Members of the Australian Psychological Society's Colleges of Clinical and Counselling Psychologists were surveyed to ascertain the incidence and impact on them of client suicidal behaviour. Also sought were their opinions about preferred interventions in managing high‐risk clients, and coping strategies in the event of a client suicide. Four hundred and thirty‐seven responded, a return rate of 29%. Just over half (n = 244) were members of the College of Clinical Psychology, 187 were members of the College of Counselling Psychologists and 5 were members of both colleges. More than one third (n = 170) had experienced one or more completed client suicide, 332 had experienced attempted suicide, 377 noted threats or suicidal gestures, and 396 suicide ideation. Clinical psychologists rated hospitalisation, referral to a GP or psychiatrist, and restricting access to means of suicide as more effective interventions than counselling psychologists, who rated verbal “no suicide” contracts as the more effective intervention. Psychologists who had experienced a client suicide ranked recognising that they were not responsible, talking with their colleagues, an increased acceptance of suicide as a possible outcome, and talking with their supervisors as the most helpful strategies following the event. Less than half could recall any aspect of pre‐registration training in dealing with suicidal clients, although most had undertaken some professional development since. The authors conclude that further research is needed to determine the effective intervention strategies for working with suicidal clients.

There is growing awareness of the benefits of curriculum-based social and emotional learning (SEL) programs in Early Childhood Education and Care settings for children’s social, emotional, and cognitive development. While many SEL programs aim to strengthen teachers’ capacity and capability to foster children’s social and emotional skills, research effort has focused on understanding the impact on child outcomes, with less emphasis on improvement in teaching quality. This systematic literature review examined the effectiveness of universal curriculum-based SEL programs on teacher outcomes. Fifteen studies met inclusion criteria, capturing ten distinct SEL interventions. The findings suggest SEL programs may strengthen teaching quality, particularly the provision of responsive and nurturing teacher-child interactions and effective classroom management. Data were insufficient to ascertain whether participation improved teachers’ knowledge, self-efficacy, or social-emotional wellbeing. The potential pathways between SEL intervention, teaching quality and children’s developmental outcomes are discussed.

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Early childhood educators play an important role in supporting children’s social and emotional development. While a growing body of research has examined the impact of curriculum-based social and emotional learning (SEL) programs on child outcomes, the approaches educators use to strengthen children’s social and emotional functioning through their everyday practices are less defined. This study explored Australian early childhood educators’ perspectives on children’s social and emotional development, the approaches educators use to encourage children’s social and emotional skills, the enablers and barriers to SEL within the preschool environment, and the additional support needed. Thirty Early Childhood Education and Care professionals participated in semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. Findings suggest children’s social–emotional development is at the forefront of educator planning, practice, and reflection. Participants described utilising various approaches to support children’s social and emotional skills, embedded within interactions and relationships with children and families. Specifically, strategies could be grouped into four broad categories: a nurturing and responsive educator–child relationship; supporting SEL through everyday interactions and practice; utilising the physical environment to encourage SEL; and working in partnership with caregivers. There was, however, inconsistency in the variety and type of approaches identified. Time constraints, group size, educator confidence and capability, high staff turnover, and limited guidance regarding high-quality social and emotional pedagogy were identified as key barriers. Participants sought practical strategies that could be embedded into daily practice to build upon current knowledge.

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