Issues in undergraduate education in psychology.

A number of specific questions are raised and discussed with regard to the role of psychology in the undergraduate college "contributing to the development of the well-rounded individual." Among those discussed are: Who is responsible for planning the over-all undergraduate program in psychology? Who is responsible for the objectives of a single course in the psychology program? Should courses be student centered or content-centered? Questions relating to the role of psychological theory, the stress on special psychological vocabulary, the desirability of placing psychological concepts in an historical perspective in an undergraduate curriculum are considered, as are several other issues regarding recruitment for graduate training. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an organizational psychology for organizational psychology.

Pursuit of the goal for organizational psychology postulated by M. D. Dunnette (1976) is viewed as being analogous to the task accomplishments by formal organizations. This perspective suggests that organizational psychologists might improve their collective effectiveness by applying the substance of organizational psychology to themselves. Six elements are considered: (a) domain and task requirements, (b) required diversity, (c) stimulus variability and search processes, (d) problem definition, (e) resource allocation, and (f) requirements for a self-designing system. Analysis of these dimensions suggests that many aspects of the structure of contemporary organizational psychology are in conflict with the achievement of Dunnette's goals. It is concluded that the way many current processes (e.g., searching for solutions and processes and defining problems) are managed by organizational psychologists stimulates closed-systems approaches for tasks that require creative, open-systems approaches. Potential benefits of an organizational psychology of organizational psychology are suggested. (33 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Issues related to postdoctoral education and training in professional psychology: Results of an opinion survey.

Is professional psychology assuming adequate responsibility for advanced training in the profession? Although professional psychology has taken enormous strides in articulating standards for doctoral and internship training, postdoctoral education and training (PDET) have received much less attention, resulting in a lack of clear guidelines for managing the transition from training to independent practice. Professional psychology's practitioners, educators, and trainees were asked to provide their opinions on a number of PDET-related issues. Data are presented that include broad support for maintaining the postdoctoral training year. Implications address steps to assist advanced students in maximizing their postdoctoral training experiences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an emancipatory psychology.

Responds to comments by W. Mieder (see record 1991-03996-001), K. L. Dion (see record 1991-03991-001), and K. J. Gergen (see record 1991-03993-001) on T. B. Rogers's (see record 1991-03999-001) examination of the role of proverbs in psychology. It is argued that theory is important for the critical social functions it serves, rather than just for the quest for truth. Also, consideration of an emancipatory psychology is recommended, in which psychology is viewed as a socially embedded discipline. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinical psychology in general hospital settings: Issues in interprofessional relationships.

We suggest that the involvement of clinical psychologists in health care teams may not necessarily improve health care. The position of clinical psychology with regard to medical theory and practice is examined. Then issues arising from multidisciplinary teamwork, with particular emphasis on consultation–liaison work, are discussed. We conclude that professional power structures in hospital settings have a profound influence on clinical psychological practice and that these issues need to be explicitly addressed before health care can benefit from the expertise of clinical psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Issues in the education and training of women in Canadian psychology.

The high attrition rate of female students in graduate programmes in psychology is documented. Some of the literature (largely American) on the problems of female students is explored for possible reasons for this high rate. The problem areas identified are: admissions practices, financial support, inflexibility of graduate programmes, faculty attitudes toward graduate students, scarcity of female role models, and psychology as a "masculine" discipline. Recommendations for action by the Canadian Psychological Association are made in each of the problem areas with a special plea for the inclusion, in both graduate and undergraduate psychology programmes, of courses on the female experience. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Passages of an internship in professional psychology.

Presents a model for understanding the various stages of an internship in professional psychology as it affects both the interns and the training agency. Five distinct passages are identified: (a) preentry preparation, which includes application, acceptance, and prearrival apprehension; (b) early intern syndrome, which is characterized by gathering information and finding a place in the agency; (c) intern identity, which focuses on the realization of strengths and limitations, a period of self-doubt, and a period of greater role differentiation; (d) the emerging professional, which is characterized by increased sense of competence and independence; and (e) resolution, which incorporates various ways of separating from the agency. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Issues in comparative psychology at the dawn of the 20th century.

Comparative psychology emerged as part of the "new psychology" that took hold in the United States around 1900. Many of the issues that have occupied comparative psychologists throughout the 20th century were developed as research problems during this period. In some respects, comparative psychology was then an integral and widely respected part of psychology at large; in others, it was already marginalized. Issues emerging during this critical period set the program for the upcoming century and included those of methodology in the conduct of experiments and conceptual issues related to evolution, development, intelligence, and higher processes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family psychology from an Israeli perspective.

