Planned short-term psychotherapy: Current status and future challenges

The history and rationale of planned short-term psychotherapy is reviewed in the process of considering its optimal future development. To judge by the early literature on the topic, planned short-term psychotherapy (often as short as one session) began either as an interesting anomaly or as a second-best treatment whose justification was the chronic mismatch between the supply and demand of traditional time-unlimited therapy. In recent years, the growing appeal and remarkable effectiveness of brief psychotherapy have been repeatedly documented, and the field is now achieving all the hallmarks of a professional subspecialty in its own right. Future development of planned short-term psychotherapy will depend on recruiting young mental-health professionals who have been trained in short-term therapy techniques, in encouraging increased flexibility in planning the therapeutic enterprise, and in rewarding therapeutic effectiveness and efficiency.     

Evolutionary developmental psychology: Current status and future directions

The field of developmental psychology is part of a continuum of disciplines, from cell biology to cultural anthropology, that are focused on understanding developing and potentially evolving phenotypes; the reciprocal interactions between genetics and experiences produce variation in developing phenotypes and this variation is the grist for evolutionary selection. The articles in this issue provide cutting edge and multidisciplinary analyses of developing and potentially evolving phenotypes in areas that are of central interest to developmental scientists, including mother–infant attachments, stress responses in children, social cognition, and life span development. The articles and other recent works signal the reemergence of developmental psychology as an evolutionarily informed, multidisciplinary field. In this view, it is not about nature versus nurture or biology versus psychology, it is about tackling difficult problems at multiple levels of analysis, each of which has something to contribute and none of which is sufficient in and of itself.     

Disability and the family: Current status and future developments

Recent years have witnessed increased interest in the effects a disability or chronic illness has on both the nuclear and the extended family. Personal accounts by family members and landmark legislation has stimulated interest in this area of endeavour. Reports of marital and family disharmony has fuelled research investigating the sources of stress and coping in families with a member who has a disability (Seligman, 1991).     

Social identity leadership in sport and exercise: Current status and future directions

The social identity approach is fast becoming a prominent framework for understanding effective leadership in sport and exercise contexts. The last five years, in particular, has seen a proliferation of research informed by the identity leadership approach, with a focus on two broad outcomes: performance and health. Using these two key outcomes as an organising framework, we provide a critical narrative review of research that has examined the presence, role, and benefits of identity leadership in sport and exercise contexts, and identify fruitful avenues for future research. Applying a broader lens, we then make five key recommendations for future identity leadership research in sport and exercise contexts. Specifically, we highlight the need for research (a) using more rigorous and varied research designs, (b) using stronger measures, (c) comparing the effects of identity leadership to the effects of other types of leadership, (d) assessing further potential mediators of relationships between identity leadership and key outcomes, and (e) exploring the possible dark side of identity leadership.     

Psychology and rural America. Current status and future directions

Rural people constitute about one fourth of the U.S. population, and their special mental health needs have been largely neglected. For a variety of reasons psychologists have focused little attention on this group. Recent economic developments affecting agriculture, farm families, and rural communities have increased awareness of problems facing rural areas. Psychologists can respond to the unique challenges created by rural mental health needs through research on stress, psychopathology, and community well-being. Training programs should be encouraged to recognize rural concerns. Psychologists are needed to practice in rural areas and to help develop effective rural service models. They can also support the development of state and federal policies that address rural needs.     

Hormones and Cognition: Current Concepts and Issues in Neuropsychology

This article provides an extensive and comprehensive review of the effects of hormones on cognition. Studies detailing specific neurocognitive functions affected by variation in hormone levels across the life span are presented. Dysregulation of hormone levels is considered from models of both normal and diseased functioning. Patterns of cognitive dysfunction are described for a range of syndromes involving the neuroendocrine system, and evidence of specific neurophysiological mechanisms that can account for these findings is outlined. This review includes discussion of treatment outcomes and the permanency of endocrine-related cognitive dysfunction. The authors present a set of guidelines for clinical neuropsychologists to use for assessment of patients with neuroendocrine system dysfunction. Clinical and methodological issues in research and treatment settings are discussed.     

