Advanced Corporate Learning, 7, 3 (5-7).

by Serviço de Psicologia Universidade da Madeira and Luísa Soares

Some of the ideas/categories that resulted from this work suggest a common language should be bui... more Some of the ideas/categories that resulted from this work suggest a common language should be built between different professionals that work together: i) consider the human side of technology; ii) important behaviours for team work are complementarity, cohesion and synchronization; iii) attention to details motivates students; iv) stimulate new experiences/new thoughts; v) master four different abilities: inform, educate, inspire and entertain; vi) the essential will always remain, although times are changing and new fields of science are coming; vii) the web changed the way we work and learn and that´s more important than the way we interact with the contents of the web; viii) technology should improve teaching skills; ix) working together can be painful, so eliminating personnel barriers could result in a good cooperation/collaboration; x) team building; xi) create relevant contents; xii) build channels to reach all over the world; xiii) bridging programs can be very useful after a 1st graduation course where the main abilities from one area are already consolidated; xiv) Commitment to the team goals; xv) Psychologists are needed in teams and xv) dream university is the one that has pleasant and large spaces to be used by people and to inspire them.

Neuroscience and Education: the potential for designing intervention programs - The case of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)

Neuroscience has been developing fascinating insights into the brain’s development, although, it ... more Neuroscience has been developing fascinating insights into the brain’s development, although, it has also been, a continuous scientific challenge. In our century, neuroscience is not just a theoretical field anymore, since it has been proved the practical utility on education, psychology, engineering, medicine and other specific areas. Neuroscience has been giving us important data about how people learn, what processes our brain suffer throughout the life course, and also is giving us now a new field called Neuroeducation. This new field shows us that it is possible to understand the brain functioning and develop efficient strategies to improve learning skills, through the interdisciplinary teamwork, with scientists, psychologist and educators. Although the major amount of research on neuroeducation focus on improvement in typical development brains, we believe that, in the future, neuroeducation can focus on the study on how brains with atypical characteristics and functioning can better learn, as it is the case of children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD).Research has been showing good results in different interventions, such as behavioral training, memory and verbal rehearsal training.
This paper discusses the relevance of recent findings in neuroscience and education, the new findings about FASD, and the emergence of neuroeducation, reflecting on how this integrated research can generate cognitive models to build better instruction, improve education and design effective interventions for children.

Changing the clinical narratives patients live by: A cognitive behavioral approach of a clinical case of paruresis

This is a psychological clinical case study of a young male, who suffered from paruresis. His pro... more This is a psychological clinical case study of a young male, who suffered from paruresis. His problematic narrative is about the fear of not being able to urinate in public toilets or in situations where others may be present or entered in the facility. This problem prevents him from living a normal life and affects his self-confidence. We present a comprehensive cognitive behavioral conceptualization of the problematic narrative and also we reflected on the therapeutic intervention process, its challenges and cognitive strategies. To date, he has progressively adopted more constructive alternative explanations around the problem and is changing the narrative he lives by. Additionally, he has felt more confident, partly due to the fact he can urinate outside the home more often and in different places, yet not all.

Pilot project for peer tutoring: a case study in a Portuguese university

Purpose – Tutoring or mentoring is a form of mutual and informal learning which has distant origi... more Purpose – Tutoring or mentoring is a form of mutual and informal learning which has distant origins. This is a way of sharing knowledge and experience which has been proved to be extremely useful in educational settings, particularly where there is a peer that plays the role of tutor. Despite its informal characteristic, tutoring should be a structured process, with defined goals and clear roles for both: tutors and tutees, those who benefit from tutoring. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – As this paper aims to explore a pilot project, it was used as a reflexive and practical methodology, in a case study, analyzing the number of participants attending the project as well as the contents of the training course.
Findings – In this first project in a Portuguese university, 35 students attended as candidates to tutor, participating in the training course, showing interest in helping their colleagues. Originality/value – This proposal for a tutoring program in a public higher institution aims to train college students to help other colleagues, giving academic support, helping in the adaptation to academic context, promoting autonomy in learning, sharing effective strategies and helping in maintenance of positive interpersonal relationships. These aspects are very important to promote academic success in higher education.

