News

Closing the Gap Between Research and Practice

As therapy researchers and practitioners, we are all painfully aware of the unfortunate gap that exists between research and practice. Researchers blame the clinician for not reading the literature, and therapists accuse the researcher for not studying questions that would be of most help to them.  However, more than ever before, the need to close this gap has become particularly pressing—especially in light of the growing emphasis on the development of practice guidelines, quality assurance, pay for performance, and other third party demands for accountability.  In light of this, the Society of Clinical Psychology is making a concerted effort to work toward building a two-way bridge between research and practice. 
 
One way the Society is attempting to make this happen is by providing practicing clinicians with the opportunity to provide feedback on their use of empirically supported treatments in practice.  This is not only an opportunity for clinicians to share their experiences with other therapists, but also can offer information that can encourage researchers to investigate ways of overcoming these limitations.  This initiative is being spearheaded by a committee comprised of experienced, motivated and enthusiastic researchers and practitioners who similarly have had an ongoing dedication to closing the gap between practice and research. It includes Louis G. Castonguay (President of the Society for Psychotherapy Research); Marvin R. Goldfried (Past-President of the Society for Psychotherapy Research and President of Division 12); Jeffrey J. Magnavita (President of Division 29--Psychotherapy); Michelle G. Newman (psychotherapy researcher with expertise in anxiety disorders); Linda Sobell (Past-President of AABT and Division 12); and Abraham W. Wolf (Past-President of Division 29)
 

2010 APA Convention

2010 Convention                                   
 
Invited Presentations for APA August Convention on the Division 12 theme of “Building a Two-way Bridge Between Research and Practice”
 
 
What the clinician and researcher need from each other?
Chair: Michelle G. Newman, PhD
Linda C. Sobell, PhD
Linda F. Campbell, PhD
Jeffrey J. Magnavita, PhD
 
Training in Empirically-Supported Treatments and Evidence-Based Practice
Chair: Hal Arkowitz, PhD
Charles J. Gelso, PhD
Deborah Drabick, PhD
Rachel Hershenberg, MA
 
Considering the evidence on therapeutic alliance with regard to practice and training
Chair: J. Christopher Muran, PhD
Louis G. Castonguay, PhD
Jacques P. Barber, PhD
Jeffrey L. Binder, PhD
 

2010 Student Award Winners

Distinguished Student Research Award in Clinical Psychology: Rebecca (Kate) Kathryn McHugh

Distinguished Student Practice Award in Clinical Psychology: Winslow Gerrish

Distinguished Student Service Award in Clinical Psychology: Emily Engle

Clinicians’ Feedback on Treating Panic Disorder

 

Wanted: Clinicians’ Feedback on Treating Panic Disorder

(This announcement is from Dr. Marvin Goldfried. Please take the survey. It should take about 10 minutes.)

Once a drug has been approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) as a result of clinical trials, practitioners have the opportunity to offer feedback to the FDA on any shortcomings in the use of the drug in clinical practice. The Society of Clinical Psychology, Division 12 of the American Psychological Association, is in the process of establishing a mechanism whereby practicing psychotherapists can report their clinical experiences using empirically supported treatments (ESTs).

This is not only an opportunity for clinicians to share their experiences with other therapists, but also can offer information that can encourage researchers to investigate ways of overcoming these limitations. We are starting with the treatment of panic disorder, but will extend our efforts to the treatment of other problems at a later time.

Early Career Psychologist Membership

As an Early Career Psychologist (ECP) in the first four years after post-doc, you are invited to become affiliated with the Society through the Early Career Affiliate Program.  As an ECP affiliate, you will learn more about the activities and issues that are of interest to clinical psychologists, including reviewing for journals, mentoring, etc.

The annual ECP affiliate fee of $40 includes online subscriptions to the Division 12 journal, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice and The Clinical Psychologist.

You may attend the Society's meetings and participate in APA Convention events geared to Early Career Psychologists.

You may also join the Division 12 listserv, exclusively for Society members.  Download the application here.

Minimizing Patient-Clinician Violence

A new brochure has been developed to help clinicians reduce violence in the practice of psychology through the work of the Division 12 Section VII/APA Advisory Committee on Colleague Assistance and the APA Practice Directorate. From the brochure (pdf download):

 

Few challenges facing psychology practitioners are more distressing than the possibility of patient violence toward the clinician. According to national surveys, roughly 1/3 of practicing psychologists have concerns about possible patient violence; and, 15% - 25% are at risk of being assaulted by a patient at some point in their careers. Most instances of patient assault have not resulted in serious harm or injury; however, the emotional distress on the clinician can be substantial, and it is usually far more disturbing than any physical injury.

Education and training in the evaluation and management of potentially violent patients is often minimal. Because of the complexity of such patients and the high intensity of the context in which they can present, it is helpful to be prepared with knowledge and some plans for dealing with this situation.

Please download a copy today. The .pdf file is formatted for double-sided printing. You may download a copy for onscreen viewing, as well.

div12.org and Social Networking

We know we're behind the times. Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn. There are as many social networking sites as there are schools of psychotherapy. We have decided to join just 2 of them: Facebook and Twitter. There's not a whole lot going on at either of those 2 accounts at this time, but go ahead and add us/follow us anyway so you can get the latest updates on the site and the Society's happenings.

We'd also love to hear from you about how you'd like to make the site better and features you'd like to add. Of course, the easiest way is to email us directly. You may also message us through either of those sites after you've added us.

Fall Issue of The Clinical Psychologist

The Fall issue of the TCP is now online! Get your PDF copy here. In this issue, we hit several topics that may be of interest to you, including:

  • Psychologist Self-Care, by John Norcross, Ph.D.
  • An update on the TCP and the Internet, by Simon A. Rego, Psy.D.
  • Issues that may be important to Early Career Psychologists, by Katherine L. Muller, Psy.D.

In addition to several other important areas written by your Division 12 colleague. Please download it now!

Mentorship

Division 12 is soliciting applications for mentorship of graduate students. You may download the pdf version or the MS Word version.

2008 Award Winners

The Society of Clinical Psychology is pleased to present all award winners for 2008. Visit the Awards page and the Student page for all the details on the awards and their recipients this year.

The awards this year:

  • Theodore H. Blau Early Career Award: Rebecca Jackson, Ph.D.
  • Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award: C. R. Snyder, Ph.D.
  • David Shakow Early Career Award: Samuel Thomas Gontkovsky, Psy.D.
  • Florence Halpern Award: Bruce Bongar, Ph.D.
  • Stanley Sue Award: Lillian Comas-Diaz, Ph.D.
  • The American Psychological Foundation Theodore Millon, Ph.D. Award: Mark F. Lenzenweger, Ph.D.
  • Samuel M. Turner Clinical Research Award: Michael G. Perri, Ph.D.
  • The Outstanding Clinical Educator Award: Leonard Handler, Ph.D.
  • The Contributions to Interventions and/or Assessment for Communities of Color in Clinical Psychology Award: Guillermo Bernal, Ph.D.
  • The Lifetime Award for Distinguished Contribution to Diversity in Clinical Psychology Science and Practice (Public Interest): Cheryl Anne Boyce, Ph.D.

Student awards for 2008:

  • Student Service in Clinical Psychology: Melissa Noya
  • Student Practice in Clinical Psychology: Jessica Ruiz
  • Student Research in Clinical Psychology: Hanjoo Lee

Think you deserve an award too? Award criteria can be viewed online. Nomination deadline for each year is Nov 1.