Health psychology and public policy: The political process.

During the past 20 years, psychologists have successfully modified federal statutes, resulting in recognition of the profession's clinical and research expertise. Despite these successes, professional psychology's training institutions have largely failed to address basic issues in health policy and the implications of national health policy for psychology. The importance of public health programs under Title VII of the Public Health Act and the significance of full inclusion of psychology in all federal health programs, including Titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid), are poorly understood by most health psychologists. Federal health policy decisions, including management of excessive federal health spending, will dictate the growth and opportunities for health psychologists. Understanding federal health spending and recent federal initiatives such as Resource Based Relative Value Scale, Diagnostic Related Groups, and practice guidelines will be of benefit to health psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ageism, psychology, and public policy.

Chronological age—either young or old—may be the basis for prejudicial attitudes, discriminatory practices, and institutional policies. The importance and role of ageism differs greatly between societies, such as the United States and Japan. Psychological research has documented a variety of examples of negative attitudes toward older people in the United States, but these results may reflect the methods used or may indicate a preference for age similarity rather than prejudice against the aged. Vulnerability to ageism in old age is associated demographically with being a woman, living alone, and having a poor health status. Discriminatory attitudes, mental health services, and employment policies are examples of the interface of ageism and psychology. Ageism may be reduced by emphasizing diversity among older people, paying attention to compensations for reduced abilities, and developing public policy based on need rather than on age. The importance of ageism as a psychological issue must be recognized and included in the public debate. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Women, psychology, and public policy: Selected issues.

Asserts that the dramatic changes in women's work and family roles in recent decades have profound implications for employment and family policy. It is argued that the market forces used by economists to adjust salary levels do not counteract the forces that devalue women's contributions to the economy. Depressed wages and a benefit structure based on earnings increases the likelihood of poverty of women. Many employment issues, such as the assumption that workers and family members are physically and mentally able-bodied, disabled women's employment status, and the relationships among women's physical and mental health status and work and family roles, require psychological research. The slowness of public policies to reflect women's changing roles is discussed, and tools for meeting the challenges of change, including science and technology and educational equity, are presented. (31 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Equality, public policy, and professional psychology.

Views psychologists as having substantial roles to play in the advocacy, development, and implementation of federal, state, and local policies that promote equality. Research, evaluation, education, and consultation are considered important components of strategies that professional psychologists can use to effect change. Specifically, the roles of psychologists in formulating public health care practices and in understanding the impact of child care services are discussed. (29 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Battered women, psychology, and public policy.

Reviews the role that psychologists have played in affecting changes in public policy regarding domestic violence over the past decade. Testimony by expert witnesses has rebutted myths that prevented battered women who killed their abusers from receiving fair trials. Three case vignettes are presented to illustrate how psychological knowledge has helped the judicial system to develop public policy. Because organized psychology has submitted amicus curiae briefs in this area, appellate court cases now usually support the admissibility of a psychologist's testimony as to the battered woman's perception of danger and the reasonableness of her perception of the need for self-defense. The public impact of high-visibility battered women cases is discussed. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Opportunities in public policy to support infant and early childhood mental health: The role of psychologists and policymakers.

Infant and early childhood mental health practices can be supported by policies and professional standards of care that foster the healthy development of young children. Policies that support infants and toddlers include those that strengthen their families to provide a family environment that promotes mental wellness. Policy issues for infants, toddlers, and young children have come to the forefront of thinking as children need a “voice” to advocate for their support and care. This article (a) highlights several important policy areas that support the social–emotional development of very young children and (b) gives examples of current policy accomplishments and challenges. The article offers a policy agenda to promote the mental health of infants and young children and suggests ways that psychologists can engage with policymakers to promote policies that foster infant mental health, including contributing to the knowledge base that informs policy decisions, educating the public and policymakers about early childhood development and mental wellness, forming community partnerships to identify and address infant mental health risks, and participating in the development of policy recommendations that improve access to evidence-based practices in infant mental health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Workplace diversity and public policy: Challenges and opportunities for psychology.

This article outlines both challenges and opportunities for psychology of issues related to diversity in education and work. For the purposes of this discussion, "diverse" populations include four groups currently marginalized and disadvantaged in the U.S. workplace: women, people of color, sexual minorities, and people with disabilities. An overview of employment participation patterns for these groups is presented, workplace barriers arising from marginalized status are highlighted, and the article concludes with a discussion of work-related legislative and public policy fronts that can be informed and influenced by the contributions of psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Military conflict and terrorism: General psychology informs international relations.

Several experiments, focusing on decisions made by young, voting-age citizens of the United States about how to respond to incidents of international conflict, are summarized. Participants recommended measured reactions to an initial attack. Repeated attacks led to escalated reaction, however, eventually matching or exceeding the conflict level of the attack itself. If a peace treaty between contending nations was in place, women were more forgiving of an attack, and men were more aggressive. There was little overall difference in reactions to terrorist versus military attacks. Participants responded with a higher level of conflict to terrorist attacks on military than on cultural-educational targets. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Discerning the future of early childhood intervention.

