Editorial statement of the American Psychologist: II.

Editing a journal that combines professional, scientific, and public policy interests is a strange business, indeed. Although this January 1987 issue of the American Psychologist (AP) begins the second year of my editorship, it is the first issue that actually reflects my editorial input and that of my associate editors. This state of affairs results from both the usual 9- to 10-month publication lag and the normal transition process between two editorial terms. It seems worthwhile to use my "first" issue as an opportunity to comment on the editorial direction of the journal, about the editorial process itself (and some changes we have made in it), and about some specific modifications in format that you will see in coming issues. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial policies of the American Psychologist.

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the American Psychologist (AP). Since the publication of its first issue in January 1946, AP has served as the flagship journal for the American Psychological Association (APA) and has played an important and unique role for the field of psychology. Because of the quality of the articles published in AP, the journal has evolved into one of the most influential and widely cited publications in psychology. The purpose of this editorial is to outline a revised set of policies for the journal that builds on and expands those developed by previous editors (see, e.g., Fowler, 1993; Goodstein, 1987; Kiesler, 1976; Pallack, 1981). Before outlining these policies, I would like to explore the relative status and influence of AP within the universe of psychological and social science journals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial statement of the American Psychologist.

Presents a statement from the ninth editor of the American Psychologist as it enters its 41st year of publication. The primary focus of this editorial is the journal's article selection criteria. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

1996 editorial: 50th Anniversary Issue of the American Psychologist.

Presents an editorial on the 50th Anniversary Issue of The American Psychologist by the CEO and Executive Vice President of the American Psychological Association. An overview of changes to the journal and the developments in electronic communications pare presented, and the implications for international exchange in scholarly publishing are discussed. (0 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial statement of the American Psychologist: III.

Presents an editorial statement about the publication policies of the American Psychologist (AP). About half the contents of the AP are documents that report on the activities of the Association—the minutes of the Council of Representatives, the address of the immediate Past President, and those reports of the Association boards and committees of concern to a large percentage of the membership. The remaining pieces are articles that the editorial board and the ad hoc reviewers judge to be of sufficient interest and consequence to appeal to the large and heterogeneous readership of the AP. These articles should explicitly address the broadest scientific and practical implications of the topic under consideration. In addition, a new series, tentatively called "Science Watch," will appear in the AP on an irregular basis. The purpose will be to cover articles that broaden our understanding of the discipline, that enable us to understand the connections between our discipline and others, and that help us glimpse the directions in which our science is moving. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

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)     

Obituary procedures for the American Psychologist.

This article describes the procedures for handling obituaries for the American Psychologist. The section editor is assisted by an Obituary Advisory Group which consists of 20-25 psychologists who represent most of the major areas of psychology, including academic science, teaching, and professional practice. When writing obituaries instructions are given to begin with concise statements of the major aspects of the person's life to include major, laudable contributions, history, biographical, educational, and career information, as well as awards. The article also goes over the selection process, noting that possible nominees come from multiple sources. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Lines written on first beholding the November issue of American Psychologist.

Article is a humorous poem regarding the cover color format of the November Issue of American Psychologist. (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)     

An obituary section in the American Psychologist.

Starting with this issue, obituaries of recently deceased members of the APA will be published regularly in the American Psychologist. We are initiating this new feature with the encouragement of the Editor of the AP and on the recommendation of the Publications and Communications Board. The growing interest in the history of psychology, enhanced at present by the celebration of the centennial of the founding of Wundt's laboratory, makes the inauguration of the section especially timely. The men and women whose lives have been spent as psychologists reflect history through their contributions to psychology's advance as a science and as a profession. Through their teachers before them and their students and others who have been influenced by them, there are connecting threads from the past into the future. The selection of a few persons whose careers have been sufficiently distinguished to be recognized in this manner is necessarily arbitrary, and no firm and fast rules can be devised for deciding whose obituaries should appear. In order to inaugurate the publication of obituaries, the Section Editor has sought the assistance of an advisory committee of psychologists identified with the history of psychology and with the biographies of psychologists. The final decisions have rested, and will continue to rest, with the Section Editor, concerning those to be included, the length of the obituaries requested, and those invited to prepare them. Full cooperation will be needed to make this section of the AP serve well its intended purposes. Deaths should be reported promptly to the AP office. Comments on published obituaries, looking forward to making future ones more useful, may be sent privately to the Section Editor. After some experiences in publishing these accounts, improved guidelines can be given to those who are invited to prepare them. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial policy for Neuropsychology.