A perspective of family psychology in Israel is drawn against a background of evolving indigenous elaboration suited to Israel's unique circumstances (J. I. Good & A. Ben-David, 1995). Its development shows a progression from the original source of an enriching but dominant culture (J. J. Gergen, A. Gulerce, A. Lock, & G. Misra, 1996; E. Halpern, 1985) to a discipline growing within the Israeli geopolitical reality, constraints of academic infrastructures, and training resources. One can currently recognize a discipline that is increasingly congruent with its cultural texture as well as the histories and traditions of individual families in a multifaceted society. This evolution is thought to bear similarities to the course that family therapy originally took and to where the roots of family psychology can be found. To echo F. W. Kaslow's (1987, 1991) analysis of this evolution in the US, the heritage of family psychology in Israel also basically lies in mainstream psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an experimental psychology of aging.

Advocates the development of an experimental psychology of aging for cultural, scientific, and practical purposes. The ethical, economical, and temporal problems involved in longitudinal studies are discussed. Data on the effect of age differences on intellectual functioning, RT, and perceptual ability are presented. Several tentative hypotheses are proposed to explain results not covered by the perceptual difficulty and cautiousness hypotheses. New research areas are pointed out. (22 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Humanistic psychology as an educational program.

States that since a perceptive young person's interest in psychology begins with the problem of understanding himself and his own life, this vital interest should be utilized in starting out with studies of human life as a whole in terms of life history studies. These, viewed in an integrative frame, could easily serve as starting point for studying more specific aspects of psychology, e.g., the biological substructure of life, psychophysiological functions, individual and social behavior, cognition, motivation, human development, normal and abnormal personality, and all other functions and performances. The segmented studies would be more meaningful to the student, if related to the whole of human life and of the person. (19 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social psychology in an era of social change.

Discusses the role and method of social psychology in a situation of constant change. The social psychologist is presented as a "specialist in unnoticed causes" concentrating on the question rather than the answers. Risk-taking is emphasized as the method to answer questions thus generated. Continual reordering of data and theory allow social psychology to remain relevant. The self- and other-consciousness of the social psychologist are examined. (16 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Working toward an inclusive psychology of women.

Feminist critics of an androcentric bias in psychology have argued that the tendency to either exclude women from study or include women and men as comparison groups has resulted in faulty overgeneralizations about women's psychology, exaggerations of gender differences, and evaluations of women as deficient relative to a male-defined baseline. The authors warn of a parallel bias that could affect progress in the field of the psychology of women if a White, privileged female norm is adopted inadvertently by researchers. The fallacy of such a norm, its consequences, and suggestions for avoiding it are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sport psychology in the profession of psychology.

Historically, sport psychology has been identified with physical education; however, recent developments in the field toward applied issues have substantially expanded psychologists' interests and opportunities. Unfortunately, little is known about professional psychologists' involvement in sport psychology practice, research, and training. Therefore, a national survey of 500 male and 500 female psychologists (American Psychological Association Division 12 members) was conducted. Based on 489 responses, results indicated that psychologists (a) were uninvolved in sport psychology research and teaching and (b) had received minimal training or supervision in the field. Despite this absence of sport science training, many had consulted with (22%) or provided individual therapy to (48%) athletes or sport teams. Implications for psychology training and practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Health psychology training in doctoral psychology programs.

Presents the results of a Division 38 (the health psychology division of the American Psychological Association) survey of graduate training programs in psychology, along with facility-specific information on doctoral training opportunities in health psychology as of Fall 1981. 310 questionnaires were returned from psychology programs; 53 indicated that doctoral training in health psychology was available at their institution. It was found that established subspecialty programs were expanding to include health psychology, and new programs were developing in that area. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

U.S. psychology and world psychology.

Contends that although US psychology at present occupies a major position in world psychology, the field is growing more rapidly in many other countries. An example of international cooperation in an endeavor that could not be achieved by the psychological community of any single nation (i.e., securing the admission of the International Union of Psychological Science to the International Council of Scientific Unions) is given. A list of suggestions is presented outlining ways in which individual psychologists can take part in international psychological activities. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Integrating an internship into a market-driven psychology practice.

The article describes how a psychologist-led, market-driven, entrepreneurial practice provides an excellent setting for an internship. Interns learn about the following: the role of accrediting organizations, such as the Joint Commission of Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and the National Committee on Quality Assurance; quality improvement; utilization improvement; performance improvement; cutting-edge service delivery systems; how to assess market needs; capitation; marketing services; how to work as part of a multidisciplinary team; how to integrate behavioral health care and medical health care; provider networks; and how to assess and use consumer satisfaction and clinical outcomes for service improvement. Interns develop scientist-practitioner skills and coping skills for innovating in response to a rapidly changing marketplace. The article also addresses costs and logistics for market-driven practices sponsoring an internship program. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)