Civil War Essay -- essays research papers

Civil War Civil war was the greatest war in American history. It was waged in 10,000 places-from Valverde, New Mexico, and Fernandina on the Florida coast. More than three million Americans fought in it and more than 600,00 men died in it. It was not only the immensity of the fight but the new weapons, the new standards of generalship, and the strategies of destruction which made the Civil War an event present ever since in the American consciousness. Here are some of the crucial events of the war: the firing of the first shots at Fort Sumter; the battles of Shiloh, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg; Sherman's dramatic march to the sea; the surrender at Appomattox. In fact, Civil War wasn't simply the story of great battles and great generals, it was also an elaborate portrait of ourselves, American people- individuals and families, northerners and southerners, soldiers and civilians, slaves and slaveowners, rich and poor, urban and rural. Twenty years before Civil War started, South and North didn't have a good relationship already and there were many issues that they didn't agree on each other such as Clay's compromise, Fugitive slave act, Pottawatomie massacre, etc. The Southern states supported slavery because the slave population held more than 40 percent of the entire population and also they needed slavery for their industrialization. Therefore, if they freed all the slaves, someone would predict, many whites would have no jobs and many things would be up-side-down. As the result, controlling over slaves was very important for the Southern. But the Northern were opponent of slavery since the slavery population took less than 10 percent of the entire population and Southern states were already free. Then something really happened when Abraham Lincoln, a known opponent of slavery, was elected president. The Southern states then decided to secede, which meant that they were leaving the nation because they thought how could Lincoln be the president of the United States if most of the Southern didn't vote for him. Now, as we could see, our nation started to divide into two, the south and the north. During the year of 1861 to 1865, there were thousands of war between south and north and there were countless people died in it. The war immediately began when south and north fought for Fort Sumter. At Lincoln's inaug... ...enges of Reconstruction and of defining African Americans' rights. Therefore, many Moderate Republican, who made up the majority of the Republican party, angry because his failure to protect African American's rights. After congress took over the reconstruction from Johnson, they quickly passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which declared that everyone who was born in the land of United States was a citizen with full civil right, (not guarantee for voting rights). Then Fourteenth Amendment was also passed in June 1866. It required states to extend equal citizenship to African Americans and all people were born naturalized in the United States.) Then Fifteenth Amendment was passed at the following year, it pointed out that everyone should have rights of vote no matter what color the people were. Many African American children started to go to school and being educated just like everyone else. Many African Americans involves politics and protect their own rights. As we knew, countless people didn't have jobs and started die from hunger, therefore, Industrialization was needed so that those people could have jobs. Many Southern landowners turned into factory owners.

Beach Burial Essay -- English Literature

Beach Burial Beach Burial says only that men die and are buried. Is this a fair evaluation of the poem? Beach Burial is a poem which deals with many issues, not only about men dying and being buried. This is by no means a fair evaluation of the poem. The poem in actual fact deals with the problems in war, and it encases a hidden meaning, which is equality. This poem dwells heavily on the problems in war. It describes how high the death toll is for both sides. Slessor uses â€Å"convoys of dead sailors† to show that all these dead body’s are very much alike, with their movements and feelings being the same. It also outlines a major problem in war, being able to identify and bury they dead properly. "And each cross, the driven stake of tide-wood, bears the last signature of m...

Callicles’ Ultimate Goal: The Fulfillment of All Human Desires Essay

Each and every person has his own idea of what â€Å"the good life† is. For some, it is simply having enough of the basic necessities of life such as food and clothing to sustain themselves for everyday life. For others, it can be the acquirement of more riches and wealth. Others see the good life as living as wise, good, or virtuous men. In spite having these different ideas of what the good life is, it remains true for all people that in order to live this, they must be able to fulfill all their needs and desires. In other words, they need to find contentment. A person can say he lives the good life when he has everything he wants—not just in a material sense, but also in the mental, emotional and spiritual senses. When all these are satisfied, the ultimate goal of happiness (which is basically the good life itself) is reached. In Plato’s Gorgias, the good life and the concepts of desire and happiness are discussed by the characters of Socrates and Callicles. As Callicles discusses in the following passage, he reveals his idea about how the full expression of desires is the ultimate goal of the good life: Human happiness is incompatible with enslavement to anyone. What nature approves and sanctions, on the other hand—I’m going to speak bluntly to you now-is this: the only authentic way of life is to do nothing to hinder or restrain the expansion of ones desires, until they can grow no larger, at which point one should be capable of putting courage and cleverness at their service and satisfying every passing whim. Now, I don’t think most people can do this, and that’s why they condemn those who can; they’re ashamed, and they try to disguise their failings by claiming that self indulgence is contemptible, which, as I explained earlier, is an attempt to enslave those who are better than them. And why do they praise self discipline and justice? Because their own timidity makes them incapable