Preparing Psychologists in Academic Health Centers for the Rapidly Changing Health Care Environment

The Association of Psychologists in Academic Health Centers (APAHC) convened its 5th National APAHC Conference in Boston March 3–5 2011. The conference and its theme, “Preparing Psychologists for a Rapidly Changing Health Care Environment,” brought psychologists from academic health centers together to examine how psychology can adapt to and help lead health care efforts in the face of health care reform. This paper reports on the conference and introduces the special issue of JCPMS that is dedicated to the conference. The conference theme is framed in the historical context of the four national conferences that preceded it. In examining the focus and topics of the preceding conferences, recurrent themes are identified and progress in certain areas is highlighted.     

Psychologists in Academic Health Centers: Traditions and Innovations in Education,Science, and Practice

Psychologists, interns, and postdoctoral fellows convened in Minneapolis May 3–5, 2007 for the 3rd National Conference of the Association of Psychologists in Academic Health Centers (APAHC): “Psychologists in Academic Health Centers: Traditions and Innovations in Education, Science, and Practice.” This paper reviews the development and organization of the conference, which built upon the two previous conferences of the Association of Medical School Psychologists. The articles in this special issue are based on a selected number of the 32 conference presentations, covering a range of timely topics that reflect the conference theme. Participants’ positive perceptions and satisfaction with the conference reveal the value of such conferences focused on the activities, interests, opportunities, and challenges of psychologists who work in academic health centers (AHCs) and teaching hospitals. Moreover, the content and success of the conference underscores the importance of APAHC as an organization serving the needs and promoting the interests of psychologists affiliated with AHCs.

Millennial research on fleek: Suggestions for improving generational research design

ABSTRACT

This special issue will examine and embrace the uniqueness of millennials. We look at a number of issues related to this generational cohort, examining what makes them unique, challenging and even assets to those they come into contact with in their lives. In our opening article we discuss the unique attributes of millennials, provide researchers a framework for generational research best practices, and provide an overview of the articles featured in this special issue.     

Introduction to Manifestations of Masculinity

This article provides a brief overview of the articles in the special issue “Manifestations of Masculinity.” The importance of studying masculinity, an often looked aspect of gender, is discussed. Different meanings of making manifest—literal, figurative, and symbolic—are also discussed and connected to other articles within the issue. The importance of disciplinary and theoretical diversity are also addressed, both in general and as they appear in the special issue.     

Medial frontal cortex function: An introduction and overview

The growing attention being given to medial frontal cortex (MFC) in cognitive neuroscience studies has fostered a number of theoretical and paradigmatic perspectives that diverge in important ways. This has led to a great deal of research fractionation, with investigators studying domains and issues in MFC function that sometimes bear (at least at the surface) little relation to the questions addressed by others studying the same brain region. The present issue of Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience presents articles inspired by a conference bringing together views from across this diversity of research, highlighting both the richness and vibrancy of the field and the challenges to be faced in terms of integration, synthesis, and precision among the theoretical accounts. The present article presents a brief introduction, overview, and road map to the field and to the special issue devoted to MFC function.     

Health Care Reform and Psychologists in Medical Schools: Stress, Challenge, and Change

Psychologists from 45 academic health science centers throughout the United States and Canada gathered at Georgetown University for a national conference November 2–5, 1995 organized by the Association of Medical School Psychologists. This paper introduces the proceedings of that conference described in the next four articles in this issue of the Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings[Volume 4, number 1]. Papers prepared by the working groups focus upon clinical services, education and training, research, and governance and administration within the academic medical setting.     

Introduction: The Future of Luther Studies

Abstract : This article is an introduction to the theme articles published in this issue of Dialog. The articles derive from a workshop held in Helsinki in September 2007. They aim at identifying topics of current research that will continue to be relevant to Luther studies in the future.     

Introduction to the Special Issue on Advances in the Psychology of Workplace Coaching

This article introduces a special issue of Applied Psychology: An International Review that focuses on recent advances in the psychology of workplace coaching. To begin with, we briefly describe the current state of workplace coaching research, and we then outline the aims and objectives that had driven our motivation in editing this special issue. We set out two objectives for this special issue. First, to ensure that each of the contributions started with the relevant theoretical framework, and secondly, that the papers in this special issue utilized rigorous research design and methodology. We then provide an overview of each of the five articles making up the special issue, detailing their respective contributions to advancing workplace coaching research and theory. We conclude with recommendations for future workplace coaching research, building on the contributions in this special issue. We propose scholars should focus on three key areas: future coaching research should adopt a “start with theory” approach; that rigorous research design and methodology is prioritized, specifically in relation to utilizing multiple data sources and increasing the range of objective (hard) data as coaching outcome measures; and for coaching scholars to pay attention to and explore non-significant effects.     

