The Evolution and Growth of the Eco-Community Psychology Conferences

In the 1960s and 1970s, community psychologists argued for shifting traditional approaches of treating mental illness (e.g. institutionalization, psychotherapy, etc.) toward prevention and more active involvement through community interventions (Bennett et al., 1966). In light of these events, researchers and students committed to the emergent field of community psychology developed several channels to exchange resources and provide support among one another over the past decades. This paper describes the annual Ecological Community Psychology Conference (Eco), which was created by professors and students in 1978, as a vehicle to promote exchanges of ideas and support among community psychology graduate students, community activists, and academics

The Evolution and Growth of the Eco-Community Psychology Conferences

In the 1960s and 1970s, community psychologists argued for shifting traditional approaches of treating mental illness (e.g. institutionalization, psychotherapy, etc.) toward prevention and more active involvement through community interventions (Bennett et al., 1966). In light of these events, researchers and students committed to the emergent field of community psychology developed several channels to exchange resources and provide support among one another over the past decades. This paper describes the annual Ecological Community Psychology Conference (Eco), which was created by professors and students in 1978, as a vehicle to promote exchanges of ideas and support among community psychology graduate students, community activists, and academics

The impact of symptom stability on time frame and recall reliability in CFS

This study is an investigation of the potential impact of perceived symptom stability on the recall reliability of symptom severity and frequency as reported by individuals with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Symptoms were recalled using three different recall time frames (the past week, the past month, and the past six months) and at two assessment points (with one week in between each assessment). Participants were 51 adults (45 women and 6 men), between the ages of 29 and 66 with a current diagnosis of CFS. Multilevel Model Analyses were used to determine the optimal recall time frame (in terms of test–retest reliability) for reporting symptoms perceived as variable and as stable over time. Headaches were recalled more reliably when they were reported as stable over time. Furthermore, the optimal time frame in terms of test–retest reliability for stable symptoms was highly uniform, such that all Fukuda CFS symptoms were more reliably recalled at the six-month time frame. Furthermore, the optimal time frame for CFS symptoms perceived as variable, differed across symptoms. Symptom stability and recall time frame are important to consider in order to improve the accuracy and reliability of the current methods for diagnosing this illness

The Development of a Revised Canadian Myalgic Encephalomyelitis Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Case Definition

Abstract: Problem statement: Several investigators have indicated that case definitions for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) are characterized by vaguely worded criteria that lack operational definitions and guidelines. The most widely used CFS case definition is the Fukuda et al. criteria, which uses polythetic criteria (i.e., patients are only required to have four out of a possible eight symptoms). Yet two of these eight symptoms (post-exertional malaise and memory/concentration problems) are an essential feature of this illness and the Fukuda et al. criteria do not require that these symptoms be present among all patients. Significant methodological problems could occur if investigators in different settings recruit samples with different percentages of these core symptoms. In contrast, the Canadian clinical case definition does require specific ME/CFS symptoms such as post-exertional malaise and memory/concentration problems. The provision of operationally explicit, objective criteria on specific key symptoms might reduce criterion variance as a source of unreliability. In addition, the use of structured interview schedules will ensure that symptoms are assessed in a consistent way across settings. Conclusion/Recommendations: In this article, we specified explicit rules for determining whether critical symptoms meet ME/CFS criteria using a revised Canadian case definition and a questionnaire has been developed to assess core symptoms. It is hoped that these developments will lead to increased reliability of this revised Canadian case definition as well as more frequent use of these criteria by investigators