EDITORIAL

 

Editorial

 

Editorial

 

 

Marina Monzani da Rocha

Acting editor of the journal Psicologia: Teoria e Prática

 

 

Dear readers,

It is an immense pleasure to present the first number of the twenty-second volume of the journal Psychology: Theory and Practice. In keeping with our internationalization editorial policy, most of the articles published in this issue are available in Portuguese and English. In this way, we seek to expand the scope of the work done by the authors and also to keep scientific production accessible to Brazilian readers. Classified in stratum A2 in the Psychology area by the Qualis-Periodical system (referring to the 2013-2016 quadrennium) and indexed in several databases, the journal exempts authors from publication fees. It offers free access to authors, seeking to expand the possibilities of dissemination and access to quality scientific material.

In this issue, 12 original articles are presented, distributed in the five thematic sections of the journal, four referring to the Psychological Assessment section, two in Human Development, four in Social Psychology, one in Psychology and Education, and one in Clinical Psychology. It is essential to highlight that the publications involve works carried out by researchers located in all the five regions of the country, in addition to a researcher linked to a Canadian university, highlighting the scope of the journal.

The Psychological Assessment section begins with the article "Internal structure analysis of the Major Depression Inventory (MDI)," authored by Makilim N. Baptista, Gabriela S. Cremasco, Felipe Augusto Cunha (San Francisco University), and Samira R. Marcon, and Hugo G. Barros dos Santos (Federal University of Mato Grosso). In the article, the psychometric qualities of the Major Depression Inventory (MDI) are presented based on the Classic Test Theory (TCT) and the Item Response Theory (TRI). Although all psychometric parameters have been respected following the TCT, the same has not been observed following the IRT, which makes the authors suggest new studies to expand the understanding of the structure of this instrument, used worldwide to screen for depression.

Marco Antônio P. Teixeira and Sergio Armando L. Castillo, from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul present, in the article "Adaptation to Brazilian Portuguese of the O*NET Interests Profiler - Short Form," analyzes of validity evidence for the instrument O * NET Interests Profiler - Short Form, which assesses vocational interests. The results support the validity of the instrument in Brazil, although the authors suggest caution for clinical use in contexts of vocational guidance.

In the article "Instruments for measuring perceived and experienced mental illness stigma: A systematic review," Nicolas O. Cardoso, Breno S. Vieira, Isabela M. V. Ferracini, and Irani Iracema L. Argimon, from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul and Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, present research work on the most used instruments for measuring the stigma of mental illness (EDM) perceived and experienced by adults. The systematic review showed five instruments commonly used to measure EDM. The authors discuss the importance of using well-established instruments in the literature and the importance of conducting national studies since none of the investigated instruments have validation studies for the Brazilian population.

Concluding the Psychological Evaluation section, the work "Psychometric properties of the Engaged Teachers Scale (ETS)," by Domingos I. da Silva Júnior, Maria Cristina Ferreira, and Felipe Valentini, from Universidade Salgado de Oliveira, gathered evidence of validity of the Teacher Engagement Scale (EEP) in the Brazilian context, as a confirmation of the factorial structure of the instrument and of the invariance for sex, type of application (in person or online), age group and teaching time. The authors conclude that the good psychometric qualities of the scale allow its use in studies that investigate teacher engagement.

The Human Development section contains two original empirical studies. The first one, entitled "Associations between maternal responsiveness due to offspring and motor development," was carried out by the researchers Paula Cristina S. Mesquita, Daniela D. Siqueira, Marilice F. Garotti, and Ivete F. R. Caldas, from the Federal University of Pará. An observation of dyads of mothers and premature babies, the authors found that the quality of maternal responsiveness is associated with fine adaptive motor development and gross motor development in the first year of life. Also, he found that responsiveness is greater in primiparous mothers and primiparous mothers with twin children than in multiparous mothers. The authors discuss the importance of the social environment in child development.

The second work presented in the Human Development section addresses behavioral, anxiety, and social skills indicators in preschoolers, from the perspective of multiple informants: guardians and teachers. The authors Aline Francine C. Vaz and Alessandra B. Motta (Federal University of Espírito Santo) and Larissa Z. P. Figueredo (South-Brazilian Center for Research, Extension, and Graduate Studies), in the article "Behavior problems, anxiety, and social skills among kindergarteners," indicate indices within the expected for behavioral problems and anxiety. However, there is a difference between the informants. In the discussion, the relationship between anxiety, behavioral problems, and social skills is emphasized, as well as the implication of the results in the elaboration of interventions and preventive proposals in the school environment.