of winning satisfaction for their pleasures The first part of his statement discusses how man’s goal must always be his happiness. His desires can never be suppressed, that his focus must always be on his main goal, which is to achieve everything he has set his heart upon having. When the time comes that he reaches this point—the â€Å"maximum† level—those that he desires after (though not necessarily all) will be easier to acquire. The phrase â€Å"passing whims† are like short-term goals. When one has achieved the ultimate or long-term goal, it seems that the short-term ones become much easier to achieve. However, Callicles believes that not all people are capable of achieving their ultimate goals. The force themselves to make to with their short-term ones, but fulfilling these never seem to be enough, which is why â€Å"they condemn those who can†. People who fail to reach their goals say that putting forward one’s own pleasures and gratifications is contemptible. They pretend that they do not need to fulfill their own desires because it is rather unacceptable behavior. It is selfish and unpleasant to place oneself as the first priority. But deep down, there is resentment about his failures. He puts on a show that he is virtuous and unselfish—another way, in truth, of gratifying oneself. This becomes a way of attempting â€Å"to enslave those who are better than them†. Because they make it seem like they are the virtuous ones, they make the successful men look like the self-seeking ones. They condemn the achievers to reputations of being self-indulgent and unworthy of respect or power because they chose to put themselves first, above all else. Secretly wishing to in the achievers’ position, the failed men try to redeem themselves and their prides by making themselves appear virtuous. They make it seem that they did not reach their mains goals not because of deficiencies or weaknesses, but rather because they have self-discipline and believe in equality amongst all men that no one should rise above the others, that they remained equal and that they wanted to be fair to all. They force to turn their weaknesses and shortcomings into acts of nobility. If they cannot achieve their main goals, they prefer to find satisfaction elsewhere, even if their means are not of the right way. This way of thinking becomes the explanation for why self-discipline becomes the goal of those who can’t have what they really desire. Self-discipline, firstly, as mentioned earlier, is a means of redeeming oneself. This is the failures’ way of getting satisfaction. Even though it is not as pleasurable a feeling as achieving one’s ultimate goal, they compensate for it by getting to experience parts of it. Secondly, self-discipline is a means of controlling oneself to not desire any other things, or at least things that are difficult to attain. Their continuous disappointments spur them to set realistic goals for themselves—goals that match their capabilities. They make do with what they have as not to fail as much anymore. This is not to say that they find a different ultimate goal. They still seek to attain the good life and happiness, but they set their criteria for it in lower standards that they can reach. They seek new desires to fulfill, as these are the things which lead to the good life. Man has always been a desiring creature, always on the lookout for a better state in life. There are few who can say truthfully that they have achieved the highest end. This is because most men fail to complete all their desires. The full expression of man’s desires is the ultimate goal of the good life. A person who believes himself to be living the good life does not need or want anything else to make it even better. In other words, he is at his â€Å"peak†, at the maximum level of happiness and pleasure. Every single thing that man desires is for his own good. He does not desire anything that will cause him harm or discomfort. Man desires for one reason and one reason alone: to be happy. When he is truly happy, there is no more need for desiring anything. Even the simplest desire of wanting to be happy (in a general sense) is enough to show that there is something missing. Contentment does not go hand-in-hand with desire. A contented man feels that he is complete and every aspect of his life has fallen properly into place. Every person has in himself a list of goals that he aims to achieve. As he grows older, these goals are slowly achieved, but then, more and more desires are also added to the list. Because of this, more often than not, man fails to live his ideal â€Å"good life†. Men, however, who set limits for their desires and know which ones they can achieve, try their best to achieve this, and when they do, they become contented. In a different perspective in Gorgias, the character of Socrates refutes Callicles’ statement of what the ultimate goal of man is. According to Socrates, and Plato himself, as well, the ultimate human goal is represented by virtue (defined as â€Å"the highest good†¦and†¦ the abstract sum total of all more specific instances of good†), and â€Å"is attained through a proper combination of fitness, temperance, justice, and the other arts† (Gorgias: Important Terms). Socrates sees pure goodness as the ultimate goal. Callicles, on the other hand, sees the fulfillment of all desires as the ultimate goal, because the desire of wanting to be good and wanting to be virtuous is present. This â€Å"want† is something that is aimed to be achieved, and if this want to be good and virtuous is not achieved, there will be no contentment—therefore, the ultimate goal cannot be reached. To be living the good life, for Callicles, is to be happy. To be happy is to be able to fulfill all that one desires. When needs and wants are fulfilled, man becomes content. Those who cannot attain all their needs and wants succumb to self-discipline wherein they redeem themselves through achieving less ambitious but more realistic goals, and they control their goals to match their capabilities. Everything man desires, he desires for his own good. It has always been man’s nature to choose what is beneficial to him, and will always be that way. These desires are all aimed towards one goal: the good life. When man has reached the point wherein he desires no more, he has reached his ultimate goal. Work Cited â€Å"Gorgias: Important Terms. † 2009. SparkNotes. 27 April 2009.