Conhecer as emoções: a aplicação e avaliação de um programa de intervenção

Narrative cognitive therapy and insecure/ambivalent attachment pattern: a clinical case of epilepsy

Goal agreement between client-therapist dyads

Programa Desenvolvimento Socio Emocional -Pais

A cognição social é deveras importante para uma interacção social bem-sucedida, e consequentement... more A cognição social é deveras importante para uma interacção social bem-sucedida, e consequentemente, para o equilíbrio psicossocial dos indivíduos. Considerando a importância de tal, foi construído um programa de promoção do desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo das crianças, que aposta na resiliência moral e na competência social. Destina-se a dois grupos-alvo, com intervenções paralelas: pais de crianças até aos 12 anos e crianças dos 7 aos 12 anos. Abordam-se com maior ênfase os módulos de intervenção dirigidos aos pais, respondendo a questões como "Que impacto têm as interacções e as experiências proporcionadas pelas pessoas mais próximas da criança no seu desenvolvimento sócio-cognitivo e de que modo é possível maximizar o seu potencial?" O objectivo final é enfatizar a importância do autoconhecimento dos pais e a urgência da estimulação das competências das crianças.

Being a teen and learning how to surf anxiety

Adolescence is a challenging stage due to the multiple and rapid changes that occur. In this pape... more Adolescence is a challenging stage due to the multiple and rapid changes that occur. In this paper, we present a clinical case of a teen with anxiety and hypochondriac symptoms. The therapeutic treatment, ongoing, was provided in 16 sessions. The intervention was based on the assumption that health anxiety results from processes that maintain catastrophic interpretations that for itself increases anxiety. The principles of cognitive-behavioral and narrative therapy were applied in the intervention. The therapy involved providing psychoeducation, reducing the excessive focus given to the body, learning and training strategies to cope with anxiety, and constructing a life project. The case study shows the value of using metaphors as tools in the therapeutic process, and when facing life's challenges. Also, it shows the importance of using reading and writing exercises to promote change and adjustment.

Diferentes Estilos de Clientes y Construcción de la Alianza con un Terapeuta

El objetivo principal del presente estudio es la comprensión del desarrollo en la co-construcción... more El objetivo principal del presente estudio es la comprensión del desarrollo en la co-construcción de la alianza terapéutica en la fase inicial del proceso terapéutico con 19 clientes con diferentes estilos y un terapeuta. Se utilizó el estilo de afrontamiento del cliente, su resistencia (Cuestionario para Evaluar la Personalidad del Cliente -C.E.P.C., Beutler, 2000) y el Inventario de la Alianza Terapéutica (Working Alliance Inventory-WAI). Los clientes parecen aumentar sus niveles de externalización, más que sus niveles de internalización durante el proceso terapéutico. También fue interesante determinar si los clientes que abandonaron terapia presentaban un perfil específico y altos niveles de resistencia. Los niveles de externalización de los clientes que permanecieron en terapia aumentaron más que los niveles de internalización, y estos clientes presentaron menores niveles de resistencia. La relación terapéutica es la dimensión con un acuerdo absoluto entre el terapeuta y los clientes.

PROGRAMA PILOTO DE INTERVENÇÃO PARA PAIS DE CRIANÇAS COM PROBLEMAS DE OBESIDADE

A obesidade infantil é considerada uma das grandes preocupações de saúde pública, a nível mundial... more A obesidade infantil é considerada uma das grandes preocupações de saúde pública, a nível mundial e nacional, devido aos problemas de saúde e psicossociais que acarreta, a médio e a longo prazo. No entanto, a literatura científica portuguesa que se debruça sobre esta temática revela uma carência de programas apropriados para lidar com este problema. Com o intuito de colmatar esta falha, este trabalho tem como objectivo a criação de um programa de intervenção para pais de crianças com problemas de obesidade. Pretende-se contribuir para a promoção da qualidade de vida e do bem-estar da criança, bem como proporcionar o seu desenvolvimento pleno e harmonioso, através da sensibilização e da envolvência dos pais no processo de educar os filhos para a saúde.

Motivation for therapy: an important ingrdient to change?

Psychological symptomatology and loneliness in a college students sample: what new trends can be developed to better help these students?

We explore psychological symptomatology of college students in Madeira University, Portugal and e... more We explore psychological symptomatology of college students in Madeira University, Portugal and examine socio-demographic variables associated with psychological health. We intend to answer the questions: Does gender differ in terms of symptomatology? Which psychological symptomatology is more common? Is there a relation between severity of symptomatology and loneliness? We administered the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised and UCLA Loneliness Scale to 300 students, aged 18 to 52. Women reported higher levels of symptomatology. We also noted a positive correlation between symptomatology and loneliness, which could mean that the more We aim to suggest interventions that best suit higher education purpose and students, promote their adjustment and well-being.

Burnout do terapeuta