Improving the journal review process: The question of ghostwriting.

Offers comments in response to S. Epstein's (see record 1996-12802-001) suggestions for improving the journal review process. Bedeian's concern centers on the question of where in the journal review process detailed editing and reviewing end and ghostwriting begins. The author suggests that journal editors develop and enact practices that protect the integrity of scientific enterprise while respecting the prerogatives and ethics of authorship. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What can be done to improve the journal review process.

Presents suggestions for improving the journal review process by providing explicit, uniform guidelines for editors and reviewers. The author also recommends providing (1) information to authors about recommending reviewers, (2) a meaningful appeals procedure, (3) identity of reviewers, and (4) forms for authors to provide feedback to reviewers. Two of these practical steps can be implemented immediately and informally. (0 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Shadow and substance: A relational perspective on clinical process.

Suggests that one aspect of human personality structure is usefully understood as a dynamic balance or dialectic between dissociation and conflict, and argues that psychoanalysis must continue to broaden its concepts of psychic structure, unconscious phenomena, and therapeutic action beyond the model provided by conflict theory. From a relational perspective, an analyst is not simply helping a patient change a unified though poorly adaptive self-representation to an equally unified more adaptive one, but is also negotiating with multiple self-representations, each in its own terms, and enabling the dissociative gaps among them to rebuild linkages through a perceptual process of meaning construction. The roles of enactment and interpretation are discussed in the context of trauma, dissociation, and the nature of reality. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of temporal perspective on the attribution process.

Examined in 4 experiments with 194 undergraduates, whether people's causal analyses of events change with time. It was found that as temporal distance from an event increased, Ss both interpreted their own behavior and outcomes as being more due to situational influences and perceived their behavior to have been more similar to the behavior of others. Also, differences in the attributions of actors and observers narrowed as the temporal distance from the target event increased. Two possible explanations for the tendency of Ss to view their past behavior as being more normative and situationally caused were considered: (a) features of the situation (ground) became more salient or available as temporal distance from the event increased; and (b) the need to see oneself as exercising effective control over situations diminished with time. Results are seen as more consistent with the latter than the former explanation, but the likelihood of multiple influences is emphasized. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A perspective on the history of process and outcome research in counseling psychology.

Traces the development of process and outcome research from before the foundation of counseling psychology in 1946 to the present time. First, theoretical contributions are focused on, with particular attention to the influence of C. Rogers's theory, behavior theory, psychoanalytic theory, systems theory, interpersonal theory, and social influence theory. Next, H. J. Eysenck's challenge to the efficacy of psychotherapy; the uniformity myth that process and outcome are similar across diverse clients, therapists, and contexts; and changes in research methods over the years are covered. The article concludes with recommendations for future research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A dynamic process model of forgiveness: A cross-cultural perspective.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss cultural similarities and differences in the processes of forgiveness. Forgiveness is a complex construct without a consensual definition. Generally speaking, forgiveness is the process that involves a change in cognitions, emotions, motivations, and behaviors regarding the transgressor (R. D. Enright & R. P. Fitzgibbons, 2000). Scientific interest in forgiveness has rapidly increased in the recent years, but whether the conceptualizations and underling mechanisms of forgiveness are similar across cultures still remain unclear. A dynamic process model of forgiveness is proposed in this paper, which includes the sociocultural, cognitive, emotional, motivational, and behavioral aspects of forgiveness processes. Particular processes that are likely to differ across Eastern–Western cultures are identified. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in adult readers: A process perspective.

Explored the underlying structure of the reading scores of 235 men and 163 women (aged 17–64 yrs) using separate speed and accuracy measures from tests of reading comprehension and vocabulary. Gender differences were then examined with respect to both overall reading measures and the underlying basic processes. Speed and accuracy measures of basic processes involved in the reading of single words revealed reading differences which support the findings from the general reading tests. It was concluded that the female advantage in verbal tasks relates primarily to faster and more accurate use of lexical and orthographic knowledge, but that this accuracy advantage disappears when the reading task requires higher order processing skills. This work suggests that exploration of the speed and accuracy components of basic processing tasks is a fruitful approach to understanding individual differences, such as those related to gender. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A new vision for the journal.

It is with great pleasure that I accept and begin my tenure as the fourth editor of the International Journal of Stress Management (IJSM), following F. J. McGuigan, John Carlson, and Gary VandenBos. In this brief editorial, I provide historical context to set the path for the future of the journal and reflect on two parts of the journal’s title, “international” and “management,” that shape my vision for the journal. My envisioned future for the journal is increased focus on international and cross-cultural perspectives, as well as an interdisciplinary approach to gain a comprehensive understanding of factors that shape (a) individuals’ perceptions and experiences of stimuli (or stressors); (b) the environment’s internal and external pressures; (c) individuals’ perceptions of physiological, psychological, and behavioral health and well-being; as well as (d) individuals’ and organizations’ efforts toward prevention, coping, and management of healthy lifestyles. My ultimate goal is to see IJSM serve as the desired publication outlet of choice and primary journal for scholars and practitioners around the globe who are focused on the progress of scholarship and practice in identification and management of stress. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Bender Gestalt: A review and a perspective.

The 1950-61 literature is covered and is organized around the test designs, the various scoring systems, and the diagnostic interpretations. When scored objectively its validity in determining mental ages for children, and as an additional tool in a test battery aimed at differential diagnoses, is acceptable. Symbolic interpretation remains highly subjective. The lack of standardization mitigates against utilizing the test as a norm against which to judge other variables. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A perspective on developments in assessing psychopathology: A critical review of the MMPI and MMPI-2.

