Has 60 Years of Research in Psychology Really Gone Astray?

The author presents several arguments against Toomela’s (Culture of science: Strange history of the methodological thinking in psychology. Integrative Psychological and Behavioral Science, 2007a, doi:, History of methodology in psychology: Starting point, not the goal. Integrative Psychological and Behavioral Science, 2007b, doi:) pessimistic thesis: “The last 60 years of research in psychology seems to have gone astray.” Nevertheless he admits that Toomela’s article despite the excessively categorical assessments contained in it and the undue pessimism crowing its conclusion, represents a substantial contribution to the highlighting of socio-cultural impact on various models of psychological cognition, which lurks behind the international unification of globalizing science.

Where is Safeguarding in Sport Psychology Research and Practice?

Recent cases of sexual abuse of athletes have drawn significant concern amongst stakeholders in sport and the public at-large. The fact that the perpetrators in many cases of athlete abuse had numerous victims over the span of several years raises questions of who might have known or suspected that athletes were being harmed. Sexual abuse cases should serve as an impetus for all of us in sport psychology to interrogate our roles and responsibilities as consultants and researchers in the protection of athletes. We propose that future research in applied sport psychology and education of consultants address maltreatment and safeguarding.

Lay Summary: In the following article, we propose that more attention in the research and practice of sport psychology should be devoted to understanding maltreatment of athletes and ways to protect athletes from harm.     

Why Ask,Why Tell? Teaching and Learning about Lesbians and Gays in Family Therapy

The article by J.K. Long (1996) in this issue of Family Process helps puncture the conventional secrecy around homosexuality, challenging the silence of many supervisors. In this commentary, I will expand on the themes raised by Long and offer some tangible steps we can take to teach and learn about lesbians/gays in couples and families.     

Couple Therapy Research and the Practice of Couple Therapy: Can We Talk?

As has been true in every other realm of psychotherapy, couple therapy research generally has had very little impact on the day-to-day practice of couple therapists. To a significant degree, this unfortunate disconnection may be attributable to an overemphasis by researchers in the field on treatment packages and therapeutic methods/techniques. Insufficient attention has been paid to other important sources of influence on treatment outcomes, especially the couple therapist herself/himself. It is argued that effective couple therapy requires a good "fit" between the person of the therapist and her primary theoretical orientation, and that couple therapists may be more influenced by research that addresses process aspects of the therapeutic approaches to which they have their primary theoretical allegiances.     

Qualitative Research in Marriage and Family Therapy: Who is in the Interview?

Qualitative interviews are a rich means of gathering information from families. The qualitative interviewer has a choice of interviewing individual family members, multiple family members at the same time, or a combination. The configuration of interviewees is a choice guided by the epistemology of the researcher, research aims, and questions. This article reviews the literature on interviewing different configurations of family members. A content analysis was conducted on articles in the marriage and family therapy literature from 1990 to 2005. Over half of the articles were conducted with individual family members separate from their families. This finding is discussed in the context of the decision regarding whom to interview.     

Certified Athletic Trainers’ Understanding and Use of Sport Psychology in Their Practice

Nine certified athletic trainers from one National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I institution participated in semistructured interviews about their understanding of sport psychology and use of psychological strategies in their work with injured athletes. Through Consensual Qualitative Research (Hill, 2012 Hill, C. E. (2012). Consensual qualitative research: A practical resource for investigating social science phenomenon. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. [Google Scholar]) procedures, three major domains were constructed: (a) recognition of the common psychological challenges of injury rehabilitation, (b) knowledge and understanding of sport psychology, and (c) utilization of sport psychology skills and strategies for rehabilitation. Although athletic trainers utilized basic psychological strategies (e.g., goal setting, reassurance) during injury rehabilitation, findings support the need for an interprofessional team approach to enhancing psychological recovery.     

Rapprochement in Sight? Postmodern Family Therapy and Psychoanalysis

This paper explores aspects of the theory and practice of psychotherapy with the aim of identifying similarities in the approaches of both family therapists and psychoanalytic psychotherapists. The author calls for a dialogue between the disciplines, and makes specific reference to the potential value of this in relation to training and research.     

