New Zealand outlaws smacking of children

Thanks to Sydney Morning Herald.

This is a major and positive step, however there was some late dilution to the bill.

The sad irony is that some Church groups opposed this bill.

----------
New Zealand effectively outlawed smacking children on Wednesday by removing a statutory defence for parents. A private bill sponsored by a Green Party lawmaker which removed an existing legal defence of "reasonable force" to correct a child was passed by an overwhelming majority. "It is about our children and what I believe is their God-given right to grow up secure in the love of their family, valued as equal citizens to the rest of us and without the constant threat of legalised violence being used against them," the law's sponsor, Sue Bradford of the Green Party, said in parliament.

The law change, first proposed in 2005, had been strongly opposed by conservative family and church groups, who said it would make criminals of parents. Opponents held public marches and rallies outside parliament. Mainstream church groups and child welfare organisations had strongly supported the change. A late compromise adopted by lawmakers gave police the discretion not to prosecute parents if a smacking incident is considered minor. Under the previous law, smacking children was classified as an assault, but parents could claim a statutory defence of using reasonable force to correct bad behaviour or remove the child from danger.

Members of parliament were free to vote on the issue according to their conscience, but there was near unanimous support for the change, which passed 113 to 7 in the 121 seat parliament. Loud applause broke out from the public galleries after the vote. The leader of the centre-right New Zealand First Party, Winston Peters, voted against the law change. "The problem with the bill is that while it will allow light smacking, it will do so under circumstances almost impossible to interpret," Peters said. The bill only needs the official assent of the Governor General, the representative of the head of state, to become law.

Behaviourist B F Skinner on YouTube

B F SKINNER - ABA

B F Skinner giving a lecture.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jtgkqB3DIA

Got my "Is Cannabis dangerous" essay back - 84%

Whoa kitty !!!

This is amazing....

20th-century artist, Louis Wain, who was fascinated by cats, painted these pictures over a period of time in which he developed schizophrenia. The pictures on this page mark progressive stages in the illness and exemplify what it does to the victim's perception.

http://www.schizophrenia.org/artist.html

Workplace and depression

Employers are less likely to employ people with mental illnesses compared to those with physical conditions. Smacks of a corporate sponsored puff piece to me.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6035409.stm

Horse tranquiliser used to treat Human depression ?

Quite frankly, bizarre.

Ketamine, an anesthetic and also club drug Special K, has the "power" (my quotes) to lift depression within hours, instead of the weeks it typically takes prescription antidepressants to kick in, a new US federal study suggested yesterday.

http://www.boston.com/yourlife/health/mental/articles/2006/08/08/drug_may_quickly_lift_depression_study_says/

The Black communities psychological experience of the UK is not good.

There is an epidemic of psychotic illness in those of African and Caribbean origin and needs to be addressed.

This issue has been around for a long time but no real results have been delivered.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,2048115,00.html

Mental health link to diet change

Changes to diets over the last 50 years may play a role in the rise of mental illness.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4610070.stm

Iraq vets left in physical and mental agony

This article is in keeping with the theme of returning servicemen and mental trauma they suffer. (Thanks to Aaron Glantz)

http://quitanoblog.tripod.com/iraq-vets-left-in-physical-and-mental-agony.html

Misdiagnosis & dual diagnoses of gifted children & adults

Existential Depression in Gifted Individuals
James T. Webb, Ph.D.

r. Webb is co-author of the book Misdiagnosis and Dual Diagnoses of Gifted Children and Adults: ADHD, Bipolar, OCD, Asperger’s, Depression, and Other Disorders.

Existential depression is a depression that arises when an individual confronts certain basic issues of existence.

http://www.giftedbooks.com/authorarticles.asp?id=7

Happiness

Article on Happiness. By Dorothy Rowe for Psychologies Magazine February 2007

http://www.dorothyrowe.com.au/index.php?u=Happiness_(February_2007).htm

Real Game Theory....

Mathematics no longer rules the game theory roost, try a psychology tinted view.

http://www.msri.org/people/members/sara/articles/expecon.pdf

Psychologist Frederick Payne Watts aged 103, dies.

Frederick Payne Watts, 103, a founding faculty member of Howard University's Counseling Service, died of congestive heart failure April 7 at Howard University Hospital. He lived in Washington. In 1948, Dr. Watts established the university's liberal arts counseling service, which later became the University Counseling Service. He worked there until 1970, conducting a number of institutional studies of Howard students.

He was born in Staunton, Va., was educated in District public schools and graduated in 1922 from Dunbar High School. He entered Howard with the intention of becoming an ophthalmologist, but his intense interest in "why people misbehave" led him to psychology courses. He graduated in 1926 and took a teaching fellowship in psychology that allowed him to complete a master's degree soon after.

He taught for a year at Kittrell College in North Carolina and returned to Howard in 1928 as a faculty member. He received a doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1941, the first African American to earn a doctorate from the university, Penn officials said, and the nation's fourth African American to obtain a doctorate in psychology.

Drafted into the Army in 1942, Dr. Watts was a pre-induction classification officer and personnel consultant, setting up psychological testing facilities and supervising counseling of enlisted personnel. Discharged as a captain in the adjutant general's office, Dr. Watts was appointed assistant chief clinical psychologist for the Veterans Administration regional office in Philadelphia. He returned to Howard in 1948 and worked there for the rest of his career.

