Editor's column

Aloha! We have great reports and articles in this edition. I first want to thank our new president, COL Rebecca I. Porter, for her great words on the impact that the psychological well-being of our service members and their families has on military psychology. Also, Dr. Garven recently announced that we have 150 new members!

Now, let’s talk about the upcoming APA Annual Convention in my new home, Hawai‘i. Dr. Landes has great updates on this convention. Hopefully, everyone will be able to visit our great department of psychology at the Tripler Army Medical Center. In fact, we just got the Army Provider Level Satisfaction Survey (APPLS) award for customer satisfaction.

Dr. Paniagua tells us that APA approved the following preconvention workshop for continuing education units (sponsored by Div. 19): “Virtual Reality and Biofeedback to Improve Behavioral Health Clinical Research,” by Dr. M. Stetz, Dr. R. Folen, C. Sousa, and C. Enomoto. This preconvention workshop is currently scheduled for Tuesday, July 30. With that in mind, applications for APA’s convention travel awards for early career professionals from all areas of psychology must be submitted to Ms. Wiggins. Also, as reported by Dr. Gallus in the Early Career Psychologists Committee Report, we are looking for input on activities for networking-themed events during the APA Convention.

Graduate students should feel free to apply now for an APA Convention student travel award sponsored by the APA Science Directorate. Graduate students who are the first author of a poster/talk are eligible to apply for one of this year’s grants of $300 each (deadline is April 1, 2013). APA’s Public Interest Government Relations Office is seeking two graduate student interns for the 2013–14 academic year (deadline is March 22, 2013). Do not forget to read about how Lt. Kochanski is passing the student membership torch to David and Jenn Barry and the results of our Div. 19 Student Survey.

The report from Drs. Landes, Lindsey, and COL Porter shows the following aims for the financial investment plan: (1) identifying key initiatives and proposals for priority funding; (2) developing criteria and procedures by which to evaluate funding requests; and (3) compiling a report outlining criteria, procedures, and plans for the Executive Committee (EXCOM). In our Spotlight on History, Dr. Gade shares about the book chapter that he has written with Dr. Rumsey on Project A. Dr. Langkamer-Ratwani’s Spotlight on Research showcases an article by Drs. T. Stetz and yours truly on data about aviation stressors that I collected while deployed. Paul T. Bartone has provided a feature article showing that better screening measures can help prevent alcohol abuse in the military. Also, Michael Sapiro has provided a very interesting feature article on male combat veterans struggling between sanity and sexiness.

Dr. O’Beirne Kelly, Dr. Elmore, and Mr. Vonachen remind us that the 113th Congress is one of the most diverse in recent memory, with record numbers of women, Latinos, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) legislators elected this past November. They also talk about the budget sequestration and the reorganization of the House and Senate committees with jurisdiction over armed services and veterans’ issues. On that note, the Special Issue by Dr. Chan talks about the stigma and negative attitudes within the military related with seeking mental health treatment. Finally, Dr. Annen is announcing that the International Applied Military Psychology Symposium (IAMPS) this year will be in Bern, Switzerland, May 27-31. The theme is “Preparing for Future Wars — The Role of Psychology.”

Finally, please, do not forget reading the EXCOM minutes from our August 2012 meeting.
 
Aloha, and see you in Hawai‘i!