Focused on the Family? Religious Traditions,Family Discourse,and Pastoral Practice

The relationship between religion and the family has recently reemerged as an important object of sociological inquiry. However, research has largely overlooked the ways in which the family discourse produced by specific religious traditions is connected to family-focused pastoral practices of congregations. Using data from the National Congregations Study, we find that family discourse and pastoral practice are only \"loosely coupled\" to one another. Ideological differences among mainline Protestant, conservative Protestant, and Roman Catholic congregations do not translate directly into differences in family ministry offerings. These findings help explain why research often finds that religion exercises uniform effects on family life, insofar as most congregations offer a similar package of ministries even though their family discourse is markedly different .     

How Do Experienced Family Therapists View Their Practice? An Exploratory Assessment of Clinical Skills and Their Relation to Theories of Family Therapy

This study examines the fit between theory based therapeutic skills and the perceptions of experienced therapists about their own skills. Participants responded to a measure of family therapy skills. Of the generic skills, two factors were identified which cut across many areas of practice. For the theory specific skills, two factors were identified which cut across four theories of family therapy. One was consistent with an expert style of therapy and the other reflected a collaborative approach to practice. These findings suggest that clinical training in family therapy should develop ways to train clinicians to match their clinical practice with client needs over theory based models.     

Training and Education in Religion/Spirituality Within APA-Accredited Clinical Psychology Programs: 8 Years Later

This study was a follow up investigation of Brawer et al.’s (Prof Psychol Res Pr 33(2):203–206, 2002) survey of education and training of clinical psychologists in religion/spirituality. Directors of clinical training were surveyed to determine whether changes had occurred in the coverage of religion and spirituality through course work, research, supervision, and in the systematic coverage of the content area. Results indicated an increased coverage in the areas of supervision, dedicated courses, inclusion as part of another course, and research. There was no increase in systematic coverage, but significantly more programs provided at least some coverage. The current study also assesses other areas of incorporation as well as directors’ opinions regarding the importance of religion/spirituality in the field of psychology.     

A Review of Single-Case Research in Sport Psychology 1997–2012: Research Trends and Future Directions

Single-case research methods are an important facet of applied sport psychology because they provide a framework for researchers and practitioners to outline intervention effects across time with individuals or groups. This paper reviews the research published since Hrycaiko and Martin's (1996) milestone overview of single-case research in sport psychology. Specifically, we examined the literature between 1997 and 2012 and located 66 studies that met our inclusion criteria of assessing interventions in sport psychology. The review summarizes the body of research, outlines trends, considers the limitations of the extant literature, and identifies areas that require further investigation for future single-case research.     

And the Winner is… Awards for the Integration of Science and Practice in Psychology

Psychotherapists from all fields perform difficult and challenging work, trying to help their clients gain insight into their problems and make lasting changes in their thoughts and behaviors. Unfortunately, too often the work of a psychotherapist is minimized, neglected, or disregarded. Where departmental or conference awards may be presented regularly, public recognition for evidence-based and clinically-relevant published work is lacking. The present paper aims to acknowledge the most valuable recent accomplishments in the field of mental health assessment and treatment. Nominations were accepted for works published during 2017, papers of enduring value, and most valuable psychologist, and votes were cast by a panel of judges. These valuable contributions are recommended for all psychotherapists who hope to improve their work with clients.     

“My Life is Too Chaotic to Practice What I Preach”: Perceived Benefits and Challenges of Being an Academic Women in Family Therapy and Family Studies Programs

The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of female faculty in family therapy and family studies graduate programs. Specifically, we were interested in how female faculty members in these programs experienced their roles as academics, partners, and/or parents. We conducted a discovery-oriented study qualitative study of 62 female academics in family studies and family therapy disciplines to identify the greatest concerns and benefits experienced by women in a family-studies-oriented academic field. Using a content analysis, we found that women in family studies/family therapy academic programs experience both high rewards and high demands and struggle with choosing among competing values. Additionally, the participants perceived support from colleagues, professional institutions, and family members as crucial to a female academic’s ability to perform up to expectations. We also offer suggestions for further research.     

