Psychologists and psychological services in urban police departments--A national survey.

The purpose of the present study was to survey urban police departments and determine the amount and type of psychologist involvement. The major aims of the study were to ascertain the number of psychologists employed, the characteristics of these psychologists, and the services they provided. One hundred seventy-four copies of a questionnaire were sent to cities throughout the nation. The survey assessed, in broad terms, the role that psychologists and psychological services have in police departments today. A 74% return (N = 130) of the questionnaires was obtained within 3 months of the initial mailing. Results show that the more populated an area, the more psychologists employed: Only 11% and 10%, respectively, for the two smaller urban groups, but 18% and 39% for the two larger groups (in ascending order). Full-time and part-time psychologists are employed in approximately equal numbers, but, on a national scale and for all population groups, neither is used as frequently as consultants. The majority (74%) of psychologists employed are at the PhD level. Most have a clinical background, though training in counseling or industrial psychology was significantly involved. Two points represent major findings of the study: the use of consultants rather than full-time employees, and the relatively great amount of time spent in applicant screening. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The psychological value systems of psychologists.

A scale based on historically important psychologists and their contributions was marked by 125 Fellows of the APA. The names represented 9 a priori scales of values. Factor analysis produced 3 bipolar factors: laboratory vs. clinic, psychometric vs. verbal approach to individual, and methodological analysis vs. professional service. Value scores are given for members of the APA divisions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Significant contributors to psychological science.

Comments on the excellent APA report on America's Psychologists (1957). Because this report is certain to be studied and quoted for many years, it seems desirable to note an ambiguity in Table 2 on page 62. A previous chapter has established the representativeness of a sample of 150 as "Significant Contributors" to psychology. These were all drawn--properly for the purpose--from the years 1930 to 1944. In Table 2, we have a listing of the universities producing the largest numbers of these Significant Contributors. That gives us, I think, one significant index of the quality of these universities. Alongside of this listing, however, is a column headed: "Number of Significant Contributors on Current Staff." This column is misleading as an index of the contemporary excellence of the university. The heading inadvertently opens the way to a misleading deduction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Guidebooks to psychological literature.

Calls attention to bibliographical problems of psychology and the value of certain reference books in the solution of them. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Additions to psychological necrology: Japan, 1928-1952.

It is suggested that 13 prominent Japanese psychologists be added to Bennett and Boring's necrology (see 28: 6839). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A decision-making approach to psychological assessment in the clinic.

The use of efficiency or payoff matrix in determining selection of treatment is brought to the attention of clinical psychologists. It is pointed out that a quantitative method for reaching decisions is essential where alternative treatments are available and outcomes are uncertain. The matrix approach demonstrates the necessity for the decision-maker to have information which is not normally available at present. The approach suggests an expansion of the role of the clinical psychologist as diagnostician to include elements of operations research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Lewis M. Terman: Pioneer in psychological testing.

Reviews the book, Lewis M. Terman: Pioneer in psychological testing by Henry L. Minton (see record 1988-98726-000). Lewis Terman was one of the leading pioneers in the development of clinical tools and studies of individual differences. In the Preface to his book, Minton acknowledges that Terman was as controversial as he was influential and states that his biography seeks to provide a balanced view of Terman's life and works. As readers of this comprehensive volume will quickly find, Minton has been eminently successful in achieving this goal: His book not only highlights Terman's accomplishments, which were many, but also describes his shortcomings which, though fewer, were not nonexistent. Overall, Minton provides an extremely interesting, well-written, and probing account of the positive and the less-positive facets of his subject, both as a scientist and as a man. The book contains 11 chapters, describing Terman's life from his early years through his illustrious career at Stanford, up to his death in 1956, a month short of his 80th birthday. Throughout, Minton shows how Terman's upbringing, education, and the times and society in which he was raised contributed to shaping the person he was to become. Minton's biography of Terman, based primarily on an exhaustive reading of Terman's professional and personal papers and supplemented with interviews with former students and colleagues such as Nancy Bayley, Lee Cronback, Ernest Hilgard, and Robert Sears, and with members of Terman's family, provides a detailed and fascinating portrait of one of the major figures in psychology. The book's strengths are its consistently objective appraisal of its sometimes controversial subject, the scope of its coverage, the extensive documentation of its sources, and Minton's ability to set or to describe each of Terman's activities and the events in his life in their appropriate professional or social context. Readers from many walks will find this book interesting, informative, and well worth reading. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A quick solution to the psychologist's problem of defining "psychological maltreatment."

Comments that the definition of psychological maltreatment is not an appropriate task for psychologists as scientists or researchers. Psychologists should leave the determination of benefit and harm to the fields of law, ethics, and religion. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Concerning nonconformity in the "psychological value systems" of the several divisions of APA.

A method is applied to the data presented in Thorndike's "The psychological value systems of psychologists" (see 29: 5009) for examining the degree of conformity of the "professional value structure" of psychologists from the several divisions of APA. "At long last we find a point of agreement between the experimentalists and SPSSI. They both agree in disagreeing with their fellow psychologistsp" (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The structure of preferences for psychological activities among psychologists.

