Don Saklofske, PhD

Saklofske is an adjunct research professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Western Ontario.

Tell us a bit about your background: What is your area of research? What is your most recent journal-editing experience?

I earned my PhD at the University of Calgary and began my academic career at the University of Otago, New Zealand. I have worked or consulted in various mental health, school, clinic, and hospital settings, but my career has primarily involved appointments within university psychology departments. I am now an adjunct research professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Western Ontario, having retired as a full professor in June 2022. I previously held professorships at the University of Calgary and the University of Saskatchewan and have also enjoyed long-standing visiting professorships at Beijing Normal University and the University of Florence.

My research and applied interests span individual differences, personality, intelligence, and psychological assessment. These interests are reflected in the several hundred journal articles and book chapters I have written, and I am closing in on 40 books.

I have had the great privilege of serving in various roles in professional associations at the provincial (e.g., Psychologists Association of Alberta, Psychological Society of Saskatchewan), national (e.g., Canadian Psychological Association, Saskatchewan Educational Psychology Association), and international levels (e.g., International Society for the Study of Individual Differences).

I recently stepped down as editor of Personality and Individual Differences and Canadian Journal of School Psychology and am now currently editor-elect of Canadian Psychology and the Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment as well as series co-editor for the Springer book series on Human Exceptionality. I am honored to be a fellow of the Association for Psychological Science, Canadian Psychological Association, and Society for Personality and Social Psychology.

Briefly, what are your main priorities? For example, how will you grow readership, what type of scholarship would you like to see in the journal, and what kind of content are you hoping to attract?

Canadian Psychology is the flagship journal of the Canadian Psychological Association. It has a long tradition of covering the breadth of psychological science (theory, basic, and applied research) and its applications to practice, as well as issues related to policy, professional standards, training, ethics, and education. It complements other Canadian journals focused on presenting research studies; in many ways, it is similar to American Psychologist in purpose and content. Journals such as Canadian Psychology and American Psychologist, published by professional associations like CPA and APA, have more relevance and importance in today than in the past. This is not just because of their encouragement of knowledge creation but also because they present findings from science- and evidence-based research that are increasingly needed in a world where fact and fiction are so often blurred by the rapid spread of misinformation, the ‘stereo effects’ of social media, and the proliferation of ‘pseudo’ journals and publications. Psychology journals need to be more than repositories for psychological findings and forums exclusively for psychologists and allied professionals: They must also ensure that what psychology can contribute to society at large is readily transferable to and accessible by the wider public. Thus, the true impact of Canadian Psychology will be not just how psychology as a science and a profession is served by the published articles but also how the world at large is informed about and benefits from the knowledge presented in the journal. I congratulate both CPA and APA for showcasing articles of interest and importance on their websites so that this knowledge reaches not just a wide number of association members but also allied professions, the general public, and various other news media outlets. For these reasons, the content of Canadian Psychology will continue to reflect the best research and applied papers on a wide range of topics of significance to the well-being of people and the world we all live in.

Why is this journal important for the field? What is its relevance to society/public health? What are the hot issues in your area right now?

The world is currently overwhelmed by information overload. People are constantly bombarded by input from multiple sources, especially social media. In many ways, psychology, with its methods of creating knowledge and disseminating it via journals (as well as through conferences, blogs, webpages, etc.), is competing with many other information sources that claim to present facts that affect people’s thinking, feelings, and behavior. Yet what psychologists share in journals represents carefully studied and informed scientific findings with implications for application: This knowledge adds value to the discipline and practice of psychology and benefits the public, whether these laypeople read psychology journals themselves and are drawn to consider what psychology has to offer or are helped by new psychology-informed policies or treatments. COVID is a very good example of where the findings from extensive research examining the psychological factors associated with this viral pandemic have made important information available to psychologists, other practitioners, and the public about prevention, treatment, attitudes and beliefs about causes, experienced fear, and anxiety, while also challenging misinformation.

Canadian Psychology serves a very real and significant purpose. A school psychologist working in remote Northern Canada and using online assessment methods, a clinical psychology graduate student researching the topic of perfectionism or depression or brain–behavior correlates, a social psychology researcher developing models and methods of study that could have applications for more positive individual and group relationships: All may turn to Canadian Psychology for this kind of information and, better still, psychologists can publish their informed views and research findings in the journal. Almost any topic is hot in psychology. Cutting-edge areas like artificial intelligence or advances in understanding the biological and brain related bases of individual differences are obviously of interest, but we live in a world that is continuously threatened by war, disease, global warming, energy crisis, economic uncertainty, increased stress and depression, and group and interpersonal conflicts. Yet our world is also one of joy, beauty, love, and optimism. So humanity and human behavior, with all its foibles and strengths, will always be the hot topic.

What challenges, if any, lie ahead for the field?

Psychology is facing competition if not challenges both as a basic and applied science from adversaries such as pseudoscience, conspiracy theories, and cancel culture, often hosted on social media or in predator journals and transmitted at ‘light speed’ via electronic communication networks including personal devices like smartphones. Professional psychology associations, through their support of research and best practices via university training programs, conferences, online workshops, and journals, are engaging in the kind of advocacy that goes beyond knowledge creation and passing along information. Critical thinking is a large part of what makes psychology’s role and contributions so important and essential. I see this in my colleagues, in our graduate students, and in the articles that are published in Canadian Psychology.

Do you have plans for a special issue or changes to the editorial process? Have you introduced or are you planning to introduce any changes?

On accepting the honor of the editorship of Canadian Psychology, I have undertaken several recent actions to ensure that the journal would both continue in the tradition defined by the journal’s previous editors but also be responsive to the needs of psychologists and the expectations of CPA. I substantially increased the number of editorial board members to ensure both breadth and depth of reviewer expertise and input, confirmed the continuation of the current associate editors, added another associate editor to focus on special issues and special topics, and will discuss with the CPA office some other ideas that will ensure Canadian Psychology is both contemporary and forward-thinking. However, the aims and scope remain the same, as they reflect the role and capacity of the journal to serve psychology, psychologists, and beyond.

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