Editorial/éditorial.

Feedback from colleagues suggests that many psychologists are not aware of the range of articles considered appropriate for publication in the Canadian Psychological Review/Psychologie Canadienne. In an attempt to clarify the purview of the journal, a number of sections have been developed which are designed to reflect the general statement of editorial policy which is carried regularly on the inside front cover. The sections are entitled Reviews, Professional Issues, De Rerum Novarum, and Correspondence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comment policy.

Commentary on articles published in the journal makes a scientific contribution when it (a) brings to light critical controversies, (b) identifies important misconceptions or errors of inference, and/or (c) clarifies the implications of findings. Decisions about whether to publish occasional commentaries in the Journal of Applied Psychology have been guided more by tradition than by an explicit editorial policy. With the encouragement of the APA Publications and Communications Board, I have formulated a comment policy for the journal. There are two types of comments that the journal will consider for publication. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial.

Psychology, Public Policy, and Law focuses on the links between psychology as a science, relevant information derived from related disciplines as sciences, and public policy and law. It will publish articles that (1) critically evaluate the actual and potential contributions of psychology to public policy and legal issues, (2) assess the desirability of different public policy and legal alternatives in light of the scientific knowledge base in psychology, (3) articulate research needs that address public policy and legal issues for which there is currently insufficient theoretical and empirical knowledge, and (4) examine public policy and legal issues relating to the conduct of psychology and of related disciplines where relevant to psychology. The goals for the journal are to (1) provide a multidisciplinary forum for scholarship and interchange relevant to the mission of the journal, (2) provide a forum for the publications of comprehensive, scholarly articles that critically consider theoretical, conceptual, and doctrinal issues or that critically review the literature on topics relevant to the mission of the journal, and (3) provide a forum for the publication of comprehensive, scholarly articles that report the results of programs of research or large-scale empirical studies relevant to the mission of the journal. This particular issue provides a forum for critical discussion of the implications of using a social science amicus brief in court cases. It also demonstrates the opportunity that this journal will provide to social scientists to critically evaluate their colleagues' work when those colleagues attempt to offer their science and opinions in the legal or public policy arenas. Finally, this issue reflects the journal's desire to be a flexible forum for scholarly interchange. Rather than always publishing articles that are relatively independent of each other, the journal will also publish issues devoted to a single theme (as occurred in the first issue of this volume), and, as in the case of this issue, to interchange about one theme when it is appropriate for advancing the field. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial.

Psychology, Public Policy, and Law focuses on the links between psychology as a science, relevant information derived from related disciplines as sciences, and public policy and law. It will publish articles that (1) critically evaluate the actual and potential contributions of psychology to public policy and legal issues, (2) assess the desirability of different public policy and legal alternatives in light of the scientific knowledge base in psychology, (3) articulate research needs that address public policy and legal issues for which there is currently insufficient theoretical and empirical knowledge, and (4) examine public policy and legal issues relating to the conduct of psychology and of related disciplines where relevant to psychology. The goals for the journal are to (1) provide a multidisciplinary forum for scholarship and interchange relevant to the mission of the journal, (2) provide a forum for the publications of comprehensive, scholarly articles that critically consider theoretical, conceptual, and doctrinal issues or that critically review the literature on topics relevant to the mission of the journal, and (3) provide a forum for the publication of comprehensive, scholarly articles that report the results of programs of research or large-scale empirical studies relevant to the mission of the journal. This issue, like most law reviews and social science journals, presents articles that were unsolicited and are unrelated. The first article, using the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Foucha v. Louisiana as the vehicle, critically explores how mental illness should be defined for various legal purposes and argues the need for the application of a new constitutional principle to limit state power to involuntary hospitalize—therapeutic appropriateness. The second article then considers the U.S. Supreme Court's social science analyses in two juvenile death penalty cases, demonstrates that the Court's approach is in error, and presents an alternate analysis that the author asserts the Court should be using. The issue concludes with an article that focuses on the potential harmfulness that may result to society from censorship of sexually explicit material. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

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)     

Government Publication Policies.

Comment regarding government publication policies. The various schemes that up to now have been offered to ameliorate the publication difficulties of the APA would, it seems to me, restrict rather than facilitate the communication of scientific information. I do not think that there exists an acceptable alternative to detailed exposition in a recognized (and readily obtainable) scientific journal. On this basis, the solution to the problem must be aimed at the expansion of journal outlets. I think a partial solution would be afforded by persuading government agencies to subsidize the publication in established journals of articles originating in their research programs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychoanalytic Psychology: Editorial.

Notes that, with this issue, the journal Psychoanalytic Psychology begins its 20th year of publication. The journal's editor discusses new features for 2003, and the unique contributions of the journal as the second largest psychoanalytic journal published in the US. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Journal of Research Proposals.

