BRIEF REPORT KNOWLEDGE OF FAMILY HISTORY AS A CLINICALLY USEFUL INDEX OF PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING AND PROGNOSIS: A BRIEF REPORT MARSHALL P. DUKE, AMBER LAZARUS, AND ROBYN FIVUSH Emory University Based on an instance of “clinical lore” we assess the efficacy of children’s and adolescents’ knowledge of family history as an index of psychological well-being and potential for positive change in clini- cal and educational settings. We report that knowledge of family history is signif- icantly correlated with internal locus of control, higher self-esteem, better family functioning, greater family cohesiveness, lower levels of anxiety, and lower inci- dence of behavior problems. We suggest that through the use of a brief measure of family knowledge, practicing clinicians can rapidly generate a data-based corre- late of children’s well-being and likeli- hood of overcoming psychological and educational challenges. Keywords: prognosis, clinical index, family history, well-being Among the most difficult but important predic- tions made by clinicians are those that reflect patients’ psychological well-being in general and their prognosis for recovery or successful com- pletion of treatment or remediation regimens. “How well is this person likely to do?” “What are the chances for recovery?” “How likely is it that this child will respond well to the interventions outlined in his or her individual educational plan (IEP)?” Over the years, there have been numer- ous systematic efforts to identify through theory and/or empirical methods clinically meaningful indicators to aid in these sorts of predictions (Fernandez-Ballasteros, 2003; Groth-Marnat, 2003). However, despite the availability of such scientifically derived indicators, many clinicians continue to generate and depend on what is typ- ically termed clinical lore to help them address prognostic concerns. Further, more often than not, this clinical lore remains in clinical settings and is rarely studied systematically in laboratory settings. This is disadvantageous and self- defeating for both clinical scientists and practi- tioners. Proponents of the Boulder or scientist- practitioner model for clinical psychology have long trumpeted the value of integrating the sci- ence and art of clinical psychology. However, examples of the implementation of this ideal are infrequent. In this brief report, we seek to provide one example of such an integration. Knowledge of Family History as an Index of Intervention Outcome A potentially useful instance of clinical lore came to our attention serendipitously via one of our interviews with clinicians in preparation for initiation of the Family Narratives Project at the Sloan Center for the Study of Myth and Ritual in American Life (MARIAL) at Emory University (see Duke & Fivush, in press; Duke, Fivush, Lazarus, & Bohanek, 2003; Fivush, Bohanek, & Duke, in press). A veteran clinician with 30 years in practice who was also a grandparent of a family we interviewed in our pilot work said simply, “I can tell which kids I’m working with are most likely to respond to treatment and ben- efit most from educational plans and adjustments. It’s the ones who know about their family his- Marshall P. Duke, Amber Lazarus, and Robyn Fivush, Department of Psychology, Emory University. Correspondence regarding this article should be addressed to Marshall P. Duke, PhD, Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322. E-mail: psymd@emory.edu Psychotherapy Theory, Research, Practice, Training Copyright 2008 by the American Psychological Association 2008, Vol. 45, No. 2, 268 –272 0033-3204/08/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/0033-3204.45.2.268 268 This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers. This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.