Many concerns have been raised about the MMPI, but the emphasis on continuity during its revision precluded addressing many of these problems in the new MMPI-2. In this review, problems with the MMPI and MMPI-2 are explicated in an effort to promote more informed use of this and other tests of psychopathology. Major theoretical concerns include the lack of a consistent measurement model, heterogeneous scale content, and suspect diagnostic criteria. Serious structural problems include the overlap among scales, lack of cross-validation of the scoring keys, inadequacy of measures of response styles, and suspect norms. Six minor problems and new issues for the MMPI-2 are also discussed. It is concluded that although the MMPI-2 is an improvement over the MMPI, both are suboptimal from the perspective of modern psychometric standards for the assessment of psychopathology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A perspective on thinking.

Research on general thinking abilities—productive, higher order, critical, and creative thinking—has progressed slowly compared with the rapid progress that has been made in the study of cognitive structures and procedures. As alternatives to currently prevailing assumptions, three framing assumptions for the study of thinking are proposed, involving situated cognition, personal and social epistemologies, and conceptual competence. Evidence consistent with these assumptions is outlined, and topics in the psychology of thinking are discussed in relation to the assumptions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A perspective on disgust.

Approaches disgust as a food-related emotion and defines it as revulsion at the prospect of oral incorporation of offensive objects. These objects have contamination properties; if they contact an otherwise acceptable food, they tend to render it inedible. Issues considered include: the nature of the objects of disgust and why they are virtually all of animal origin, the meaning of oral incorporation, the belief that people take on the properties of the foods they eat, the nature of the contamination response and its relation to the laws of sympathetic magic (similarity and contagion), and the ontogeny of disgust, which is believed to develop during the 1st 8 yrs of life. The idea that feces, the universal disgust object, is also the 1st is explored, and the mechanisms for the acquisition of disgust are examined. Disgust is recommended as an easily studiable emotion, a model for cognitive–affective linkages, and a model for the acquisition of values and culture. (103 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A journal for psychological essays.

Supports W. Webb's (1965) proposal for a journal for the publication of psychological essays, arguing that there is an overemphasis on empirical studies and a neglect of speculative essays in current psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Negotiating the indirect cost of research: A review of the process.

Notes that a considerable portion of the cost of federally sponsored research is used in the reimbursement of the indirect costs of the research. The percentage of indirect costs has been increasing over the last decade. This increase has led both investigators and federal agencies to seek procedures that would reduce the share of the research budget devoted to indirect costs. Under the assumption that any attempt to achieve this goal will be enhanced by an understanding of the process, the present authors review the procedures used as the indirect costs are negotiated between representatives of the federal government and a university. Attention is drawn to those stages of the process at which investigators can assess their university's indirect cost policy. It is concluded that the evaluation should focus on the total cost bill presented by the university rather than on the so-called indirect cost rate that is used to distribute the indirect cost recovery within the university. Factors that may account for the large variability across universities in the indirect cost rate are reviewed. (14 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counseling as a social influence process: A review.

Conceptualizing counseling as an instance of social influence has led several authors to suggest that factors such as credibility and interpersonal attraction, extensively researched by social psychologists, may be of importance in understanding counseling and other therapeutic relationships. These suggestions, and especially the article by S. R. Strong (1968), have stimulated a great deal of research. That research and relevant, related research is reviewed with the intent of offering suggestions for future study and for considering the following questions: Do counselors influence clients? What cues do clients use to infer expertness, attractiveness, and trustworthiness in their counselors? Is it useful to consider counseling as a social influence process? (3? p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial: A new beginning for the journal.

Announces that the International Journal of Stress Management has a new publisher--The Educational Publishing Foundation of the American Psychological Association. The editor discusses what this means for the readership and focus of the journal. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A three-person perspective on transference.

Different approaches to psychoanalysis may be classed according to the number of persons that they assume to be necessary in order to adequately describe mental life. One-person approaches assume the basic autonomy of the individual to act as a subject in her world, while 2-person approaches assume the irreducibility of object and subject, their essential complementarity and their mutual affirmation as subjects. Three-person approaches, on which the present article focuses, argue that the subject can fully develop only by creating enough space for herself among other persons who compete for subject positions. Such space is created in relation to (at least) 2 other subjects, hence the system of 3 persons. In the 3-person perspective, the position of the subject is defined as First, and the Second is defined by the one with whom the subject identifies and in whom she mirrors herself through cycles of projection and introjection. The position of the Third involves the personification of the cultural matrix and, especially, the way language informs our ability to relate to each other. This is best represented in the universal system of personal pronouns: the subject takes the position of the 1st person (I), the Second takes the position of the 2nd person (You), and the Third is posited as the 3rd person (she or he and it). In psychoanalytic therapy, the patient takes the position of the Subject, the First. Transference is construed as the superposition of both the 2nd and the 3rd persons upon the figure of the analyst, a mental process that (re)creates the necessary conditions for the development of subjecthood. As a result, in the discourse of transference, the position of the analyst keeps fluctuating between the 2nd and 3rd positions: When one takes place on the actual level, the other acts in the background, and vice versa. The therapeutic consequences of this view are discussed; for example, transference love is construed as a process in which the 2nd person struggles to dominate the positioning of the analyst. Other transferential configurations are also discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A cognitive-behavioral perspective on termination.

The issue of termination as viewed from a cognitive-behavioral orientation is considered within the context of the duration of treatment, the goals of therapy, and the underlying coping skills model that characterizes this orientation. These factors make a cognitive-behavioral approach to therapy both similar to and different from other orientations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)