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)     

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)     

Comment policy.

Commentary on articles published in the journal makes a scientific contribution when it (a) brings to light critical controversies, (b) identifies important misconceptions or errors of inference, and/or (c) clarifies the implications of findings. Decisions about whether to publish occasional commentaries in the Journal of Applied Psychology have been guided more by tradition than by an explicit editorial policy. With the encouragement of the APA Publications and Communications Board, I have formulated a comment policy for the journal. There are two types of comments that the journal will consider for publication. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial.

With this volume, the 47-year old Canadian Journal of Psychology takes a new name and makes a renewed commitment. In retitling the journal the Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology, the intention is to reflect more clearly what has always been the major goal of the journal--to publish the best new research in experimental psychology, both Canadian and international, in both French and English. I am honoured to become the tenth editor of the major journal for experimental psychology in Canada. CJP has served the field very well; my primary goal is to ensure that CJEP continues to do so. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

This article is reprinted from the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1965, 1, 1-2. It is appropriate with the launching of a new journal (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology) to hail the dawn of a new day and to sound a call for revolutionary departures from the traditions of the past. For better or for worse we are constrained in the formulation of new policy in that the forces of organizational continuity must be reckoned with. The first year and a half of our Journal is already committed to articles in personality and social psychology accepted under the Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology egis. Our editorial board, with a few exceptions, is much the same. Moreover, an APA journal is representative of the research of APA members in its area of interest rather than innovative with respect to the aspirations of its editors. Nonetheless, we cannot begin the new Journal without a plea for a type of research which we have lacked in the past. We will welcome papers which deal with a psychological analysis of social systems provided they meet our usual criteria of making theoretical or research contributions. (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)     

Do studies of statistical power have an effect on the power of studies?

The long-term impact of studies of statistical power is investigated using J. Cohen's (1962) pioneering work as an example. We argue that the impact is nil; the power of studies in the same journal that Cohen reviewed (now the Journal of Abnormal Psychology) has not increased over the past 24 years. In 1960 the median power (i.e., the probability that a significant result will be obtained if there is a true effect) was .46 for a medium size effect, whereas in 1984 it was only .37. The decline of power is a result of alpha-adjusted procedures. Low power seems to go unnoticed: only 2 out of 64 experiments mentioned power, and it was never estimated. Nonsignificance was generally interpreted as confirmation of the null hypothesis (if this was the research hypothesis), although the median power was as low as .25 in these cases. We discuss reasons for the ongoing neglect of power. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Inaugural editorial for Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes.

When applying for the editorship of the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes, I was asked for my “vision” for the Journal, which I have outlined here as an inaugural editorial. My vision is in essence conservative in that I shall take the core of my brief to be that of maintaining the conception of the Journal established by Allan Wagner over 30 years ago and maintained so admirably by the subsequent editors over the intervening decades. I see this conception as having two main components, the first relating to content and the second to procedures. As far as the content is concerned, the primary aim of the Journal is to publish reports of empirical research that use behavior to investigate the psychological processes mediating learning, memory, motivation, and other forms of cognition in animals as diverse as invertebrates and humans. The criterion for publication is that the experimental research addresses issues of significant theoretical import. Although I shall retain the option of publishing Brief Communications, I intend to maintain a very high criterion for these communications. The primary goal will remain that of publishing substantial reports of integrative research that produce closure on an issue or analysis rather than piecemeal work. As far as procedures are concerned, over the last three decades the Journal’s editorial and refereeing process has made an important contribution to the intellectual climate of the research area. I hope to maintain this tradition by resisting pressures to constrain and truncate the refereeing and editorial processes in service of reducing the feedback and publication lags. The Journal publishes papers that have a substantial and sustained impact and therefore can tolerate a reflective and thoughtful editorial process. It is these two features that have enabled the Journal to maintain its position as the premier archival journal in the field, and I take my prime duty to be that of maintaining this preeminent status. (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)     

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)     

Rehabilitation psychology: New directions? Reflections on the profession and the journal.

It is with a mixture of joy and sadness that I bid farewell to the editorship of Rehabilitation Psychology. I am sad because the journal has been a stepchild to whom I offered renewed life 5 years ago. I have watched it grow and develop over those 5 years from a fledgling infant, totally dependent on me, to an adolescent just on the brink of establishing its own identity in the world of scholarly publications. I believe the editor carries a great responsibility to help define the field, expand its horizons, and encourage publication of work that will cause policy makers, researchers, and clinicians alike to turn to the journal and the profession for answers to questions we can rightly answer. Therefore, the next step in the journal's life will be an important one, not only for the journal itself, but for the profession. If the journal can help our profession meet these challenges, then I believe we will see rehabilitation psychology established as one of the leaders among the health care professions. Other disciplines will look to the journal for guidance on a broad array of issues in the health care domain, and growing numbers will proudly identify themselves as members of that leading field, Rehabilitation Psychology. For this reason, I am pleased to pass the journal on to a new editor, one who can meet these challenges successfully. With sincere gratitude for the help and support given to me as editor by the editorial board, consulting reviewers, and the Division of Rehabilitation Psychology, I bid farewell to Rehabilitation Psychology and welcome Dr. Mike Eisenberg as editor, beginning with Volume 32, 1987. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial: Journal of Comparative Psychology.

