The founding of the American Psychologist: The professional journal that wasn't.

The American Psychologist began publication 50 years ago this month as the official journal of a reorganized American Psychological Association. The journal was created as a centerpiece of the new Association, reflecting its acknowledgment of a broader role for the APA, a role that called for the advancement of psychology as a profession. The American Psychologist was intended to be the "professional " journal of the new Association, but it never really filled that responsibility. Drawing on published records and the unpublished documents of the APA Archives, this article recounts the history of this journal's founding. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Outcome assessment of psychotherapy.

ANovember, 1995 Consumer Reports (CR) magazine report and an article by M. E. P. Seligman (American Psychologist, 1995) on psychotherapy use follow in the tradition of federal efforts in 1957 and 1976 to document mental health services utilization. The 1995 reports represent a confirmation of the public's perception and valuing of psychotherapy that is consistent with the overall conclusion from empirical research that "psychotherapy, as a generic process, is demonstrably more effective than no treatment." Lifetime psychotherapy use increased from 14% in 1957 to 26% in 1976 (and is probably higher today). CR data, reconfigured to parallel earlier reports on overall utilization and by provider group, are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Measuring diagnostic agreement.

Diagnostic agreement tests the reliability and concordance of diagnostic systems. The introduction of measures of agreement with reputations for baserate independence (e.g., Yule's Y and Q), and new studies occasioned by the publication of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) and the International Classification of Diseases—10 (ICD-10, World Health Organization, 1992) make it necessary to study the relationship of illness baserates to measures of agreement. Testing diagnostic concordance for diagnoses of drug dependence from the third edition of the DSM (American Psychiatric Association, 1980) versus DSM-IV diagnoses of drug dependence under 3 baserate conditions, it was found that Yule's Y and Q proved as vulnerable to differences in baserates as kappa or percent agreement and that specificity covaried with baserate rather than being fixed, as most theoretical discussions assume. The uncritical use of Y and Q, therefore, is likely to lead to optimistic interpretations of agreement. Kappa should be preferred for most purposes, although an adjustment to the computational formulas for Y and Q is presented that can diminish their positive bias. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the mitosis of JCPP.

Addresses the concerns surrounding the division of the Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology (JCPP) into separate comparative and physiological publications. There is ample research to justify a journal of comparative psychology. The growing theoretical importance of etiological, ecological, and sociobiological approaches to behavior demands the institution and nurturance of a genuinely comparative publication within the American Psychological Association. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The AMA versus competition.

Discusses the attempts by the American Medical Association (AMA) to force an amendment through Congress that would have exempted "professionals" from the jurisdiction of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The bill was tabled at the end of 1982; it had been opposed by the Reagan administration, a larger coalition of health professionals (including the American Psychological Association), labor, senior citizens, and business and consumer groups. The issue was not the regulation of the professions but the removal of anticompetitive restriction on professionals. Previously, the FTC took the AMA to court, alleging that the AMA, through ethical rules, had effectively prohibited truthful advertising, barred physicians from working on salary or forming partnerships with nonphysicians (including psychologists), and set floors on fees charged by physicians. The FTC issued an order prohibiting the AMA from restricting truthful advertising and from engaging in other specified anticompetitive practices; this order was affirmed by the Supreme Court. The FTC attempts to apply traditional antitrust principles with due regard for special considerations that affect health care and activities by professionals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Journal of Animal Behavior and the early history of animal behavior studies in America.

The first American scientific journal devoted specifically to the study of animal behavior was the Journal of Animal Behavior, founded by Robert M. Yerkes in 1911. An examination of Yerkes's efforts to establish such a journal underscores the precariousness of animal behavior studies (and journal publications) in this period. The analysis of the different kinds of articles published by psychologists and zoologists in the Journal of Animal Behavior shows furthermore that already by the second decade of the twentieth century psychologists and zoologists were pursuing quite distinct programs of research in terms of their choices of animal subjects, topics of investigation, and research methodologies. The relation of the Journal of Animal Behavior to its successor, the Journal of Comparative Psychology, is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A minority of one.

Opposes a "Proposal for a Study of the Future Institutional Development and Organization of the American Psychological Association" (APA). The author disputes the premise of the study that psychology and the APA are on an ever-rising curve and suggests that APA would do better to address its clear and present defects than to project an uncertain future. (0 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Grandfather clause" reopened by the American Board of Examiners in Psychological Hypnosis.

Notes a "grandfather clause" through June 30, 1968 waiving formal written and oral examinations for otherwise qualified candidates seeking certification by the American Board of Examiners in Psychological Hypnosis. (0 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Support for school-based social competence promotion.

