Editorial.

This, the last issue of the Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, brings to an end an alliance of some 44 years' standing. In January of 1965 the journal will be split into two independent periodicals, the Journal of Abnormal Psychology and the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. This editorial provides a brief history of the journal as it relates to these two important fields in psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial: Into the Second Century.

This editorial discusses the first century of the Journal of Abnormal Psychology and speculates on the second century of the journal. In the early decades of its existence, Abnormal clearly was quite different from the typical psychological journal of today. The articles in its inaugural issue reflect the fact that its early content was heavily influenced by Freudian psychoanalysis and other forms of dynamic psychology. The first major shift in the journal's course occurred in 1921, when its scope was broadened to include social and personality research. For a variety of reasons, this union of social, personality, and clinical psychology ended in 1965, when the content subsumed by the old, expanded Abnormal was resplit into two separate outlets: Articles on personality and social processes were redirected to the newly created Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, whereas psychopathology research was retained for the rechristened Journal of Abnormal Psychology. Abnormal has been extremely well-managed in recent years, and it has maintained its status as the top-tier outlet for basic psychopathology research. Accordingly, the editor does not see a need to institute any fundamental changes in its scope or content. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depression research methodologies in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology: A review and critique.

Personality and social psychological studies of depression and depressive phenomena have become more methodologically sophisticated in recent years. In response to earlier problems in this literature, investigators have formulated sound suggestions for research designs. Studies of depression published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (JPSP) between 1988 and 1993 were reviewed to evaluate how well these recommendations have been followed. Forty-one articles were examined for adherence to 3 suggestions appearing consistently in the literature: (a) multiple assessment periods, (b) multiple assessment methods, and (c) appropriate comparison groups. The studies published in JPSP have not adhered well to these standards. The authors recommend resetting minimum methodological criteria for studies of depression published in the premier journal in personality and social psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Statistical power of psychological research: What have we gained in 20 years?

Power was calculated for 6,155 statistical tests in 221 journal articles published in the 1982 volumes of the Journal of Abnormal Psychology, Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, and Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Power to detect small, medium, and large effects was .17, .57, and .83, respectively. 20 years after Cohen (1962) conducted the first power survey, the power of psychological research is still low. The implications of these results concerning the proliferation of Type I errors in the published literature, the failure of replication studies, and the interpretation of null (negative) results are emphasized. An example is given of the use of power analysis to help interpret null results by setting probable upper bounds on the magnitudes of effects. Limitations of statistical power analysis, suggestions for future research, sources of computational information, and recommendations for improving power are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Most of the subjects were White and middle class": Trends in published research on African Americans in selected APA journals, 1970–1989.

Six APA journals (Developmental Psychology, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, Journal of Counseling Psychology, Journal of Educational Psychology, and Journal of Personality and Social Psychology) were content analyzed for the presence of empirical articles on African Americans during the 1970–1989 publication period. The analysis revealed a declining representation of African-American research in the 6 journals. In addition, the empirical literature that does exist was found to be lacking in methodological rigor, as defined by characteristics such as the reporting of the socioeconomic status (SES) of Ss and experimenter race. Explanations for the decline were suggested, and recommendations were proposed for alleviating the growing marginalization of African-American research in the journals of mainstream psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction to the special issue on the self and social identity.

This article describes the special issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (JPSP), which is the result of a joint undertaking by the three sections of JPSP. This makes it different from previous special sections or issues of the journal in that rather than relying on the generous services of a guest editor, the same editorial team that handles the regular journal issues has originated this special issue, as well, thus conveying a sense of "business as usual." Our major reason for the present initiative was to highlight the essential unity of personality and social psychology as a field of science. The topic choice for the present special issue was dictated by its relevance and interest to the field of personality and social psychology as a whole, across its various partitions and subdivisions. The articles in the special issue amply reflect the naturalness with which the self and social identity theme transcends the boundaries of JPSP sections. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ten years of social psychology: Is there a growing commitment to field research?

Reviewed the research methodologies used by studies published in the Journal of Social Psychology (JSP, 1961-1970) and in the Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology-Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (JASP-JPSP, 1961-1970). In terms of proportions, 2 conflicting trends were found. Laboratory studies predominated in JASP-JPSP while surveys predominated in JSP. A moderately strong positive trend was found for increasing field studies in JASP-JPSP and a moderately negative trend for JSP. The frequency of field research in comparison to laboratory or survey research was small. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ethical regulations and their impact on research practice.

Examined the impact on experimental results of ethical procedures such as informed consent, freedom to withdraw, and constraints on the use of deception by surveying the frequency of these practices in studies published in 9 social psychology journals (e.g., Journal of Personality and Social Psychology), 7 from 1979 and 3 from 1983 (1 journal was surveyed twice). Results show that the proportion of studies that reported obtaining informed consent or explicitly giving Ss the freedom to withdraw was negligible and that the practice of deception has not been reduced by ethical regulations. The percentage of social psychological studies that used deception increased monotonically over the past 3 decades. Although recent data show a slight decline, the extremity of some deceptions does not seem to have moderated. Reports of debriefing Ss have generally increased; however, most investigators still do not report this practice, and few describe what Ss are told. It is argued that detailed reporting of these practices should be required and expected in all published research. (82 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

How strong is the case against contemporary social and personality psychology? A response to Carlson.

