EDITORIAL

 

Editorial

 

 

Alessandra Gotuzo Seabra

Editor

 

 

Dear colleagues,

We present the first issue of the 21^st volume of the Journal Psychology: Theory and Practice. The journal contains five thematic sections, and the access to the material has been expanded, both nationally and internationally, especially with the availability of papers in English, a policy that has been gradually implemented in recent years. According to "Qualis-Periódicos system," the Journal is classified in A2 stratum in the Psychology area, and it has been consolidated as an important mean of scientific works divulgation in Psychology and related areas.

This issue presents 11 original papers and a book review. In the "Psychological Evaluation" section, there are four articles. In the first paper, "Confirmatory factorial analysis of the Metacognition Scale - Senior," Alex B. França and Patrícia W. Schelini, from the Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), SP, present a confirmatory factorial analysis of the Metacognition Scale - Senior (EMETA-S), that measures metacognitive knowledge in elderly people. The findings are encouraging and suggest that the EMETA-S can be a suitable scale for elderly people, besides being a brief tool that is easy to apply.

In the second paper, "Assessment of metatextual consciousness and its prediction of reading comprehension," Neide de B. Cunha, from the University of Vale do Sapucaí (Univás), MG, and Acácia Aparecida A. Santos, from the University of São Francisco (USF), SP, present validity evidence of the Assessment Questionnaire of Metatextual Awareness (QACM). The results showed the predictive power of metatextual awareness on reading comprehension, since 46% of variance in the Cloze test performance was explained by performance in QACM. School year progression revealed criterion validity, and a good internal consistency index was observed.

The third paper in this section, entitled "Psychometric properties of the Brief Smoking Consequences Questionnaire (BSCQ-A) in Brazilian women," is presented by Fabiano K. Miguel and Nádia Kienen, from the State University of Londrina (UEL), PR, and Isabel C. Scarinci, from The University of Alabama (UAB) at Birmingham-EUA. The study analyzed the psychometric properties of the BSCQ-A, a questionnaire that assesses expectancies related to cessation of industrialized cigarette use. Adult Brazilian women were evaluated. Despite some differences in the factorial structure in comparison to the original version of the questionnaire, the Brazilian version was adequate, promising to be used with Brazilian women.

The fourth paper, "Effects of behavioral intervention in scholar setting on hyperactivity and inattention," is presented by Alisson Rogério C. Siqueira, Mayara M. M. Silva, Elifas T. de Paula, Marcos Vinícius de Araújo, Maria Cristina T. V. Teixeira, and Luiz Renato R. Carreiro, from Mackenzie Presbyterian University (UPM), SP. The study assessed the effects of the implementation behavioral management guidelines to reduce inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness behaviors in regular class students. Experimental and control groups, from second grades, were compared. Teachers' responses showed a reduction in the frequency of inattention and hyperactivity behaviors in the experimental group, which suggests that the guide has a potential use in school practice.

The "Human Development" section presents four original articles. In "Pediatric rehabilitation: Social support and stress in cases of cerebral palsy," the authors Juliana M. da Silva, from Rede Sarah de Hospitais, AP, and Tereza Cristina C. F. de Araújo, from the University of Brasília (UnB), DF, aimed to characterize, evaluate, and correlate social support and stress of family caregivers, as well as to compare individual and group care modalities in a rehabilitation program. There were no differences between the care modalities and, in general, low levels of stress and predominance of family support were observed. Negative correlation between social support and stress was identified.

In the article "Parents seeking a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder for their child," by Jucineide S. Xavier, Thais Marchiori and José Salomão Schwartzman, from Mackenzie Presbyterian University (UPM), SP, the authors analyzed the path of parents in search of diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD). They described and analyzed different characteristics of their diagnosis search path and found, among other aspects, that most of the parents perceived the symptoms between 13 and 24 months of age of the child and that the most reported symptom was delayed verbal communication. They also observed that, despite detecting changes at an early age and seeking help, relatives were sometimes advised that the development of the child was adequate.

Sheila Maria P. Soma and Lúcia C. A. Williams, from the Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), SP, present the article "Specialized children's picture book as strategy of sexual abuse prevention," which aimed to assess whether a children's book on sexual abuse may be a means to develop self-protective skills in children. The authors observed that children who participated in storytelling with a book on sexual abuse performed better in comparison to other groups (one with storytelling using a non-specific book and control group without intervention), with significant increase in ability to report the abusive fact to a reliable person.

The article "Relations among adolescents' life purpose, household chores, and school performance" is authored by Fredericko Wichmann, from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), RS, Letícia L. Dellazzana-Zanon, from the Pontifical Catholic University of Campinas (PUC-Campinas), SP, Lia Beatriz L. Freitas and Marco Antônio P. Teixeira, from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), RS. When analyzing Brazilian adolescents, aged 14 to 16 years, the authors observed that there are relationships between the variables investigated. In general, there was a relationship between the level of household tasks and life projects, and in girls, they found a relationship between level household tasks and school impairment.

The "Social Psychology" section features a book review by Eveli F. Vasconcelos, Júlia A. Palmiere and Krisley A. Araujo, from the Catholic University of Dom Bosco (UCDB), MS. The book review presented is "Risk factors, psychosocial protection and work: Organizations that emancipate or kill."

The Psychology and Education section counts on the article "School climate and school satisfaction among high school adolescents," written by Clara C. A. Coelho and Débora D. Dell'Aglio, from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), RS. In the article, they investigated the relationships between school climate and school satisfaction in adolescents. Results revealed that three domains evaluated in the school climate contributed significantly to school satisfaction, suggesting that the relationships and structure offered in the school environment are central to explaining school satisfaction.

The section "Clinical Psychology" has two articles. Ricardo da S. Franco and Maíra B. Sei, from the State University of Londrina (UEL), PR, present the article "Family secret and artistic-expressive resources in family psychotherapy: A theoretical-clinical study." In this article, the use of artistic-expressive resources in psychoanalytic psychotherapy in couples and in families is discussed. A case is presented and discussed in a psychology school-service. According to the authors, the use of artistic-expressive resources favored the emergence of unconscious contents and the therapeutic process.

The article "Anxiety and depression in family members of people hospitalized in intensive therapy" is presented by Gabriella M. Fonseca, Katia S. Freitas, Aloísio M. da Silva Filho, Pollyana P. Portela, Elaine G. Fontoura and Marluce A. N. Oliveira, from the State University of Feira de Santana (UEFS), BA. The aim of this study was to analyze the prevalence of anxiety and depression in relatives of people hospitalized in intensive care units, as well as the associated factors. The results revealed important indexes of family members with symptoms of anxiety and depression, as well as pointed out some associated factors, reiterating the relationship between the hospitalization process and the mental state of the family.

We appreciate the support and the confidence of authors, reviewers, section editors, managers, and employees who have contributed to this issue. We invite all readers to enjoy the articles.