Australasian Personal Construct

Newsletter

No.50

MARCH 1997

From: Personal Construct Interest Group and

Australasian Personal Construct Group c/o Department of Psychology,

University of Wollongong, Northfields Ave,

WOLLONGONG, NSW, 2522

Correspondence to be sent to

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Assoc. Prof. Beverly Walker PHONE NO:- 042 213653

FAX NO:- 042 214163 EMAIL:- Beverly_Walker@uow.edu.au

1. NEWS ETC.

Well! Did you notice. This is the (believe it or not) 50th Australasian PCP

newsletter. Actually there have been only 49 produced in that one was a double

issue. But it does mean that this has been produced for the past twelve and a half

years. And this is by far the longest running of the newsletters currently around in the

area. And yes, I am finding it an increasingly onerous task, particularly given the big

increase in membership and the problems with updating my computer system of

names and addresses. Indeed last time it took nearly a week to do just the mechanics

of putting them into envelopes and sorting them into categories for the post office etc.

But it looks like events are overtaking us and that this problem will lessen.

The reason it will lessen is that the APS is bringing in a segmented fee

structure, so that you pay more if you want more things. So instead of just ticking the

box on your membership form if you want to be a member of this interest group you

will be asked to pay more for the privilege. No doubt this will reduce numbers

somewhat. Interest group convenors opposed this proposal as, among other things,

interest groups are very diverse in what they offer and some offer nothing - or almost

nothing.

We are having a committee meeting this month to discuss this issue further so

I’ll let you know what eventuates.

Anyway enough whinges from me.

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Good news for a change!! Miriam Stein, who is the hard-working convenor of

the Western Australian PCP group, has been awarded her doctorate. Her thesis was

on women with breast cancer and was accepted with no revisions of any substance.

The Wollongong PCP group is now meeting on Mondays at 1.30 in 41:107 if

anyone is interested in attending.

2. INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF PERSONAL CONSTRUCT PSYCHOLOGY. The 12th Congress is to be held in Seattle, as indicated in the last newsletter. There will be a reasonable Australian contingent that I know of - Richard Bell, Julie Ellis, Lindsay Oades, Chris Stevens, Linda Viney, Bill Warren and myself that I know of so far, though this is less than the numbers for Barcelona. For information re the congress see the website: http://www.lehigh.edu/~aem3/conf/congress.html I will report on this in the next newsletter probably, as I doubt I will be able to finish it before I leave, given my commitments. IMPORTANT: There will be a change of venue for the 13th International Congress. It will not be held in Israel as Devorah has withdrawn the invitation. Other avenues are being explored. My suspicion is that it will be in Europe - either Germany or England.

3. NEW BOOKS ON CLINICAL APPLICATIONS OF PCP.

Two new books have been published as contributions to the clinical pcp literature. The first has been sent out for review, and I anticipate the review will be available for the next newsletter. The second, from Blowers and O’connor I haven’t yet seen. Blowers, and I presume O’Connor, are in Hong Kong.

Personal construct therapy: A handbook.

by Linda L. Viney

N.J.: Ablex, 1996.

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Personal Construct Psychology in the Clinical Context

by Geoffrey H. Blowers and Kieron P. O'Connor

University of Ottawa Press,1996

ISBN-7766-0422-8

4. CONSTRUCTIVIST WEBSITE. There is a website for Humberto Maturana’s biology of cognition, prepared by Alfredo Ruiz. http://www.inteco.cl/biology/ Among other things you can submit a question to Maturana and one will be answered each month!! Below are some of the items from the site.

Instituto de Terapia Cognitiva (INTECO) Director: Alfredo Ruiz

Santiago de Chile

Welcome to the Institute for Cognitive Therapy The Institute is a scientific organization devoted to study, comunicate and educate about the theory, research and practice of the Biological Theory Knowledge of Humberto Maturana and the Post-Rationalist approach of Vittorio Guidano, in order to understand the human experience and change. What is the Biology of Cognition? In the scientific community and in the people in general, the Biology of Cognition is identified with Humberto Maturana. Therefore, I made the following question directly to him. Humberto, what is the Biology of Cognition? Answer from Humberto Maturana: The Biology of Cognition is an explanatory proposition that attempts to show how human cognitive processes arise from the operation of human beings as living systems. As much, The Biology of Cognition entails reflexions oriented to understand living systems, their evolutionary history, language as a biological phenomenon, the nature of explanations, and the origin of humaness. As a reflection on how we do what we do as observers it is a study in the epistemology of knowledge. But, and at the same time as a reflection on how we exist in language as languaging beings, it is a study on human relations.