Cement Production Process Description

Little understanding of who the cement production process, cement production will be mentioned when it comes to â€Å"two grinding a burn†, ‘e they are: raw material preparation (a mill), Cement Clinker Processing Plant, cement grinding (two grinding) . In a portland cement plant, cement production has the following main stages. Prepare raw materials: Limestone is the main raw material for cement production , limestone is the main raw material for cement production .Limestone is the largest amount of raw aterials for cement production , the larger the particle size after mining , high hardness , thus crushing the material crushing limestone cement plant occupies a more important position. Most of the raw material to be broken, such as limestone, clay , iron ore and coal. It is said that many manufacturers use Jaw crusher manufacturers in india production crusher for crushing . Limestone is the largest amount of raw materials for cement production , the larger the particl e size after mining , high hardness , thus crushing the material rushing limestone cement plant occupies a more important position.Raw materials and fuel poured into the pit by a dump truck unloading , fed by a plate feeder crusher broken. Raw materials crushed by a belt conveyor to the pre-homogenization yard. Prehomogenization memory of raw materials, to take the process of applying scientific stacker reclaimer technology to achieve the initial homogenization of raw materials , the raw material yard along with storage and homogenization function. Raw materials crushed by the pre- stacker tacker homogenization and stratification , and then take the feeder scraper reclaimer .Remove the raw material from the belt conveyor to the raw ingredients stations and other places. Grinding the raw material : in this phase using the vertical mill and a ball mill, a roller former use of the pressure leakage through the crushed material , which relied on the ball of the material for grinding. The new Crushing And Screening Plant production process, raw material composition is stable pit entry clinker burning thermal stability of the system under remise of raw material homogenization system plays a stable raw material composition pit entry last a gatekeeper role .In continuous production line set up a raw meal silo storage and materials are metaplasia . After the raw material database partitions alternately inflated unloaded from the mixing chamber to the periphery of the annular region , the raw material in the mixing chamber is inflated uniformly stirred . After homogenization of material powder is measured after passing through air delivery chute and bucket hen through the dosing valve , valve locks were fed two feed ports dual series preheater .Cement Clinker Processing Plant: Feed preheater raw material powder, after preheater and calciner pre-heat decomposition, the next five cyclone feed tube into the rotary kiln, and then fired at high temperatures in a kiln, and the n through kilns fall into the cooler for cooling, the clinker is cooled to ambient temperature after +65 C, transported to clinker libraries and databases through yellow zipper machine.

Being and becoming

In order to be human, not only the idea of reflection upon life is necessary but in emphasizes of the use of the Socratic method in that reflection and in the course of finding the truth, questions are paired with such reflection. At this level, questioning and reflection are the apex of what it means to be human.Socrates however had some varying views on philosophy that opposed some of what Plato believed. Socrates was a skeptic, as was Plato, and as can be exemplified in the cave metaphor, but Socrates also believed that a person can be convicted of their own beliefs even if they cannot find their pathway of truth.Plato, in contrast, believed that philosophers were the delegates who maintained what was and was not truth, and led the way to such truth for the common man. It is not then self-interest that leads a person to happiness, and there is a definite equilibrium between the allowance of each part of the soul guided by reason, and asceticism. Plato was a not a Sophist. Without the guidance of moral reason then a state of chaos would ensue entailing an everyman for himself type of attitude.It is a bitter debate on whether or not Socrates was a Sophist, he himself vehemently denied it but some of his philosophies correlated with Sophist thinking (i. e. the issues of ethics, and living a good life, each Sophist preoccupations). Morality must then be shown as adhering to individual interests. Plato did not agree with the type of hedonism exhibited by the Sophists, who thought human nature was an extension of the animal world. Instead, Plato states that the nature of man is reason; and in this reason exists an organized society constructed by reason.Happiness for the rational man then comes into fruition by governing their more base, animal, desires, which are irrational. This morality is extended into the realm of society because of human interaction. Therefore, if a man is to be the pinnacle of reason, and morality, and happiness, then the society that he li ves and associates must then also exhibit such a moral temperance. If then a society is blinded by hedonism, or pure desire of self, a man in that society has no hope for personal happiness because of lack of morality, reason, and thus fully succumbing to akrasia.In order to be human, not only the idea of reflection upon life is necessary but in emphasizes of the use of the Socratic method in that reflection and in the course of finding the truth, questions are paired with such reflection. At this level, questioning and reflection are the apex of what it means to be human. Socrates however had some varying views on philosophy that opposed some of what Plato believed. Socrates was a skeptic, as was Plato, and as can be exemplified in the cave metaphor, but Socrates also believed that a person can be convicted of their own beliefs even if they cannot find their pathway of truth.Plato, in contrast, believed that philosophers were the delegates who maintained what was and was not truth, and led the way to such truth for the common man. It is not then self-interest that leads a person to happiness, and there is a definite equilibrium between the allowance of each part of the soul guided by reason, and asceticism. Plato was a not a Sophist. Without the guidance of moral reason then a state of chaos would ensue entailing an everyman for himself type of attitude.It is a bitter debate on whether or not Socrates was a Sophist, he himself vehemently denied it but some of his philosophies correlated with Sophist thinking (i. e. the issues of ethics, and living a good life, each Sophist preoccupations). Work Cited MacDonald, Ross. Socrates versus Plato. Aspects of Education. P9-22. 1996. Plato. Phaedo. Plato. Crito. Translated by Benjamin Jowett. < http://classics. mit. edu/Plato/crito. html>

Unit 1 Individual Project Pres111