Examines the recent history of early childhood intervention efforts. Major views and principles that guided the formation of intervention programs in the 1960's and 1970's are considered: the deficit model, the focus on intelligence, the critical period formulation, and the overriding spirit of optimism. A major focus is the Head Start program and lessons learned from its development. Issues involved in evaluating intervention programs are discussed, including the nature of appropriate measures, timing, and persons to be assessed. Intensive and structured programs are compared with ones following a looser family-support approach. (63 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction and comment on the special section: Health psychology and public policy.

Health psychology is highly relevant to public policy. However, in the past, the journal, Health Psychology, has not devoted a significant number of pages to policy issues. This special section of Health Psychology introduces several issues relevant to policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Violent children: Bridging development, intervention, and public policy.

Childhood violence is a major public health and social policy concern in the United States. Scientists and policymakers alike have increasingly turned their attention to the causes of childhood violence and the extent to which its course can be modified through well-planned preventive interventions. However, it is not apparent that policymakers draw upon basic research findings in formulating their priorities and policies, nor is it apparent that developmental scientists incorporate policy considerations and prevention findings into their research frameworks and designs. The goal of this special issue on violent children is to begin to bridge the gaps among basic developmental science, prevention science, and public policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Rethinking the early history of post-Vygotskian psychology: The case of the Kharkov school.

Between the death of Vygotsky in 1934 and the discovery of Vygotsky's work in the West in 1962, Vygotskian psychology was developed through research done by the first generation of Vygotsky's students and their followers, primarily associated with the Kharkov School. Surprisingly, these studies carried out in the 1930s, of great importance for the development of virtually all subsequent Vygotskian psychology, still remain largely unknown; this represents a significant gap in understanding the history of Vygotskian psychology as an empirical study of consciousness. This paper provides a systematic overview of the research agenda of the Kharkov group between 1931 and 1941 and provides new insights into the early development of Vygotskian psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The potential for public health psychology.

Describes a new program that combines clinical/community psychology with training in public health and business administration. The discussion includes factors underlying the planning process, the contribution of its component parts to the program's overall goals, extramural support, and the potential marketplace for graduates. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Internationalizing psychology: The case of Europe.

Although American psychology continues to occupy a dominant position in most of the world, there is an increasing awareness in many countries of the need to develop psychology as a science and profession for meeting local needs and for coping with local context, both in a cultural and a political sense. In this article, the emphasis is on Europe as a region, where tensions between regional integration and the pursuit of national and sectional interests create challenges for the discipline. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

When experimental psychology is not empirical enough: The case of the "exposure orientation."

Most psychologists accept the familiar view that exposure to opiate drugs engenders a powerful tendency toward subsequent addictive use. However, a review of the relevant historical, clinical, and experimental literature shows that this view of addiction, which can be labeled the "exposure orientation," is not true. Evidence is presented concerning the traditional form of the exposure orientation and 2 variations of this perspective that emphasize withdrawal symptoms and induced metabolic change as the causes of addiction. It is argued that experimental psychology is helping to support a popular misconception on the nature of opiate addiction and that a fuller empiricism could reassert psychology's authority to lead, rather than follow, popular culture. (French abstract) (103 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In the public eye: The ethical practice of media psychology.

Psychologists are frequently asked to work with the media in responding to current events or educating the public about psychological issues. This can run the gamut, from an occasional interview with a reporter to a weekly gig as a radio call-in host. Many psychologists have little or no training in media psychology, but it is critical to obtain such training before entering the quicksand that working with the media can easily become. There are many ethical dilemmas inherent in media work, and this article enumerates many, including competence and confidentiality. Psychologists must educate themselves about the topic being discussed, often with a “heads-up” from the reporter in advance. Reporters will often ask for clients to be provided as examples to add depth to the story. The confidentiality and welfare of the client must be considered. It is important to think clearly about many ethical issues to make working with the media a positive professional experience and an important public service. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Examining race and culture in psychology journals: The case of forensic psychology.

Scholars have argued that racial-cultural issues should be given more attention in psychological research. The American Psychological Association (APA) has instituted guidelines and policies about how to include race and culture in research, theory, and practice. Members of racial minority groups are overrepresented in populations served by forensic psychologists. This article reviews content analyses of racial-cultural issues in psychology and presents a content analysis of the treatment of race and culture in 7 forensic psychology journals between 1998 and 2003. Results indicate that less than 10% of the empirical articles addressed issues of race or culture with any depth and that the majority of the articles used a cultural deprivation paradigm. Results and recommendations for practice and future study are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Award for distinguished early career contributions to psychology in the public interest: Rebecca Campbell.

Presents the citation, biography, and selected bibliography for Rebecca Campbell, one of the 2008 recipients of the American Psychological Association's Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology in the Public Interest. An article by Campbell is also presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Professional psychology after communism: The case of Romania.

Outlines, historically, professional psychology after the fall of communism with a focus on Romania. Major points highlighted are (1) the work of psychologists, (2) problems facing Romanians, (3) the transition from communism, and (4) implications for professional practice in the US. A list of addresses of organizations and programs noted in the article is appended. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perry N. Halkitis: Award for distinguished early career contributions to psychology in the public interest.

The American Psychological Association 2010 Award for Distinguished Early Career Contributions to Psychology in the Public Interest was awarded to Perry N. Halkitis, for his work as a teacher and researcher of critical social issues including HIV/AIDS, drug abuse, and increasing human dignity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)