前临床期痴呆的认知特征：当前研究进展和未来研究展望

在这篇文章中, 我将讨论从正常老化到痴呆, 这一通常被称为痴呆前临床阶段的认知功能的转变。研究表明, 阿尔茨海默症和血管性痴呆病人在临床确诊之前的几年中, 会出现明显的认知损伤。早期最突出的损伤存在于情节记忆、加工速度以及执行功能。这些功能性损伤与神经生物学研究证实的边缘系统和新皮层区存在多重损伤是相一致的。虽然早在临床诊段之前, 病人组和控制组的平均成绩存在巨大差异, 但同时这两组测试成绩的分布在很大程度上是重叠的。寻求降低这种重叠度的方法是未来研究的一个重要任务。这有可能通过将认知的和其他指标(如基于脑的、基因的、临床的、社会的)相结合构建预测模型来实现。此外, 在未来研究中以下三方面也是急需考虑问题: (a) 找出在 前临床期间认知功能急速下降的时间点: (b) 评估从前临床到临床诊断变化速率中存在的个体差异; (c) 确定特定因素与随后发生的痴呆之间的关联强度是如何随时间向临床确诊推进而逐渐变化的。     

Introduction: Embodiment and Empathy,Current Debates in Social Cognition

This special issue targets two topics in social cognition that appear to increasingly structure the nature of interdisciplinary discourse but are themselves not very well understood. These are the notions of empathy and embodiment. Both have a history rooted in phenomenological philosophy and both have found extensive application in contemporary interdisciplinary theories of social cognition, at times to establish claims that are arguably contrary to the ones made by the phenomenologists credited with giving us these notions. But this special issue is not about defending any philosophical tradition or theoretical stance against all others. It is about understanding some central aspects of the nature of our experience of other people.     

Critical consciousness: current status and future directions

In this chapter, the authors consider Paulo Freire's construct of critical consciousness (CC) and why it deserves more attention in research and discourse on youth political and civic development. His approach to education and similar ideas by other scholars of liberation aims to foster a critical analysis of society--and one's status within it--using egalitarian, empowering, and interactive methods. The aim is social change as well as learning, which makes these ideas especially relevant to the structural injustice faced by marginalized youth. From their review of these ideas, the authors derive three core CC components: critical reflection, political efficacy, and critical action. They highlight promising research related to these constructs and innovative applied work including youth action-research methodology. Their conclusion offers ideas for closing some of the critical gaps in CC theory and research.     

Career self-efficacy: Empirical status and future directions

Bandura's self-efficacy theory, stemming from a social cognitive model of behavior, has been gaining empirical attention in the career literature. This paper reviews emerging findings applying self-efficacy theory to career-relevant behaviors; examines a number of conceptual and methodological issues arising from this work; and offers several directions for future research and theory on the career self-efficacy construct. Self-efficacy appears to offer promise in understanding certain career entry behaviors, such as college major choices and academic performance, though there has been little work relating self-efficacy to career development beyond college or exploring causal connections between self-efficacy and career behaviors. An expanded base for research on career self-efficacy is advocated.     

Vicarious traumatisation: current status and future directions

Theorists and practitioners have long recognised that working with trauma clients can trigger reactions in the therapist similar to those experienced by the client. Nevertheless, research in this area has been lacking. One obstacle has been confusion regarding key terms. Vicarious traumatisation is the most appropriate concept given that it relates specifically to trauma work, incorporates intrinsic and extrinsic factors, and can be located within the framework of the constructivist self-development theory. Although limited, research has identified a range of factors that influence vicarious traumatisation, such as experience, personal trauma history and coping style. Future investigation is required to examine aspects that could enhance counsellor resilience. In addition, vicarious traumatisation needs to be studied in terms of a broad range of clientele and occupations.