The American Psychological Foundation (APF) will sponsor a variety of programming at APA's 2005 Annual Convention, including invited addresses, symposia and special events in Washington, D.C. Here is a preview:

What's new in research

APF will host the 10th annual "Charles D. Spielberger symposium on emotion, motivation and personality" on Friday, Aug. 19, at 10 a.m. The symposium, chaired by Charles D. Spielberger, PhD, explores emotion, motivation and personality research. The speakers and their presentations are:

• Steven F. Maier, PhD, University of Colorado, "The role of the medial prefrontal cortex in stressor controllability phenomena."

• Lisa Feldman-Barrett, PhD, Boston College, "The basic building blocks of emotional life."

• Timothy B. Baker, PhD, Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention at the University of Wisconsin Medical School, "Emotion and drug motivation."

Jason Gorgia, PhD, director of the APF-funded Center for Gifted Education Policy, will chair the Esther Katz Rosen Symposium, "Unwanted gifts: Roadblocks to success in developing academic/artistic giftedness," on Saturday, Aug. 20, at 2 p.m.

The speakers and their presentations are:

• Rena F. Subotnik, PhD, APA Education Directorate, "I'll show you: Negative motivation as an underrecognized source of great performance and idea generation."

• Frank C. Worrell, PhD, University of California, Berkeley, "Attitudes toward cheating and perfectionism in academically talented students."

• Linda Hamilton, PhD, New York City Ballet Wellness Program, "Maladaptive aspects of perfectionism in gifted children: Implications for treatment."

• Bruce A. Bracken, PhD, College of William and Mary, "Psychosocial adjustment of gifted and talented students."

• Laura G. Lunsford, North Carolina State University, "Negative characteristics associated with gifted college students."

Special events

APF will host a number of special events:

• A reception to celebrate the tenth anniversary of its Wayne F. Placek Fund on Thursday, Aug. 18, at 5 p.m. at the U.S. Capitol Building. The Placek awards support research to alleviate gay men's and lesbians' stress and to increase the general public's understanding of homosexuality.

• Financial adviser Woody Derricks, of Wachovia Securities, McGlone/Lusco Financial Advisory Group, will present "Wealth management and estate planning strategies for domestic partners" on Friday, Aug. 19, at 1 p.m.

• The Elizabeth Munsterberg Koppitz Pre-convention Workshop in Child Psychology will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 16, for graduate students who won 2004 and 2005 grants or travel awards through APF's Elizabeth Munsterberg Koppitz Child Psychology Graduate Fellowship Program. The program awards three grants of $20,000 to up-and-coming graduate students researching child psychology and five $4,000 graduate student travel awards. Each of the three 2004 grant winners will present a talk on their research at the workshop, chaired by APF Trustee Camilla Benbow, EdD, of Vanderbilt University. Koppitz winners will also meet and present their research with prominent child-development researchers.

Distinguished speakers

This year's nine APF-sponsored speakers will address issues ranging from human rights to nurturing giftedness.

• Former president of the International Neuropsychological Society Manfred Meier, PhD, will present the Arthur Benton Lecture on Clinical Neuropsychology on "The impact of developments in clinical neuropsychology on professional specialization in psychology" on Friday, Aug. 19, at 10 a.m. Meier, professor emeritus at the University of Minnesota, is also a former member of the American Board of Clinical Neuropsychology and APA Div. 40 (Clinical Neuropsychology). While in practice, he specialized in neuropsychological consultations on referral from health, legal and industrial/business professions.

• Zoologist and primatologist Frans de Waal, PhD, will present the Arthur W. Staats Lecture on Unifying Psychology on "Our inner ape: What primate behavior tells us about human nature" on Friday, Aug. 19, at 10 a.m. De Waal is the C.H. Candler Professor of Psychology and director of the Living Links Center at Emory University. He is known for his work on the social intelligence of monkeys and apes and was recently elected to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.

• University of California, Davis psychology professor Gregory M. Herek, PhD, will present the William Bevan Lecture on Psychology and Public Policy on "From sodomy laws to marriage equality: Psychology's role in public policy related to sexual orientation" on Friday, Aug. 19, at 11 a.m. Herek is an internationally recognized authority on prejudice against lesbians and gay men, anti-gay violence and AIDS-related stigma. He has received numerous awards, including the 1996 APA Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology in the Public Interest.

• Mary Robinson, the first woman to be president of Ireland--from 1990 to 1997--will present the Lynn Stuart Weiss Lecture on the Psychological Study of Social Issues on "Bridging the language of human rights and development" on Friday, Aug. 19, at 11 a.m. Robinson, professor in the practice of public affairs at Columbia University, has also served as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. She currently leads the Ethical Globalization Initiative as she seeks to use law as an instrument for social change.

• Hope College psychology professor Thomas E. Ludwig, PhD, will present the 2005 Charles L. Brewer Distinguished Teaching of Psychology Award address "Ten things I've learned from teaching psychology" on Saturday, Aug. 20, at 3 p.m. Ludwig conducts research on hemisphere differences in the brain, advocacy for older adults and the integration of technology into teaching. He developed PsychSim, PsychQuest, PsychOnline and PsychInquiry.

• Stony Brook University of the State University of New York psychology professor Marvin Goldfried, PhD, will present the Rosalee G. Weiss Lecture for Outstanding Leaders in Psychology on "The role of relationship and technique in therapeutic change" on Saturday, Aug. 20, at 3 p.m. Goldfried investigates the process of change in psychotherapy, comparing different theoretical orientations for common and unique processes. He is currently involved in gay, lesbian and bisexual clinical and research issues and has developed AFFIRM, a network of psychologists who have come out in open support of their gay, lesbian and bisexual family members.

• Florida Atlantic University psychology professor J.A. Scott Kelso, PhD, will present the F. J. McGuigan Lecture on Understanding the Human Mind on "The laws that bind us" on Saturday, Aug. 20, at 3 p.m. Kelso is a contributor to the development of the dynamical systems approach to behavior and brain within psychology and neuroscience. He also founded the first U.S. Center for Complex Systems and Brain Sciences.

• Executive Director of the Center for Gifted Education at the College of William and Mary Joyce VanTassell-Baska, PhD, will present the Esther Katz Rosen Lecture on Gifted Children on "Nurturing giftedness: The impact of high quality curriculum and instruction" on Saturday, Aug. 20, at 4 p.m. VanTassell-Baska conducts research on the talent development process and effective curricular interventions with the gifted. She is president-elect of the National Association for Gifted Children.

• Gettysburg College psychology professor Robert F. Bornstein, PhD, will present "The dependent personality: An integrative view," and University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry professor of oncology and psychiatry Paul R. Duberstein, PhD, will present "Standing at the crossroads of personology and prevention science: A view from suicide research" for the Theodore Millon Midcareer Award in Personality Psychology addresses. Bornstein received the Society for Personality Assessment's 1995, 1999 and 2003 Awards for Distinguished Contributions to the Personality Assessment Literature. Duberstein received the American Association of Suicidology Shneidman Award for Early Career Contributions to Suicide Research in 2000.

--COMPILED BY E. MERCK

Email this article to a friend or colleague

Cover Page for this Issue