Marketa S Marshall Unit 1 Individual Project AIU Online – PRES 111 Professor C. Embry Presentation Essentials Before I begin with the videos I chose for this assignment I will first define the rhetorical triangle and the parts of it. The rhetorical triangle refers to the relationship of the three forms of Aristotelian rhetoric-Ethos, Pathos, and Logos. A speaker who aims to attain perfection in his speech must strive to use all three forms of rhetoric. Similarly Ethos, Pathos and Logos form the basic components of all kinds of writing.It is important to learn and recognize the use of these three elements not only in our own writing but also in others writings. It is by the use of Ethos, Pathos and Logos that one can develop a text appealing to readers on various levels. The three parts of the triangle are ethos, logos, and pathos. Ethos is more concerned to the character of speakers. Any kind of text document that is ethos-driven concentrates on the character and reputation of writer. It reflects the reputation of author. If listeners can recognize the speaker’s credibility, it will help the speaker to make his task more easy and perfect.Ethos helps to interpret the relationship between listeners and speakers. Ethos-driven document is highly focused on the qualities of author that give credibility to his personality such as sincerity, trust, grooming, eye contact, dress, movement, height and expertise. Pathos is highly focused on emotions, feelings and psychological state of the listeners. It is the fact that we can interpret the concept of document easily when we are in good mood but we cannot interpret it when we are in hostile mood. So it is the fact that pathos-driven document concentrates on the mood, emotions and feelings of the audience.Logos-driven document is always focused on concepts or logical ability. It concentrates on proof that is given to the audience through logic reasoning. Humans make decisions on what grabs their attention thr ough logical reasoning. If speaker’s communication is perfect and convincing, audience will inspire because they always try to find logical reasoning in the speech of speakers. Educational or official documents are focused on logos. (Ranjan, 2012) The first video is about Breast Cancer: http://www. youtube. com/watch? =bjXCnAXp8cs The second video is about students who attend a high school in New York and the discuss the STEP program which helps them to better understand technology http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=bjXCnAXp8cs First video †¢ What is the background information for this presentation? The information in this video provides info about breast cancer, the presenter tells you in the simplest way how to prevent breast cancer and how to detect it in the early stages hands on, and she gives you an example on how to test yourself for breast cancer.She also gives you in depth information about the subject and why she feels the subject is a sensitive topic for her. W hat is the name of the presenter? Megha Shah What is the name of this presentation? Breast Cancer Prevention Presentation by students of Lewis University Where can it be located? (What is its URL? ) http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=4zrTI25mV9I part 2 of the presentation is http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=bjXCnAXp8cs When was this presentation given? August 2, 2010Where was this presentation given? On the Lewis University campus Who was in the audience? Faculty, students, staff, friends, and family How does each part of the Rhetorical Triangle operate in the presentation? Pathos is focused on emotions and feelings of the listeners, since the presenter felt sensitive on the subject since she either has a family member or a friend who has suffered from breast cancer she was able to reach out to the audience not in just an informative matter but in a personal matter as well.Logos is built on how much the presenter has informed the audience I feel she did a great job, since she has ex perienced the topic in a personal way she was able to give tips and help the audience understand the subject better, she also gave great examples on presentation and how to catch the early signs of the illness. Ethos is described as the personality of the presenter I feel she was a bit nervous in front of the camera but she still did a great job when presenting it. She stumbled on a couple of words when doing the presentation in a face to face camera mode.How does The Speaker operate in the presentation? Based on what you have learned in U1 about the Rhetorical Triangle, is this successful (i. e. , effective)? Yes I feel the speaker did successfully touch the basis of all three steps in the triangle though there were some mishaps altogether it still came out to be a great presentation. The speaker gave an effective method for the presentation as well she was able to properly inform the audience on the subject and give them examples on prevention. How does The Audience operate in the presentation?Based on what you have learned in U1 about the Rhetorical Triangle, is this successful (i. e. , effective)? The audience seemed compelled because I believe all women need to know and understand the causes and effects of breast cancer and learn how to catch the early signs of it, they seemed very attentive when it came to listening ad understanding the topic. How does The Situation/Purpose operate in the presentation? Based on what you have learned in U1 about the Rhetorical Triangle, is this successful (i. . , effective)? The situation given for the topic was to inform women more on an illness that causes death for women today; so the purpose was to inform, educate, and help the audience to better understand the subject and gave them tips on how to prevent and catch the early signs of it. What is the relationship between these elements in this video presentation? Based on what you have learned in U1 about the Rhetorical Triangle, overall, is this successful (i. e. , ef fective)?Since the presentation was given on a campus site, not only did it help the faculty and staff, the students, but it also gave them an opportunity to bring family and friends and help them get involved on the issues of the subject and to help them understand the subject as well. Second Video What is the background information for this presentation? The students in this video attempt to inform the audience about a program that is given to them after school hours(weekends) and it help enrich them in technology and further pushes them to their goals.I think that the program offers the students ways to help them achieve their goals, the program also allows them to go a step further with their homework it’s something like a homework help program that is offered to them after school. It helps the kids in writing, math, and reading as well as English. What is the name of the presenter? Various high school students What is the name of this presentation? The Barnard STEP Progr am special presentation 2012 Where can it be located? (What is its URL? ) http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=oxO7t0vs5QE When was this presentation given? March 26, 2012Where was this presentation given? Various locations that offer the after school program to its students. Who was in the audience? Teachers who volunteer at the program and various audience members who wanted to learn more about the program. How does each part of the Rhetorical Triangle operate in the presentation? Not every step was offered in this presentation I think, Ethos was effectively terminated in this presentation the students were still in