Discusses a content analysis of the research published in the 1982 volumes of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, in which R. Carlson (see record 1985-11991-001) found that Carlson is incorrect in (a) an overly restrictive definition of what constitutes valid social and personality psychology, (b) her negative evaluations of the worth of the current approaches, and (c) an unjustified set of methodological prejudices. (58 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Researchers' ethical conscience: Debriefing from 1960 to 1980.

To assess the extent that debriefing was reported in experiments using human Ss, every article in alternate years of the Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology and Journal of Personality and Social Psychology was examined. Each examined year showed an increase in the percentage of studies reporting debriefing, from 12% in 1964 to 47% in 1980. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction to the Special Section on Social Neuroscience: Promise and caveats.

This special issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology: Attitudes and Social Cognition is devoted to theory and research at the interface of social psychology and neuroscience. The 5 empirical articles represent the theoretical and methodological breadth of issues considered by social neuroscientists. The methods span brain lesion work to neuroendocrinology to psychophysiological indicators of brain activity to functional magnetic resonance imaging indicators of brain activity. The remaining 2 articles consider explicitly some of the promises and pitfalls of social neuroscience; these authors, although noting the power of neuroscience methods, remind readers of the serious challenges posed in trying to examine the biological processes underlying or associated with social psychological phenomena. These articles help to reveal the richness of social neuroscience and the power of neuroscientific methods to address processes and mechanisms that would not be possible with traditional social psychology methods. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Some research trends in social psychology during the 1960s.

Discusses the trend in social psychological research towards increased laboratory experimentation with college students, using analysis of variance designs. Some social psychologists have suggested that during the 1970s there will be greater emphasis on real-world field studies with other populations, using correlational designs. However, an analysis of the articles published in the 1969 Journal of Personality and Social Psychology shows that 9 out of 10 articles involved experimental manipulation, 3 out of 4 used college students as Ss, and 4 out of 5 used an analysis of variance design. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gergen versus the mainstream: Are hypotheses in social psychology subject to empirical test?

K. J. Gergen's (1982) argument that hypotheses in social psychology are not empirical propositions is critically examined and shown to be erroneous. Nevertheless, this article demonstrates that, without necessarily appearing obvious, some hypotheses can be derived from propositions that are like tautologies and that their confirmation as such is of little interest. An analysis of hypotheses in recent articles in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology and the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology suggests that hypotheses derivable from propositions very much like tautologies may not be infrequent. Implications are considered for what kinds of social psychology experiments are of value to perform. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial.

In the 6 years since the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology was divided into three sections, Interpersonal Relations and Group Processes (IRGP) has come to be the impoverished sibling in the family. This weakness seems curious in a discipline that concentrates on human interrelatedness as its central theme. Indeed, Gordon Allport's definition in the Handbook of Social Psychology (1968) acknowledged the social core of social psychology: "an attempt to understand and explain how the thoughts, feelings and behaviors of individuals are influenced by the actual, imagined or implied presence of others." Perhaps the short rations to which many readers have become accustomed reflected a reluctance of researchers to engage these phenomena in the individualistic Zeitgeist of the 1970s and early 1980s. Nevertheless, 1986 brings a renewed interest in the scientific study of human social bonds. It is to the dissemination of the very best of this work that this editorship is dedicated. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial.

Describes the of the goals of the current editor of the Interpersonal Relations and Group Processes section of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial.

Editorial notes that psychological journals are in the dilemma of serving two functions: the older purpose of a forum of broad communication and discussion, and the ever-growing function of a research repository for experimental findings. The assumption in the first purpose is that the journal has readers who regard it as their medium for the exchange of ideas. Two forces, however, are destroying this journal function: Increasing specialization of knowledge, and research output that is growing at a faster rate than journal space. Discussion focuses on whether there are any changes in policy which should be inaugurated with a new administration of the Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology that might improve the character of the compromises necessary to serve the dual functions of concise research reporting and broad communication needs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Obituary: William James McGuire (1925-2007).

Obituary of William James McGuire (1925-2007). William James McGuire, considered by some to be the "father of social cognition" and a leading expert on attitude change and the self-concept, died in his home in New Haven, Connecticut, on December 21, 2007. McGuire was for several decades the field's premier researcher of the psychology of persuasion. His creative, groundbreaking experimental research in this area not only brought the study of attitudes and social influence to center stage in psychology but also shaped neighboring fields in sociology, political science, communication, and marketing. McGuire was a fellow of eight divisions of the American Psychological Association (APA) and a past president of APA Division 8 (Personality and Social Psychology). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What's social about social psychology? Where's the person in personality research?

Content analyses of research published in the 1982 volumes of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology indicate that social psychologists have largely failed to study subjects drawn from meaningfully defined social groups, to consider social structural variables, to study genuine social interaction, to observe social influences on psychological functioning, or to ask Ss about social issues. It is maintained that with few exceptions, personality researchers have failed to study groups other than college students, to use biographical materials or personal documents, to devise appropriate experimental treatments, to study persons over time, or even to retain the individual as a unit of analysis. Currently, the 2 fields of social and personality psychological research appear to be linked mainly by their deficiencies and appear to have little content worth sharing. Reexamination of each field's traditions and priorities is urgently needed. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)