Evaluating Environmental Change Strategies: Challenges and Solutions

In this introductory article we define environmental change strategies (ECS), summarize the primary challenges associated with evaluating ECS, and provide an overview of the methods researchers have employed to begin to address these challenges. This special issue provides a range of examples, from researchers and practitioners in the field, of different approaches for addressing these challenges. These articles present new methods to understand and test how ECS are implemented and propose methods to evaluate their implementation. The content of the articles covers multiple public health issues, including substance abuse prevention, tobacco control, HIV prevention, and obesity prevention. This special issue is intended to build the evidence base for effective ECS, generate compelling discussion, critical analyses, and spur future research that will help improve the implementation and evaluation of ECS.     

Philosophy,Its Pitfalls,Some Rescue Plans,and Their Complications

This article offers the motivation for organising a conference on philosophy as it is practised across several faculties and departments at the University of Cambridge. It also offers an overview of the main themes that emerge in the essays collected in this issue of Metaphilosophy, which derive from the aforementioned conference. In particular it focuses on the risk of scholasticism and dogmatism that philosophy faces when it divorces itself from its own history, other disciplines, and real life. It then discusses the potential problems that can arise from the practice of philosophy in close conjunction with other disciplines, such as the natural sciences and the history of philosophy. Finally, it briefly comments on how institutional/academic structures have an influence on the way philosophy is practised.     

Introduction to the special issue

This article provides an overview of the special issue of Motivation and Emotion, which will appear in two parts. This special issue examines the enduring contributions of the research of John T. Lanzetta and his colleagues on facial expression and emotion. In its entirety, the special issue consists of five articles and an epilogue. Part 1 (this issue of Motivation and Emotion) consists of the first three articles, and Part 2 (to appear as part of the next issue of Motivation and Emotion) consists of the final two articles and the epilogue. The first article provides an in-depth review of the Lanzetta research program, and describes this program as developing along four distinct lines that, respectively, cover work on (a) the facial feedback hypothesis, (b) the power of facial expression as an emotionally evocative stimulus, (c) the role of facial expression in empathy and counter-empathy, and (d) the relations between facial displays of powerful political leaders and observers' attitudes toward those leaders. Each of the subsequent four articles considers, in turn, the current status and future promise of one of these research lines as it has continued to grow and develop outside of the Lanzetta research program. Part 2 of the special issue concludes with an epilogue that highlights the major themes and conclusions that course through the entire body of research considered in this special issue.We would like to express our appreciation to Basil Englis, Arvid Kappas, Bob Kleck, and Scott Orr, each of whom contributed to the development of this special issue in a variety of ways.     

Treatment Interventions for Perfectionism—A Cognitive Perspective: Introduction to the Special Issue

The current article provides an overview of the papers included in this special issue and includes a discussion of key issues pertaining to psychological treatments for perfectionism. We describe and review two new treatment intervention studies in this special issue that focus on perfectionism in university students as well as other contemporary research on the use of cognitive-behavioral therapy to treat perfectionists. While the significant reductions in levels of perfectionism as a result of treatment are noteworthy, we caution that perfectionism is a relatively enduring trait; thus, some perfectionists will remain treatment resistant and overall levels of perfectionism may remain relatively high even when significant improvements are realized. Moreover, we discuss the established tendency for perfectionism to be associated with residual symptoms of distress following treatment. As part of our discussion of the other articles in this special issue, we highlight cognitive factors of likely significance in the treatment of perfectionism, including the ruminative response style, the tendency to experience perfectionistic automatic thoughts, and the role of core irrational beliefs in the development of perfectionism. These articles underscore the need to consider key cognitive factors that are central to dysfunctional forms of perfectionism. This special issue on perfectionism is the third special issue on this topic to appear in the Journal of Rational-Emotive and Cognitive-Behavior Therapy under the editorialship of Windy Dryden. We are very grateful for the continuing opportunity in this journal to explore issues related to the cognitive and treatment aspects of perfectionism.     

Introduction

I introduce the topic of this special issue of Synthese, and give an overview of the articles collected here.     