school clothing I think or clothes that they wore at home after school I think they could’ve had the students look more presentable.Pathos was initiated since all of the students seemed to come across the program by friends, teachers or family members who wanted to see them succeed. Logos was initiated but could’ve been handled differently if I were just bro wsing online the presentation given on the site would not have just caught my attention, the students were knowledgeable on the subject but only to a certain extent. One of the volunteered teachers could’ve made an appearance in the video and talked more to the parents watching about the subject.It was just students in the video so they pretty much reached out to other students, but students must be able to help their parents understand the subject as well so a teacher should’ve been in the video to help capture the attention of the parents of the students who were interested in the program. How does The Speaker operate in the presentation? Based on what you have learned in U1 about the Rhetorical Triangle, is this successful (i. e. , effective)? All speakers pretty much went over why they joined the program, and what it offers.I didn’t get to see information on why or who started the program where it was offered or why students should join. Students just told w hy they started the program because of who brought it to their attention i. e friends, family members or teachers. No one gave in depth information on why the program was started and who stated it and why. How does The Audience operate in the presentation? Based on what you have learned in U1 about the Rhetorical Triangle, is this successful (i. e. , effective)?Various members were able to watch it was a video that was uploaded in order to let students know about the program, since the video didn’t properly execute why or how the program was stated and gave follow up information of the program I don’t think most audience members would be that interested in letting their students join. How does The Situation/Purpose operate in the presentation? Based on what you have learned in U1 about the Rhetorical Triangle, is this successful (i. e. , effective)?Every school has a after school program, the video didn’t really discuss why or what made their program so special, or more important than any other program †¢What is the relationship between these elements in this video presentation? Based on what you have learned in U1 about the Rhetorical Triangle, overall, is this successful (i. e. , effective)? It was mildly successful I think that if any other student were to view the video they’d just watch and move on to another video relating to the same subject due to lack of information.Both videos were entertaining but the second video proved to be more entertaining than the first the first video gave more information on the subject as well as examples and presentations on prevention, the presenter was able to capture the audience’s attention because the subject is a touchy matter and she was able to capture the attention of not only the faculty and staff as well as her fellow students but other women as well.The second video would prove to have a mild audience it lacked of information. The students who presented the video just dis cussed why they felt the program was useful, no one went into detail on how or why the program was started and what the program offered. REFERENCES http://www. alloutdigital. com/2012/09/what-are-three-parts-of-the-rhetorical-triangle/ http://www. youtube. com

A Format for Case Conceptualisation

Many professional and personal challenges confront practicum students as they work with clients. For example, students must establish a counseling relationship, listen attentively, express themselves clearly, probe for information, and implement technical skills in an ethical manner. Those counseling performance skills (Borders Leddick, 1987) center on what counselors do during sessions. At a cognitive level, students must master factual knowledge, think integratively, generate and test clinical hypotheses, plan and apply interventions, and evaluate the effectiveness of treatment. Those conceptualizing skills, within the cognitive operations used to construct models that represent experience (Mahoney Lyddon, 1988), show how counselors think about clients and how they choose interventions. It is highly desirable for instructors of practica to have pedagogical methods to promote the development both of counseling performance skills and conceptualizing skills. Such methods should be diverse and flexible to accommodate students at different levels of professional development and with distinct styles of learning (Biggs, 1988; Borders Leddick, 1987; Ellis, 1988; Fuqua, Johnson, Anderson, Newman, 1984; Holloway, 1988; Ronnestad Skovholt, 1993; Stoltenberg Delworth, 1987). RATIONALE FOR THE FORMAT In this article, we present a format for case conceptualization that we developed to fill gaps in the literature on the preparation of counselors (Borders Leddick, 1987; Hoshmand, 1991). Although many existing methods promote counseling performance skills, there are few established methods for teaching students the conceptualizing skills needed to understand and treat clients (Biggs, 1988; Hulse Jennings, 1984; Kanfer Schefft, 1988; Loganbill Stoltenberg, 1983; Turk Salovey, 1988). We do not discount the importance of counseling performance skills, but we believe that they can be applied effectively only within a meaningful conceptual framework. That is, what counselors do depends on their evolving conceptualization of clients; training in that conceptualization matters. Given the large quantity of information that clients disclose, students have the task of selecting and processing relevant clinical data to arrive at a working model of their clients. Graduate programs need to assist students in understanding how to collect, organize, and integrate information; how to form and test clinical inferences; and how to plan, implement, and evaluate interventions (Dumont, 1993; Dumont Lecomte, 1987; Fuqua et al. , 1984; Hoshmand, 1991; Kanfer Schefft, 1988; Turk Salovey, 1988). Although systematic approaches to collecting and processing clinical information are not new, the case conceptualization format presented here, as follows, has several distinguishing features: 1. The format is comprehensive, serving both to organize clinical data (see Hulse Jennings, 1984; Loganbill Stoltenberg, 1983) and to make conceptual tasks operational (see Biggs, 1988). The components of the format integrate and expand on two useful approaches to presenting cases that are cited often and that are linked to related literature on supervision: (a) Loganbill and Stoltenbergs (1983) six content areas of clients functioning (i. . , identifying data, presenting problem, relevant history, interpersonal style, environmental factors, and personality dynamics), and (b) Biggss (1988) three tasks of case conceptualization (i. e. , identifying observable and inferential clinical evidence; articulating dimensions of the counseling relationship; and describing assumptions about presenting c oncerns, personality, and treatment). In addition, the format makes explicit the crucial distinction between observation and inference, by separating facts from hypotheses. It advances the notion that observations provide the basis for constructing and testing inferences. Thus, the format fosters development of critical thinking that is more deliberate and less automatic than the ordinary formation of impressions. The approach is compatible with recommendations that counselors receive training in rational hypothesis testing to reduce inferential errors (Dumont 1993; Dumont Lecomte, 1987; Hoshmand, 1991; Kanfer Schefft, 1988; Turk Salovey, 1988). 