Dr. Watts published a number of professional papers and was a diplomate in clinical psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology. He leaves nine grandchildren; and 15 great-grandchildren.!!
(Thanks to Patricia Sullivan Washington Post)

Army Psychologist using new ways to treat stress.

thanks to MArk Hare at http://www.democratandchronicle.com

"As bad as it is, I find it miraculous that "only" 15 percent to 30 percent of returning Iraq war veterans are dealing with post traumatic stress disorder or some related mental health problems. This war has no front line, the enemy is impossible to identify, the dangers are everywhere. There is no safe place.
"Nobody comes back unaffected," says Army Lt. Col. Kathy Platoni, a clinical psychologist from Centerville, Ohio, and a reservist who spent 11 months in Iraq living with the troops and leading combat stress programs.
But the degree to which soldiers are affected by combat depends on two factors, Platoni says. "The first is a person's pre-existing psychological pre-disposition," she says, "and the second is how much trauma you've been exposed to." In other words, multiple tours of duty in combat, as is common in Iraq, significantly elevate the risk of PTSD, which may not appear until months or years after exposure.

Platoni, who will speak at the University of Rochester Medical Center on Thursday, says her 11 months in Iraq (the last four months in Anbar Province, where so much of the sectarian violence originates) was "a life- changing experience" that gave her a real sense of what it's like to be "exposed to the rigors of combat, to be working with people you may not see the next day." "We had some pretty heavy casualties," says Sgt. Ryan Vallery, who met Platoni in Iraq in 2005. Vallery, 23, of Buffalo, says his unit averaged 1.3 mortar attacks a day. "You never left your room" except to leave for patrols. The stress was constant. Platoni, he says, "was someone you could talk to about it, who could help us process our feelings." That was essential, he says.

Decades ago, there was no treatment for what we now call PTSD — except to suck it up and get back to work. Today, the Army recognizes that the psychological effects of war are real, and by sending clinicians to combat zones to assess and begin treating soldiers, it's sending an important message — it's OK, if you need help, it's here. There are two types of mental health teams in Iraq. "The fitness/restoration teams work with soldiers who have been overcome by psychological symptoms," Platoni says. "The soldiers are transported to Baghdad or the nearby Balad Air Base, which serves as a trauma and medical evacuation center. They are allowed to rest and afforded a range of services, from occupational and group therapy to medication evaluation, and anger and stress management.

Prevention teams are mobile, visiting with units to assess factors that could play a role in PTSD —everything from the availability of supplies to commanders' willingness to listen. They also teach coping skills.
"The idea," she says, "is to help soldiers deal with the impact of loss and suffering on the spot, and to help form even stronger relationships.""It's impossible to go into combat and not be afraid," she says. "But you have to learn to compartmentalize your fear, to find meaning and purpose" even in the most ordinary and, conversely, trying of events. "You have to learn to entertain yourself with what's available, often stupid, juvenile behavior." It's part of learning to survive.

Going to Iraq was important to her understanding of what soldiers are dealing with and to earning their trust — a key factor in treatment.It is high time that PTSD be recognized and dealt with for what it is. The enormous toll it exacts on veterans and their families ought to give our leaders pause. It is another reason to send young men and women to war only as an absolute last resort — and to get them home as quickly as possible, not to send them back again and again.

Psychologist backs Mourinho outbursts.....

Jose Mourinho has successfully taken the pressure off his Chelsea players by putting the spotlight on himself again, according to top sports psychologist Andy Barton.

Chelsea are chasing the quadruple (not anymore they ain't!!) but the focus is on boss Mourinho rather than his players.

The brave little lamb.

I'm a Gooner btw.

My wife the Psychologist; and I didn't even know it...

I know I am British but I found this article about American families.

If the typical stay-at-home mother in the United States were paid for her work as housekeeper, cook and psychologist among other roles, she would would earn $138,095 a year, according to research released Wednesday.

This reflected a 3 percent raise from last year's $134,121, according to Salary.com Inc , Waltham, Massachusetts-based compensation experts. The 10 jobs listed as comprising a mother's work were housekeeper, cook, day care center teacher, laundry machine operator, van driver, facilities manager, janitor, computer operator, chief executive officer and psychologist, it said.

Respect, I still wouldn't swap with the wife to look after the children on my own!

Psychology of Poker

The Ultimate Guide To Poker Psychology by David Fisher

Will reading this book make you money ?! Lets hope so !!

http://www.playfearlesspoker.com

David Fisher, who holds a PhD in psychology, shows you exactly why people do what they do at the poker tables which is costing them money. "Whether you are aware of them or not.The Ultimate Guide To Poker Psychology is NOT a book about poker strategies, identifying tells or picking up clues or identifying personality traits, poker principles, playing styles etc.In this no-nonsense practical guide, you will learn everything you need to know to help you neutralize and eliminate your fears and anxieties, even if you are aware of them or not.

More psychology wisdom

Older wealthy/satisfied person and a earnest but green young person talking about success....

"Hi, what is the secret of your success?"
"Two words"
"And, what are they?"
"Right decisions."
"And how do you make right decisions?"
"One word."
"And, what is that?"
"Experience."
"And how do you get experience?"
"Two words"
"And, what are they?"
"Wrong decisions."

Spinning the term Psychopathy....

Psychopaths are misunderstood.

Apparently psychopathy is a type of learning disability......

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/07/060724003925.htm