With the publication of Neuropsychology by the Philadelphia Clinical Neuropsychology Group (PCNG) in 1987, it is hoped that PCNG will meet the growing need of practitioners and consumers for both practical and theoretical information regarding service delivery in clinical neuropsychology. In keeping with the PCNG tradition, the aim of Neuropsychology is education: to provide the readership with materials to improve the quality of service delivery to patients with diseases or disorders related to the central nervous system. Basic clinical research on memory, learning, perception, language, sensory-motor functioning and so on are welcome publications in Neuropsychology, as their findings fit well with clinical practice commitments. Case reports, scholarly review articles, reviews of books, software programs, and test materials, and announcements of upcoming events are also welcomed. The intent is to make Neuropsychology a scholarly refereed journal of PCNG and to include articles written not only by PCNG members but other interested individuals as well. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychologist and Psychiatrist.

The recent renascence in print in the "American Psychologist" of the issues between psychologists and psychiatrists prompts me to vent my spleen on some of the topics so well brought out by Ausubel et al. in the February, 1956 issue. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comment on AP Editorial Statement.

Comments on the "Editorial Statement" in the January 1986 American Psychologist. In the editorial, Goodstein listed criteria for selecting articles which stated that "Articles reporting primary empirical research findings are not appropriate for the American Psycholgist." However, the same issue of the journal included an article by Glaser and Thorpe on unethical intimacy--clearly an empirical study, based on Glaser's master's thesis no less. The current authos questions if this is an exception to the editorial policy and states that "The readership deserves an explanation!" (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The international issue of the American Psychologist.

Discusses the development of the International Issue of the journal American Psychologist. The author applauds the robust pluralism and diversity represented by psychology and psychologists, built from a common knowledge base and common concern for human behavior. The present set of articles, for example, include papers dealing with basic research issues and with applications of psychology to problems of people, to problems of systems for service delivery and for training. Many of these problems are not unfamiliar to psychologists in this country. Several specific papers in this special issue are highlighted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial policy of the Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research.

This issue marks the beginning of my editorship of Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research. Each incoming editor of a journal puts a new stamp on it, emphasizing continuity in some areas and undertaking new directions in others. In this statement of editorial policy for my tenure as the journal's editor I identify planned changes and new directions for the journal as well as editorial policies. I base these approaches both on my sense of the journal's needs and on issues I consider important for advancing the intellectual vitality of the field of consulting psychology. Outgoing editor Richard Diedrich's stewardship of this journal for the past 10 years is recognized. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

APA Visiting Psychologist Program: 1977-1978.

The Visiting Psychologist Program, under the sponsorship of the National Institute of Mental Health, has completed its 11th year of operation. The program continues to function as a mechanism for the dissemination of up-to-date knowledge generated in recent research findings and to provide for the demonstration of innovations in psychological procedures to mental health professionals in service settings by psychologists who are significantly involved in research, training, and the delivery of services. The total number of agencies visited by the program since its inception numbers about 465. During the past year, 16 agencies were visited, of which 9 were newly selected agencies, while 7 were return visits to agencies visited the previous year. Agencies that received initial visits are listed with their Visiting Psychologists in Table 1. Agencies and Visiting Psychologists involved in return visits are listed in Table 2. The Advisory Committee would like to thank all of those who contributed to the success of the program. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)