Rafael C. de Brito and Berenice Carpigiani, from Mackenzie Presbyterian University, in their article "The psychodynamics of prejudice: A bibliographic review," discuss prejudice in a psychoanalytic perspective, presenting it as an identification mechanism aimed at maintaining a good object and relationship to the narcissistic cohesion of the Self in the face of the threat of its destruction by the sensation of ambivalence. The authors understand that prejudice has the function of protecting the identifications that make up the individual's Self through defense mechanisms that place both the origin and the product of anguish in the different.

The article "The understanding of politics by militants of the Alagoan trans movement," by Carolina C. Lins and Marcos R. Mesquita, from the Federal University of Alagoas, presents the results of semi-structured interviews with members of the Association of Transvestites and Transsexuals of Alagoas (ASTTAL), in order to verify their view of the policy. The content analysis revealed three dimensions: institutional, party politics, the specific policy of the LGBT movement, and politics associated with citizenship and public policies. The work is noteworthy for giving voice to a social movement composed of sexual minorities in the northeastern region of the country.

In the article "Virtual extimacy and conjugality: Possible repercussions," the researchers from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Carolina Mendes-Campos, Terezinha Féres-Carneiro and Andrea S. Magalhães present the result of research work on the possible repercussions of the intimacy observed in the internet space, the "virtual extimacy," in the experience of today's conjugality. From the analysis of the content of interviews with married people and Facebook users, the authors identified as the main relationship between the fragments "êxtimas" and the dramas of the couple's intimacy. The discussion of the article brings up the perspective that today's society does not experience a dichotomy between the virtual of the real. However, a new way of living that unites the two fields of experience.

Concluding the section Social Psychology, a discussion on the possibility of using poetry as an opportunity for creation, sharing and social recognition, as well as for resuming memories and reflections on stigmas, was presented by the authors Camila Maria Chiquetto, from Hospital Maternidade Escola Doutor Mário de Moraes Altenfelder Silva, and Claudia Stella, from the University of British Columbia, in the article "Poeticizing after sixty: An experience on aging." In the work, descriptive reports of the meetings, held with ten women over the age of 60, are presented, which are analyzed in the categories: workshop as a space for appropriation, socializing and reflection of the participants; society and the possibility of an active posture in aging; the appropriation of the body in aging: experiences and criticisms of the aesthetic model; memory: memories and meanings.

In Psychology and Education, the article "Development and learning center: An interdisciplinary case study in applied behavior analysis," by Priscila Benitez, Isis Albuquerque, Nathalia V. Manoni, Ricardo M. Bondioli (Federal University of São Carlos) and Ana Flávia Ribeiro (University of Franca), is presented. In the work, whose objective was to describe a case study of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) attended by an interdisciplinary team from an analytical-behavioral perspective, the authors highlight the possibility of jointly building the child's teaching curriculum including Psychology, Pedagogy, Occupational Therapy, and Speech Therapy, highlighting Behavior Analysis as a transversal science that permeates the fields of performance of different professionals. The implications of applying a structured, individualized, and diversified teaching curriculum for effective teaching to children with ASD, and the importance of involving parents and children in this type of intervention are discussed.

The Clinical Psychology section presents the work "Group parental guidance programs: A systematic review," in which the authors Thaís B. Benedetti, Isabela P. Rebessi and Carmen Beatriz Neufeld, from the Faculty of Philosophy, Sciences and Letters of Ribeirão Preto at the University from São Paulo, compare the results obtained in 20 studies published in the years 2013 to 2018 on interventions carried out in group programs for parents, caregivers or family members, training/guidance groups, health promotion/prevention, which presented at least four sessions. The authors highlight the similarities and differences in the work performed and the effectiveness of interventions in improving communication between parents and children, increasing the use of positive parenting practices - and reducing negative practices, and expanding the capacity for emotional self-regulation. Thus, they discuss the importance of this type of intervention in the treatment and prevention and health promotion in childhood.

My sincere thanks to everyone involved in the publication of this issue: authors, reviewers, editorial staff, managers, and employees. Our work would not have the same quality without the commitment and dedication of each one of you.

Good reading!