Comments on the article by Stuart Cook (Amer. Psychologist, 1958, 13, 635-644) regarding the situational obstacles that frustrate the "professional" psychologist and Cook's suggestion that the thwarted practitioner seek partial compensatory gratification through the assumption of a heuristic "question posing" function. In order to meet the unfulfilled research aspirations of the practicing psychologist who finds himself relegated in a position of scientific unproductivity, the present author poses the creation of a newsletter or journal devoted exclusively to the publication of unexecuted research proposals. The proposals published in the projected journal will be considered to be in the scientific public domain and available for execution by anyone who has the time, the interest, and the facilities for carrying them out. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Detecting undetected HIV-1 variants in African children using degenerate polymerase chain reaction and sequence analyses

CONTEXT: Scientific journals issue press releases to disseminate scientific news about articles they publish. OBJECTIVE: To assess whether press releases about journal articles were associated with publication of subsequent newspaper stories. DESIGN: Retrospective content analysis of newspaper stories, journal press releases, and journal tables of contents. From December 1, 1996, to February 28, 1997, press releases and tables of contents were collected from BMJ, Nature, Science, and The Lancet, along with newspaper stories on scientific research published in The New York Times (United States), Le Figaro and Le Monde (France), El País and La Vanguardia (Spain), La Repubblica (Italy), and the International Herald Tribune. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: Number of newspaper stories that contained reference to articles appearing in the 4 scientific journals, number of newspaper stories that referred to journal articles described in press releases, and the order in which journal articles were mentioned in press releases. RESULTS: Of the 1060 newspaper stories analyzed, 142 referred to journal articles; of these, 119 (84%) referred to articles mentioned in press releases and 23 (16%) referred to journal articles not mentioned in press releases (comparison of proportions, P=.03). Articles described first or second were referenced in more newspapers than articles described later in the press release (P=.01 by chi2 analysis). CONCLUSIONS: Journal articles described in press releases, in particular those described first or second in the press release, are associated with the subsequent publication of newspaper stories on the same topic.     

Editor's report for Volume 2.

The Journal of Family Psychology has advanced into a new phase of its operation. Our efforts to establish the journal as a forum for high-quality contributions that cover the science and practice of family psychology have been successful. Volume 2 has covered the empirical, clinical, and theoretical areas of family psychology. Our goal is to continue attracting high-quality research articles and also to increase the flow of clinical articles. The journal is in sound condition as it enters its third volume of publication. We are still encouraging interested colleagues to become involved with the journal in any number of ways. Our major goal of bringing family systems thinking and family psychology and family therapy content into mainstream psychology has been established. We will continue to expand our efforts in this regard. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Citation impact, acceptance rate, and APA journals.

Investigated the role that factors such as journal circulation and acceptance rate play in relation to citation impact (CTI). CTI was negatively related to acceptance rate and positively related to circulation, consistent with the construct of CTI as a measure of journal quality. CTI was highest for moderate publication lag and had substantial stability over time. Compared to non-American Psychological Association (APA) journals, APA journals had significantly higher CTI in both 1977 and 1978, higher circulation, and lower acceptance rates. CTI is probably the best single measure of journal quality currently available. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The APA publications program: status and prospects, 1955.

"A vigorous program of scientific publication has been a primary objective of the American Psychological Association from its earliest days." Recurrent problems such as the expansion of psychological output, the editors' difficulties, and management and finances of journal operation are discussed. Current and future publication program planning are overviewed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Rehabilitation psychology: New directions? Reflections on the profession and the journal.

It is with a mixture of joy and sadness that I bid farewell to the editorship of Rehabilitation Psychology. I am sad because the journal has been a stepchild to whom I offered renewed life 5 years ago. I have watched it grow and develop over those 5 years from a fledgling infant, totally dependent on me, to an adolescent just on the brink of establishing its own identity in the world of scholarly publications. I believe the editor carries a great responsibility to help define the field, expand its horizons, and encourage publication of work that will cause policy makers, researchers, and clinicians alike to turn to the journal and the profession for answers to questions we can rightly answer. Therefore, the next step in the journal's life will be an important one, not only for the journal itself, but for the profession. If the journal can help our profession meet these challenges, then I believe we will see rehabilitation psychology established as one of the leaders among the health care professions. Other disciplines will look to the journal for guidance on a broad array of issues in the health care domain, and growing numbers will proudly identify themselves as members of that leading field, Rehabilitation Psychology. For this reason, I am pleased to pass the journal on to a new editor, one who can meet these challenges successfully. With sincere gratitude for the help and support given to me as editor by the editorial board, consulting reviewers, and the Division of Rehabilitation Psychology, I bid farewell to Rehabilitation Psychology and welcome Dr. Mike Eisenberg as editor, beginning with Volume 32, 1987. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)