Spirituality,Religiousness, and Happiness in Children Aged 8–12 Years

The relation between spirituality and happiness was assessed in 320 children aged 8–12 from public and private (i.e., faith-based) schools. Children rated their own spirituality using the Spiritual Well-Being Questionnaire and 11 items selected and modified from the Brief Multidimensional Measurement of Religiousness/Spirituality which reflected the children’s practices and beliefs. Children’s happiness was assessed using self-reports based on the Oxford Happiness Scale short form, the Subjective Happiness Scale, and a single-item measure. Parents also rated their children’s happiness. Children and parents rated the children’s temperament using the emotionality, activity, and sociability temperament survey. Children’s spirituality, but not their religious practices (e.g., attending church, praying, and meditating), was strongly linked to their happiness. Children who were more spiritual were happier. Spirituality accounted for between 3 and 26% of the unique variance in children’s happiness depending on the measures. Temperament was also a predictor of happiness, but spirituality remained a significant predictor of happiness even after removing the variance associated with temperament. The personal (i.e., meaning and value in one’s own life) and communal (quality and depth of inter-personal relationships) domains of spirituality were particularly good predictors of children’s happiness. These results parallel studies of adult happiness and suggest strategies to enhance happiness in children.     

What Is Called Self in Educational Research and Practice?

Without a contextualized definition of self, a growing body of educational research in Asian countries attempts to measure students’ sense of self, such as self-esteem. The research is usually based on theories and measurements that characterize students as conscious and independent selves in an individualist society. This sharply contrasts with the interdependent and unconscious sense of self in a collectivist society. To avoid a misleading assessment of self, researchers and policy makers need to know how students develop a self-construal in a sociocultural context. Therefore, this review of the cultural differences aims to provide a multifaceted definition of self.     

Life Satisfaction and Associated Factors Among People Aged 60 Years and Above in Six European Countries

Life satisfaction is a concept frequently used to measure wellbeing of older people. However, there is still a lack of cross-national comparative research investigating factors associated with life satisfaction. There may be unique and common factors associated with life satisfaction across European countries. This study aimed to investigate life satisfaction among people aged 60–89 years in six European countries in relation to health problems, ADL capacity, self-esteem, social and financial resources. A cross-sectional study was performed, including 7,699 people aged 60–89 years, in Sweden, the UK, The Netherlands, Luxemburg, Austria and Italy, participating in the European Study of Adult Wellbeing, using questions from the Older Americans Resources and Services schedule, Multidimensional Functional Assessment Questionnaire, Life Satisfaction Index Z and Rosenberg’s Self-esteem scale. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine factors associated with life satisfaction in the six national samples. In cases where people were less satisfied with their life it was fairly satisfactory and unsatisfactory social contacts (Odds Ratio (OR) 1.5–13.8), poor financial resources (OR 1.7–15.1), feeling greatly hindered by health problems (OR 2.2–5.4) and self-esteem (OR 2.1–5.1) rather than the ability to perform activities of daily living and the extent of social contacts that gave the greatest risk of low life satisfaction in all the six European countries. There were both common and country-specific factors important for life satisfaction in the six European countries. However, the importance of satisfactory social contacts, financial resources, self-esteem and feeling hindered by health problems seems universal in the six included countries and thus important to target in preventive interventions.     

Research and Practice in Talent Identification and Development—Some Thoughts on the State of Play

Although there has been considerable growth in talent identification and development research in sport over the last 20 years, in this commentary we argue that the mixed quality (e.g., the uncritical employment of retrospective and autobiographical data) and lack of applied focus of much of this research, together with organizational inertia, means that relatively little has changed in the applied landscape at the systems level. In an effort to clarify and redirect work in this important area, we propose the Performance-Outcome-Process continuum, a structure that examines ideas based on what and how they contribute to the talent development process and the multiple approaches that exist. Reflecting a pracademic focus, and the need to generate effective and applicable answers, we also highlight the importance of understanding the processes and underlying mechanisms of development-focused constructs to best support the integration of these ideas into applied talent development procedures. To close the research–practice divide, we conclude by suggesting a pragmatic approach that prioritizes both the quality of research and the importance of applied impact, at least in research that claims to be for sport.     

A Case of Child and Family Therapy: Is Anger Permissible in This Home?

This article illustrates the impact of a peer supervision group on the treatment of an Orthodox Jewish child and her family system. Examples of treatment difficulties encountered when Orthodox therapists treat Orthodox patients are also presented. It highlights the use of a peer supervision group as a means to manage some of these treatment difficulties.