2. The format can be adapted to the developmental stage of students by its focus on stage-appropriate components and implementing those components in stage-appropriate ways (Ellis, 1988; Glickauf-Hughes Campbell, 1991; Ronnestad Skovholt, 1993; Stoltenberg Delworth, 1987). As an example, beginning students use the format to organize information and to learn the distinction between observation and inference, whereas more experienced students focus on using the format to generate and test hypotheses. 3. The format is atheoretical, thereby permitting students to ncorporate constructs from any paradigm into their case conceptualizations. In this sense, the format resembles the cognitive scaffolding described in the constructivist perspective (Mahoney Lyddon, 1988). Rather than being an explicit template through which observations are filtered to conform to an imposed representational model, the format provides an abstract set of cognitive schemas. With the schemas, the student actively fashions a conceptual framework from which to order and assign meaning to observations. Simply put, the format is a generic structure that the student uses to construct his or her reality of the case. COMPONENTS OF THE FORMAT The format has 14 components, sequenced from observational to inferential as follows: background data, presenting concerns, verbal content, verbal style, nonverbal behavior, clients emotional experience, counselors experience of the client, client-counselor interaction, test data and supporting materials, diagnosis, inferences and assumptions, goals of treatment, interventions, and evaluation of outcomes. Background data includes sex, age, race, ethnicity, physical appearance (e. . , attractiveness, dress, grooming, height, and weight), socioeconomic status, marital status, family constellation and background, educational and occupational status, medical and mental health history, use of prescribed or illicit substances, prior treatment, legal status, living arrangements, religious affiliation, sexual preference, social network, current functioning , and self-perceptions. Initially, students are overwhelmed by the data that they assume need to be collected. Guidance must be provided on how students are to differentiate meaningful from inconsequential information. In our program, for example, we ask students to evaluate the relevance of background data, for understanding clients presenting concerns and for developing treatment plans. We advise students to strive for relevance rather than comprehensiveness. Presenting concerns consist of a thorough account of each of the clients problems as viewed by that client. This task might begin with information contained on an intake form. We assist students in developing concrete and detailed definitions of clients concerns by showing them how to help clients identify specific affective, behavioral, cognitive, and interpersonal features of their problems. For example, the poor academic performance of a client who is a college student might involve maladaptive behavior (e. g. , procrastination), cognitive deficits (e. g. , difficulty in concentrating), negative moods (e. g. , anxiety), and interpersonal problems (e. g. , conflict with instructors). Counseling students should also explore the parameters of presenting concerns, including prior occurrence, onset, duration, frequency, severity, and relative importance. We further suggest that students explore how clients have attempted to cope with their concerns and that they examine what clients expect from treatment, in terms of assistance as well as their commitment to change. In addition, students should assess immediate or impending dangers and crises that their clients may face. Finally, we instruct students in identifying environmental stressors and supports that are linked to presenting concerns. Verbal content can be organized in two ways. A concise summary of each session is appropriate for cases of limited duration. Alternatively, verbal content can include summaries of identified themes that have emerged across sessions. Occasionally, those themes are interdependent or hierarchically arranged. For example, a client may enter treatment to deal with anger toward a supervisor who is perceived as unfair and, in later sessions, disclose having been chronically demeaned by an older sibling. We teach students to discriminate central data from peripheral data through feedback, modeling, and probing questions. Students need to focus their sessions on areas that are keyed to treatment. For instance, we point out that clients focal concerns, along with the goals of treatment, can serve as anchors, preventing the content of sessions from drifting. Verbal style refers to qualitative elements of clients verbal presentation (i. e. , how something is said rather than what is said) that students deem significant because they reflect clients personality characteristics, emotional states, or both. Those elements can include tone of voice and volume, changes in modulation at critical junctures, fluency, quantity and rate of verbalization, vividness, syntactic complexity, and vocal characterizations (e. g. , sighing). Nonverbal behavior includes clients eye contact, facial expression, body movements, idiosyncratic mannerisms (e. g. , hand gestures), posture, seating arrangements, and change in any of these behaviors over time and circumstances. Instructors can assist students in distinguishing relevant from unimportant information by modeling and providing feedback on how these data bear on the case. As an example, neglected hygiene and a listless expression are important nonverbal behaviors when they coincide with other data, such as self-reports of despair and hopelessness. Clients emotional experience includes data that are more inferential. On the basis of their observations, students attempt to infer what their clients feel during sessions and to relate those feelings to verbal content (e. g. , sadness linked to memories of loss). The observations provide insights into clients emotional lives outside of treatment. We caution students that clients self-reports are an important but not entirely reliable source of information about their emotional experience. At times clients deny, ignore, mislabel, or misrepresent their emotional experience. Students should note the duration, intensity, and range of emotion expressed over the course of treatment. Blunted or excessive affect as well as affect that is discrepant with verbal content also merit attention. To illustrate, a client may report, without any apparent anger, a history of physical abuse. Initially, students can be assisted in labeling their clients affect by using a checklist of emotional states. We have found it helpful to suggest possible affect and support our perceptions with observation and logic. Empathic role taking can