Notes omissions from the February 1989 special issue of American Psychologist on children and their development. Insufficient attention was paid to (1) the prevention of dysfunctional health-compromising behaviors through the promotion of children's social competence and (2) schools as a primary arena in which such research is conducted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Fifty years of psychology.

Assesses the growth and development of the fields of psychology by comparing publications and reports of experiments in the 1927 volume of Psychological Abstracts with those in the 1974 volume. The quantitative growth was found to be prodigious, the qualitative less so. The 1920's were seminal years, because many current concepts--most of them imported from Europe--began to affect American thought. Since then, Americans have refined the methodology related to these concepts. Grand theory began to wane in the late 1920's and miniature theory to develop. Interest in certain topics, particularly conscious states and self, has survived, while interest in other topics has waned. The American culture has had a strong influence on the direction of psychology's development. (58 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial: January 1992.

Explains changes in the American Psychologist (AP) and reveals plans for 3 special issues in 1992 and 1993 (including a commemorative issue to observe the American Psychological Association's (APA's) centennial year. AP's standard editorial procedure, reasons for some rejections, and reconsideration of submissions are discussed. The editor notes that APA's new building (already a financial success) and its highly successful publications program can become an additional source of income to APA. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Institutional affiliations of contributors to scholarly and professional activities in counseling psychology: 1980–1983.

Used presentations at Division 17 programs of the American Psychological Association conventions, affiliations of authors of articles in the Journal of Counseling Psychology and The Counseling Psychologist, and Division 17 leaders to determine that the University of Maryland (College Park), Ohio State University, and the University of Iowa were the most highly active institutions in counseling psychology over the period 1980–1983. The size of the faculty and faculty rewards and pressures appear to be factors in determining ratings. Counseling psychologists in nonacademic settings are disadvantaged in making research contributions by these factors. Since most current counseling and clinical psychology graduate students are trained to be practitioners, it is suggested that research and professional leadership dimensions should be measured on their value to practitioners. It is further suggested that quality of supervision, knowledge of practitioner skills, and capacity to meet credentialing and/or licensing requirements should be included in evaluating graduate education in counseling psychology. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Therapists' liking of their psychotherapy patients: Some issues related to severity of disorder and treatability.

57 American and Israeli psychotherapists completed the MMPI and questionnaires on professional background and personal experience in psychotherapy. Ss each nominated 1 "easy" and 1 "difficult" patient, and MMPIs and personal information were obtained from these patients. Several factors appeared to differentiate easy from difficult psychotherapy patients. The general characteristics of easy as compared to difficult patients indicated significantly less pathology on the MMPI, a more favorable psychotherapy prognosis, greater physical attractiveness if female, and less of a tendency to be labeled "personality disorder." The positive "liking" ratings of therapists toward their easy patients appeared to override all ideological differences in therapeutic orientation. The impact of the therapist's affective response is discussed in terms of "nonspecific" treatment factors that may affect the outcome of therapy. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychological communication: A radical proposal.

Proposes the formation of an information exchange group that is as large as all of psychology, but whose published material acts as "working paper" and not as part of the archives of psychology. Advantages of the working paper include (1) the revival of the scholarly review article, (2) the elimination of the problem of perceived bias in the review editor, (3) the discouragement of the "numbers game" as regards publications and the encouragement of the use of "citation indices," and (4) the reduction of "splinter tendency" within the American Psychological Association. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Content of an abstract: De jure and de facto.

Comments on the guidelines presented in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (see record 82-03290) for writing abstracts. A brief history is given of abstract guidelines for an empirical article, and data is reported on the degree of compliance with the requirements stated in the Manual, as reflected by actual published abstracts. The percentage of abstracts that adhered to the word limit varied considerably across journals. The following 3 recommendations are given: (1) report participant information if individual differences are the primary concern of the study, (2) ignore the requirement of reporting statistical significance levels because statistical significance levels do not represent the theoretical or practical importance of a research finding, and (3) do not be overly concerned with the word count. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relevant issues in developmental science: Introduction to the special issue.

Introduces a special issue of the American Psychologist that focuses on selected socially relevant issues of interest to developmental scientists. Some of the topics addressed are long-standing concerns in developmental science, such as the development of aggression and antisocial behavior; depression; and competent, socially constructive behaviors. Although some of the positions taken by authors in this special issue are controversial, it is hoped that they will serve a heuristic function by promoting constructive discourse and research to resolve these disputes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)