5. JOURNAL OF CONSTRUCTIVIST PSYCHOLOGY

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Is published by Taylor & Francis, adaly@tandf.co.uk; Rankine Road, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG24 8PR, UK. Members of this interest group are eligible for discounts, as indicated previously. Volume 10 Number 2 1997 Articles Personal Epistemologies and Preferences for Rationalist versus Constructivist Psychotherapies Greg J. Neimeyer and Robert J. Morton

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Psychiatric Power and Levels of Concealment Ernest Keen Positive-Negative Asymmetry in the Evaluation of Familiar versus Unfamiliar Persons and Objects J. R. Adams-Webber The Therapeutic Construction of Possible Selves: Imagination and its Constraints Robin S. Buirs and Jack Martin Professional Practice Personal Construct Group Work with School-Based Adolescents: Reduction of Risk-Taking Linda L. Viney, Deborah Truneckova, Patricia Weekes, and Lindsay Oades Book Reviews New Developments in Cognitive and Constructive Psychotherapy [Review of Mahoney's Cognitive and Constructive Psychotherapies] William J. Lyddon & E. Thomas Dowd Constructive Distinctions [Review of Mahoney's Cognitive and Constructive Psychotherapies] Alan E. Stewart Volume 10 Number 3 1997 Articles Constructivist Conceptions of Self: A Discussion of Emerging Identity Constructs Linda M. Cox & William J. Lyddon Similarity in Cognitive Complexity and Attraction to Friends and Lovers: Experimental and Correlational Studies Brant R. Burleson, Adrianne W. Kunkel, and Jennifer Szolwinski Cognitive Therapy, Constructivism, and Dreams: A Critical Review Rachel Rosner International Update Psychology and Therapeutic Constructivism in Brazil Cristiano Nabuco de Abreu, Fabio Appolinario, and Ricardo Franklin Ferreira

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Book Reviews Muddles, Myths, and Medicine [Review of Cruel Compassion by Thomas Szasz ] Jonathan D. Raskin Forever Kelly? Toward a New View of Groups [Review of The Construction of Group Realities by Kalekin-Fishman and Walker] Joern W. Scheer

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6. 1998 INTERNATIONAL QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN EDUCATION CONFERENCE

January 8-10, 1998 Georgia Centre for Continuing Education

University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA Call for Proposals for 11th Annual QUIG Conference Proposal Deadline: June 17, 1997 Keynote Speakers: Dr. Judith Green, Professor, with collaborative authorship by Professors Carol Dickson and Gregory Kelly, University of Santa Barbara, "Looking Back, Looking Forward: From Defense to Possibilities" Dr. Bronwyn Davies, Professor and Head, School of Education, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia, "Creating a Place for Feminist Post-Structuralism in Qualitative Research."

General Theme: From Roots to Renaissance: The Path Traveled by Qualitative Researchers

The conference theme this year invites papers that address issues on howqualitative research has evolved, allowing discovery and investigation ofdifferent types of questions. Our subthemes include a) teaching qualitative methodologies; b) writing about qualitative methodologies; c) traditions of qualitative research; d) personal transformations/paradigm shifts as researchers; and e) future possibilities. Professors Green, Dickson, and Kelly, who have interests in the roots of qualitative methodologies, will take us on a journey exploring the history of qualitative research methodologies. Dr. Green's work focuses on understanding issues of equity and access that students have in classrooms and the ways lived experiences of students and teachers interact to construct knowledge to create opportunities for learning. She is now advocating that ethnography take its place as a separate subject in the field of education. Professor Bronwyn Davies is a specialist in feminist post-structuralism. She works with teachers and students at all levels of schooling and uses a number of research methodologies including poststructuralist analysis of texts, autobiography and collective biography. Her current work involves an examination of boys and literacy and a major international study of the deconstructive moves taking place in the lived experience of people working on environmental issues. In her 1996 work in collaboration with a group of schools and key teachers, Dr. Davies "examines the experience of attempting bottom up change in an environment where top down policy development and implementation prevails." She will discuss the pathway feminist post-structuralism took in its efforts to find a place in qualitative research. We encourage proposals on topics related to these areas and others.

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Presentations may be made by individuals or groups, and may use a variety of formats (lecture, panel discussion, group interaction). We also solicit proposals for a meeting format that worked extremely well for QUIG in 1997, roundtable discussion groups. This might be the format for you if you would like to lead a discussion on a special interest topic.

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WHAT TO SUBMIT 1. Three copies of your proposal 2. A stamped, self-addressed postcard. 3. A stamped, self-addressed business-size envelope. Direct Inquiries and mail proposal to:

Dr. Julie Tallman, QUIG Conference Chair 607 Aderhold Hall The University of Georgia

Athens, GA 30602 USA

(706) 542-4031 Fax (706) 542-4032

jtallman@coe.uga.edu DEADLINE: June 17, 1997 FORMAT for conference proposals: Presentation/panel/workshop/roundtable (specify which) Title (No longer than 50 characters including spaces) Name of authors(s)/organizer(s) Affiliation & mailing address Email address and fax number Telephone numbers (work/home) Abstract (50-60 words) Two key words to classify session Names, addresses, and affiliations of all participants Audiovisual equipment request: Please indicate the type of audiovisual equipment needed for your presentation (e.g., VCR & monitor, slide projector, or overhead projector) Summary (no more than two pages): Summary should include all of the following: purposes of your presentation, perspective/theoretical frame, research methods, findings, format for presentation (include time allocations), and type of setting or space needed

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