also help students to gain access to clients experience. Instructors may need to sensitize students to emotional states outside of their own experience or that they avoid. Counselors experience of the client involves his or her personal reactions to the client (e. g. , attraction, boredom, confusion, frustration, and sympathy). We strive to establish a supportive learning environment in which students can disclose their genuine experiences, negative as well as positive. Students often struggle to accept that they might not like every client. But students should be helped to recognize that their experience of clients is a rich source of hypotheses about feelings that those clients may engender in others and, thus, about the interpersonal world that the clients partially create for themselves. The feel of clients often provides valuable diagnostic clues (e. g. , wanting to take care of a client may suggest features of dependent personality disorder). Sometimes students need assistance in determining whether their reactions to clients reflect countertransferential issues or involve normative responses. We draw on parallel process and use-of-self as an instrument to help clarify students feelings and to form accurate attributions about the origins of those feelings (Glickauf-Hughes Campbell, 1991; Ronnestad Skovholt, 1993). Client-counselor interaction summarizes patterns in the exchanges between client and counselor as well as significant interpersonal events that occur within sessions. Such events are, for example, how trust is tested, how resistance is overcome, how sensitive matters are explored, how the counseling relationship is processed, and how termination is handled. Thus, this component of the format involves a characterization of the counseling process. Students should attempt to characterize the structure of the typical sessionspecifically, what counselors and clients do in relation to one another during the therapy hour. They may do any of the following: answer questions, ask questions; cathart, support; learn, teach; seek advice, give advice; tell stories, listen; collude to avoid sensitive topics. Taxonomies of counselor (Elliott et al. , 1987) and client (Hill, 1992) modes of response are resources with which to characterize the structure of sessions. At a more abstract level, students should try to describe the evolving roles they and their clients play vis-a-vis one another. It is essential to assess the quality of the counseling relationship and the contributions of the student and the client to the relationship. We ask students to speculate on what they mean to a given client and to generate a metaphor for their relationship with that client (e. g. , doctor, friend, mentor, or parent). Client-counselor interactions yield clues about clients interpersonal style, revealing both assets and liabilities. Furthermore, the counseling relationship provides revealing data about clients self-perceptions. We encourage students to present segments of audiotaped or videotaped interviews that illustrate patterns of client-counselor interaction. Test data and supporting materials include educational, legal, medical, and psychological records; mental status exam results; behavioral assessment data, including self-monitoring; questionnaire data, the results of psychological testing, artwork, excerpts from diaries or journals, personal correspondence, poetry, and recordings. When students assess clients, a rationale for testing is warranted that links the method of testing to the purpose of assessment. We assist students in identifying significant test data and supporting materials by examining how such information converges with or departs from other clinical data e. g. , reports of family turmoil and an elevated score on Scale 4, Psychopathic Deviate, of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 [MMPI-2; Hathaway McKinley, 1989]). Assessment, as well as diagnosis and treatment, must be conducted with sensitivity toward issues that affect women, minorities, disadvantaged clients, and disabled clients, because those pe rsons are not necessarily understood by students, perhaps due to limited experience of students or the homogenized focus of their professional preparation. Diagnosis includes students impression of clients diagnoses on all five axes of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV, American Psychiatric Association, 1994). We guide students efforts to support their diagnostic thinking with clinical evidence and to consider competing diagnoses. Students can apply taxonomies other than those in the DSM-IV when appropriate (e. g. , DeNelsky and Boats [1986] coping skills model). Instructors demonstrate the function of diagnosis in organizing scattered and diverse clinical data and in generating tentative hypotheses about clients functioning. Inferences and assumptions involve configuring clinical hypotheses, derived from observations, into meaningful and useful working models of clients (Mahoney Lyddon, 1988). A working model consists of a clear definition of the clients problems and formulations of how hypothesized psychological mechanisms produce those problems. For instance, a clients primary complaints might be frequent bouts of depression, pervasive feelings of isolation, and unfulfilled longing for intimacy. An account of those problems might establish the cause as an alienation schema, early childhood loss, interpersonal rejection, negative self-schemas, or social skills deficits. We help students to elaborate on and refine incompletely formed inferences by identifying related clinical data and relevant theoretical constructs (Dumont, 1993; Mahoney Lyddon, 1988). We also assist students in integrating inferences and assumptions with formal patterns of understanding drawn from theories of personality, psychopathology, and counseling (Hoshmand, 1991). As with their instructors, students are not immune from making faulty inferences that can be traced to logical errors, such as single-cause etiologies, the representative heuristic, the availability heuristic, confirmatory bias, the fundamental attribution error, and illusory correlations; (Dumont, 1993; Dumont Lecomte, 1987). As an example, counselors tend to seek data that support their preexisting notions about clients, thus restricting the development of a more complete understanding of their clients. We alert students to the likelihood of bias in data gathering, particularly when they seek to confirm existing hypotheses. Furthermore, we demonstrate how to generate and evaluate competing hypotheses to counteract biased information ]processing (Dumont Lecomte, 1987; Kanfer Schefft, 1988). Instructors, therefore, must teach students to think logically, sensitizing them to indicators of faulty inferences and providing them with strategies for validating clinical hypotheses as well as disconfirming them (Dumont Lecomte, 1987; Hoshmand, 1991). The proposed format can accomplish this task because it separates inferences from the clinical data used to test inferences and thus deautomatizes cognitive operations by which inferences are formed (Kanfer Schefft, 1988; Mahoney Lyddon, 1988). We have found it beneficial to have students compare their impressions of clients with impressions that are independently revealed by test data (e. g. , MMPI-2); this