The development and analysis of an Activity Preference Blank for use with psychologists is described. Five clusters of items (tentatively designated as I. Helping individuals, II. Experimenting, III. Working in industry, IV. Scholarship, and, V. Administering) were derived from a 119-item form administered to 400 undergraduate psychology majors, graduate students, and staff members of several large academic institutions. After statistical analysis and the extraction of clusters, an abbreviated set of items was administered to several groups of psychologists, and results are presented in tabular form for possible normative use. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Child and adolescent psychological assessment: Current clinical practices and the impact of managed care.

Which psychological testing measures are clinical child and adolescent psychologists most commonly using? How has managed care influenced the practice of assessment for these professionals? This study provides survey data from 162 child practitioners employed in independent practice and in hospital, outpatient, and school-based settings throughout the United States. The results demonstrate marked consistency with recent surveys of clinicians working with adults, and a list of the 30 most frequently utilized measures is provided. Over 40% of the sample reported significant limitations in psychological testing due to managed-care policies. Strategies for maintaining an assessment practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On preserving a legacy: Psychoanalysis and psychological testing.

With changes in the structure of the Menninger Foundation and its relocation from Topeka, Kansas, to Houston, Texas, and the greater opportunity for psychologists to obtain full psychoanalytic training, interest among psychologists/psychoanalysts in psychological testing has waned. This, in my judgment, is unfortunate, because it raises the possibility that fewer psychoanalytically oriented psychologists will be aware of the work of Rapaport and his contributions to testing. Based on the conviction that Rapaport's legacy is worth preserving, especially at a time when several are calling for a firming up of the scientific basis of psychoanalysis, in this article I review Rapaport's contributions to psychological testing, those of his students and colleagues, and discuss the work of current writers within this tradition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Peak performance in sport: Identifying ideal performance states and developing athletes' psychological skills.

Can psychologists help performers in sport, business, and the performing arts achieve peak performances more often and with greater consistency? Sport psychologists have taken the lead in researching peak performance in an attempt to answer this question. This article focuses on optimal experiences in sport and ways in which the author works with athletes to help them achieve peak performances. Peak performance in sport is overviewed, the application of two models related to the preparation for peak performance in sport are discussed, and applied sport psychology experiential knowledge is shared. Implications for practice for psychologists considering work in this area are also considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The concept of the stimulus in psychology.

"The aim of this paper is to find out what psychologists mean by the term stimulus, with the hope of deciding what they ought to mean by it. After a short look at the history of the term, I will try to uncover the sources of confusion in modern usage." Psychologists "have inherited a mixed batch of ideas about the stimulus." Interlocking issues are separated into 8 areas of disagreement which are successively discussed. Hypotheses are suggested regarding molar stimuli, potential stimuli, effective stimuli, and related problems. "A systematic study of the specifying power of stimuli will put the problem of meaning in perception on a new footing." The "stimulus is the prime independent variable of a psychological experiment." From Psyc Abstracts 36:02:2BC94G. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

After the storm: Katrina's impact on psychological practice in New Orleans.

The impact of Hurricane Katrina on 4 senior New Orleans-based psychologists, both professionally and personally, is described. The authors are pediatric, adult, and family therapists and neuropsychologists; by employment, they are medical center academics, independent practitioners, administrators, and staff/consulting psychologists at medical and psychiatric hospitals. Their diverse experiences following Katrina are similar to the experiences of many individuals in the professional community of the Gulf Coast. In the face of the storm, they departed New Orleans and afterward returned at varying intervals. The homes of all of the 4 New Orleans authors were damaged or destroyed. All of their practice locations were closed for varying periods, and 2 were closed permanently. Of the 4 who returned to New Orleans, only 2 remained 18 months after the storm; the others had relocated to other states. This article reflects on their collective experience as mental health professionals living in New Orleans after Katrina and lessons learned from that experience. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

There is More than One Kind of Boojum.

Notes that it is apparent that psychologists want to be scientific, and for many this means having a scientific theory, mathematical if possible. Because of this tendency, theories appear in great numbers; yet we are so eager to have a respectable, all-encompassing theory that we are too ready to reject prematurely any formulation that falls short of perfection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A theoretical approach to psychological movement.

"An approach to psychological movement, or change, has been presented. Stress has been placed on the role of therapy in accelerating movement. Earlier investigations have afforded the basis for currently offering a 'contrast' phenomenon to explain certain aspects of movement and to link the fields of (formal) education and therapy. Implications of these and other fields are noted." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Juvenile competence to stand trial evaluations: A survey of current practices and test usage among psychologists.

What is the current standard of practice for evaluations of juvenile competence to stand trial (JCST)? The present study surveyed psychologists regarding the practices used when conducting JCST evaluations. Respondents rated the importance of 17 elements that might be included in a JCST evaluation report. Of these elements, 7 were considered essential by 70% or more of respondents, with 9 additional elements rated as either essential or recommended. A majority of respondents felt that the use of psychological and forensic instruments was important. A list of tests used is provided, and the implications for the development of standards and policy are discussed to provide practitioners with additional knowledge that will help to further the state of the discipline. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)