Gender and Sexuality in the Pastoral Encounter

Abstract

At the ‘Embodied Ministry: Gender, Sexuality and Formation’ conference at which the articles in this special issue were delivered, three people in active ministry in different denominations — United Reformed Church, Metropolitan Community Church and Roman Catholic — were invited to take part in a panel discussion on gender and sexuality in the pastoral encounter. Their remarks were originally delivered in this conversational context. Martin Pendergast chaired this panel discussion.     

Varieties of Belief over Time: Reflections from a Longitudinal Study of Youth and Belief

ABSTRACT

This article reports longitudinal research involving young people in adolescence and early adulthood, focusing on questions about belief and identity. The author finds that significant varieties of belief—propositional, felt (emotional/embodied), performative—were created and sustained through social relationships. A seven-part analytical model permits holistic, organic analysis to identify the shifting and mutually interdependent dimensions of belief: content, source, practice, salience, function, time, and place. The articles forms part of a special issue of the Journal of Contemporary Religion, entitled “Belief as Cultural Performance”.     

Enhancing parental reflective functioning: A special tribute to the life and work of Nancy E. Suchman,PhD

Nancy E. Suchman's contributions to the fields of infant mental health, maternal reflective functioning, and attachment-based intervention will have long-lasting impacts. In particular, through the development and dissemination of her intervention program, Mothering from the Inside Out (MIO), she innovated a way of working with mothers with substance use disorders that represented a paradigm shift within the field of addiction. In this introduction to the special issue, written to honor her life and work, we review Nancy's background and briefly describe her academic accomplishments. The special issue contains nine qualitative and quantitative research reports written by Nancy's colleagues and their collaborators. All nine papers pertain to the theme of understanding, measuring, and promoting parents’ capacity for reflective functioning. Four provide findings that advance our understanding of parental reflective functioning. The other five highlight insights from continuing evaluations of MIO, including new adaptations of the model. To introduce the special issue, we provide an overview of the scope of the work done within these projects. Finally, the special issue concludes with two commentaries contributed by Linda Mayes and Arietta Slade, leading scholars within the field who were also Nancy's close colleagues. Both provide insight into Nancy's impact on the field.     

Behavior analytic contributions to public health and telehealth

The Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis is launching a special series on the topics of public health and telehealth. The special series begins with the articles in this issue and will continue for the next 2 to 3 issues with an open submission window until September 1, 2020. Behavior analysis has much to offer with respect to public health and much to gain from continued and expanded use of telehealth. This paper outlines the importance of these topics in the current crisis and in our ongoing evolution as a field. The historical literature in behavior analysis is reviewed for each topic along with suggestions for future research. The articles from the special series will be combined with historical contributions from JABA into a virtual issue. We encourage continued submissions on these topics even after the special series is completed as future papers will also be incorporated into the special issue.     

Philosophy of Science Between the Natural Sciences,the Social Sciences,and the Humanities: Introduction

This introduction provides a detailed summary of all papers of the special issue on the second conference of the German Society for Philosophy of Science: GWP.2016.     

The sociocultural movement in psychology,the role of theories in sociocultural inquiries,and the theory of sociocultural models

This special issue presents the theory of sociocultural models (TSCM) and its applications in diverse areas of psychology, including education, health care, clinical practice, gender relations, and general research. As many theories already exist in the social sciences, some readers may ask: “Why do cross‐cultural, cultural, and indigenous psychologists need another theory?” This question is comprised of two aspects: culture/cultural and theory/theoretical. Therefore, to answer it, it is important to clarify both issues. The first relates to cultural and its relation to psychological. The second, theory, considers its relation to cultural and psychological. These issues have long‐range implications for all culture and psychology disciplines as they pose many questions: What role does culture play in the mental functioning of people? How is culture constituted? Is cultural related to social? Does people’s mental functioning exert reciprocal influences on their cultural and social functioning? While working toward answering these questions, researchers quickly determine that more questions arise: What role should theories play in answering these questions? What constitutes theory in culture and psychology disciplines? How should such a theory (or such theories) address the triad of cultural, social, and mental? Consequently, in an effort to provide an overview of the TSCM and to begin to answer these questions, this introduction consists of two parts. The first part addresses the sociocultural turn in modern psychology; this part discusses its implications for research in culture and psychology disciplines. The second segment examines the topic of the theoretical backgrounds of cultural and cross‐cultural research and connects the philosophical paradigms of interpretivism and realism with the theory of sociocultural models. This introduction concludes with a brief overview of the articles included in this issue.