exercise permits the correction of perceptual distortions and logical errors that lead to faulty inferences. Although students intuition is an invaluable source of hypotheses, instructors need to caution them that intuition must be evaluated by empirical testing and against grounded patterns of understanding (Hoshmand, 1991). We also model caution and support for competing formulations and continued observation. This approach fosters appreciation of the inexactitude and richness of case conceptualization and helps students to manage such uncertainty without fear of negative evaluation. With the development of their conceptualizing skills, students can appreciate the viability of alternative and hybrid inferences. Moreover, they become more aware of the occasional coexistence and interdependence of clinical and inferential contradictions (e. g. , the simultaneous experience of sorrow and joy and holistic concepts such as life and death). The increasingly elaborate conceptual fabric created from the sustained application of conceptualizing skills also enables students to predict the effect of interventions more accurately. Goals of treatment must be linked to clients problems as they come to be understood after presenting concerns have been explored. Goals include short-term objectives along with long-term outcomes of treatment that have been negotiated by the client and trainee. Typically, goals involve changing how clients feel, think, and act. Putting goals in order is important because their priorities will influence treatment decisions. Goals need to be integrated with students inferences or established theories and techniques of counseling. In their zeal, students often overestimate the probable long-term aims of treatment. To help students avoid disappointment, we remind them that certain factors influence the formulation of goals, including constraints of time and resources, students own competencies, and clients capacity for motivation for change. Interventions comprise techniques that students implement to achieve agreed-on goals of treatment. Techniques are ideally compatible with inferences and assumptions derived earlier; targets of treatment consist of hypothesized psychological structures, processes, and conditions that produce clients problems (e. g. , self-esteem, information processing, family environment). Difficulties in technical implementation should be discussed candidly. We provide opportunities for students to observe and rehearse pragmatic applications of all strategies. Techniques derived from any theory of counseling can be reframed in concepts and processes that are more congruent with students cognitive style. To illustrate, some students are able to understand how a learned fear response can be counterconditioned by the counseling relationship when this phenomenon is defined as a consequence of providing unconditional positive regard. In addition, we teach students to apply techniques with sensitivity as well as to fashion a personal style of counseling. Finally, legal and ethical issues pertaining to the conduct of specific interventions must be made explicit. Evaluation of outcomes requires that students establish criteria and methods toward evaluating the outcomes of treatment. Methods can include objective criteria (e. g. , grades), reports of others, self-reports (e. g. , behavioral logs), test data, and students own judgments. Instructors must assist students in developing efficient ways to evaluate progress over the course of treatment given the presenting concerns, clients motivation, and available resources. USES OF THE FORMAT We developed the :format for use in a year-long practicum in a masters degree program in counseling psychology. Instructors describe the format early in the first semester and demonstrate its use by presenting a erminated case; a discussion of the format and conceptualization follows. The first half of the format is particularly helpful when students struggle to organize clinical data into meaningful categories and to distinguish their observations from their inferences. The focus at that point should be on components of the format that incorporate descriptive data about the client. Later in their development, when students are prepared to confront issues that influence the counseling relationship, components involving personal and interpersonal aspects of treatment can be explored. As students mature further, components that incorporate descriptive data are abbreviated so that students can concentrate on the conceptualizing skills of diagnosis, inferences and assumptions, treatment planning and intervention, and evaluation. When conceptualizing skills have been established, the format need not be applied comprehensively to each case. Rather, it can be condensed without losing its capacity to organize clinical data and to derive interventions. The format can be used to present cases in practicum seminar as well as in individual supervision sessions. It can also be used by students to manage their caseloads. Also, the format can be used in oral and written forms to organize and integrate clinical data and to suggest options for treatment (cf. Biggs, 1988; Hulse Jennings, 1984; Loganbill Stoltenberg, 1983). For example, practicum seminar can feature presentations of cases organized according to the format. As a student presents the data of the case, participants can construct alternative working models. Moreover, the format compels participants to test their models by referencing clinical data. Written details that accompany a presentation are also fashioned by a student presenter according to the format. The student presenter can distribute such material before the presentation so that members of the class have time to prepare. During the presentation, participants assume responsibility for sustaining the process of case conceptualization in a manner that suits the class (e. g. , discussion, interpersonal process recall, media aids, or role play). Supervision and case notes can also be structured more flexibly with the use of the case conceptualization format to give students opportunities to relate observation to inference, inference to treatment, and treatment to outcome (Presser Pfost, 1985). In fact, supervision is an ideal setting to tailor the format to the cognitive and personal attributes of the students. In supervision, there are also more opportunities to observe students sessions directly, which permits instruction of what clinical information to seek, how to seek it, how to extract inferences from it, and to evaluate the veracity of students inferences by direct observation (Holloway, 1988). FUTURE APPLICATIONS AND RESEARCH The format is a potentially valuable resource for counselors to make the collection and integration of data systematic when they intervene with populations other than individual clients. Application of the format to counseling with couples and families might seem to make an already conceptually demanding task more complex. Yet counselors can shift the focus from individuals to a couple or a family unit, and apply components of the format to that entity. By targeting relationships and systems in this way, the format can also be used to enhance understanding of and improve interventions in supervision and with distressed units or organizations.