Both continuity and change typically mark the changing of editors at a long-established journal with extended editorial terms. Change is inherent in any dynamic field and is independent of editorship, but editors have an influence that should be wielded in a fair, responsible, judicious, and scientifically rigorous manner, while inevitably reflecting their own perspectives and values. The Journal of Comparative Psychology will continue to publish exciting, fascinating, assessable, controversial, and well-written reports on research, be the topic traditional, interdisciplinary, applied, or one breaking risky new ground. Editorial standards must be high, but appropriate for various subfields, and as editor the author will try to make those judgments carefully. The author would also like to see more submissions of brief reports describing exciting developments as well as submissions on significant theoretical, conceptual, and methodological issues during his tenure as editor. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial.

Timothy B. Baker, of the Journal of Abnormal Psychology discusses his goals as editor of the journal. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychology in the Schools, School Psychology Review, School Psychology Quarterly and Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation Editors Collaborate to Chart School Psychology's Past, Present, and "Futures".

This introduction will briefly describe the special journal issues that will be offered in Psychology in the Schools (PITS), School Psychology issues Review (SPR), School Psychology Quarterly (SPQ), and Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation (JEPC) on topics related to the conference. For almost a half-century, students in school psychology have investigated the "Boulder" and "Thayer" conferences, studying and exploring our foundation as scientist-practitioners and brooding over the "school" in school psychology. In a notable alliance, SPR and SPQ are publishing the proceedings of the conference jointly. As part of the School Psychology Futures Conference: Special Journal Issues se- series, Psychology in the Schools will publish a special issue entitled: Shortage of ries, School Psychologists in the April 2004 issue. School psychology quarterly will also be sponsoring a special issue addressing the faculty shortage in school psychology and related difficulties. Consultation emerged as a major thread throughout the School Psychology Futures Conference as participants brainstormed problems and solutions to meet the critical issues faced by school professionals as they work towards improving educational and mental health outcomes for children and families. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Correction to Mahoney et al. (2008).

Reports an error in "Content analysis of Consulting psychology journal: Practice and research (Volumes 44-59)" by Kevin T. Mahoney, Walter C. Buboltz Jr., Barlow Soper, Dennis Doverspike and Byron J. Simoneaux (Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 2008[Sep], Vol 60[3], 246-258). The title of the journal was printed incorrectly on page 257 as "Counseling Psychology Journal: Practice and Research." The correct title of the journal is Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 2008-11542-002.) A content analysis of articles published in Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research was performed from 1992 (Vol. 44) through 2007 (Vol. 59). A total of 342 articles were categorized into 21 derived content categories and an "Other" category. Results show that the leading categories for publication were Coaching, Development and Training, and History of Consulting. The content was fairly stable over time. The journal does appear to be meeting its primary mission of disseminating information pertinent to the field of consulting psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial for Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition.

The Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition has long held the position as the premier international outlet for psychological studies of memory and cognition. The journal publishes work that is programmatic, rigorously designed and analyzed, and of great theoretical importance. The work published here is widely cited and includes some of the most influential studies in the field of cognitive psychology. The journal has a fairly rapid turnaround time, and the reviews are typically of high quality. As editor, I will work to ensure that all of these positive aspects remain in place, and to make changes that I believe will help the journal maintain its leadership position in the future. There are two main innovations that I will bring to the journal. The first is to broaden coverage to include more articles related to cognitive neuropsychology and cognitive neuroscience. The second is to encourage the submission of shorter empirical articles through the initiation of a Brief Reports section. I also hope to attract some of the highest quality papers in cognitive neuroscience. I encourage my colleagues whose work includes both behavioral and neuroscientific approaches to submit their best papers to JEP: LMC. I hope to be able to continue the journal's long tradition of publishing some of the best and most influential papers in experimental psychology, while opening the door a bit wider to newer perspectives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editor's statement.

In this statement, the editor introduces a section of the journal which contains two articles about Morton Prince, the founder of the Journal of Abnormal Psychology and its first Editor from 1906-1929. In addition, there is a reprinted written by Prince as an additional part of the Centennial celebration of the American Psychological Association. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)