Historical Analysis: Editors’ Reflections on 50 Years of the Journal of Pediatric Psychology

Abstract

Objective

This article provides an historical perspective on the Journal of Pediatric Psychology (JPP) on the occasion of its 50th anniversary.

Methods

Former and current editors of JPP participated in a symposium at the 2019 Society of Pediatric Psychology Annual Conference (SPPAC), each highlighting prominent types of articles published during their terms, the influence of these papers over time, and their reflections on the next 50 years of the journal. Their presentations were summarized and integrated for this article. Additional data on editorial teams, special issues, and publication metrics over time are included.

Results

The data demonstrate changes over time in the growth, scope, and impact of JPP. The article also shows the consistency in areas of emphasis over time. Anticipated topics for the future were quite consistent across editors and included increased use of technology, broader attention to teams and approaches, and methodological advances as the field will continue to grow.

Conclusions

This article provides an unusual collaboration among editors of JPP, providing an historical perspective on the journal’s growth over time and anticipation of continued impact into the future.

History, Journal, Pediatric Psychology, Editorial

Concurrent with the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Society of Pediatric Psychology in 2019 is the 50th anniversary of the Journal of Pediatric Psychology (JPP). In recognition of this landmark, previous and current editors of JPP participated in a symposium at the 2019 Society of Pediatric Psychology Annual Conference (SPPAC), reflecting on the history of the journal (Kazak et al., 2019). The current paper evolved from that symposium (Figure 1). It begins with a brief history of JPP, followed by a summary and integration of the main points from the oral presentations of the JPP editors, each of whom reflected on the accomplishments of their editorial term and the journal’s growth and development.

Figure 1.

Editors of JPP attending SPPAC 2019: Roberts, La Greca, Holmbeck, Palermo, Willis, Kazak, and Routh.

Background: A Brief History of the JPP

The earliest roots of JPP harken back to 1969 when a newsletter called Pediatric Psychology was first distributed. The newsletter was edited initially by Gail Gardner, PhD at New York Hospital and Cornell Medical Center. Its second editor from 1972 to 1973 was Allan Barclay, PhD, from St. Louis University and Cardinal Glennon Memorial Hospital for Children in St. Louis. When Barclay became the Secretary-Treasurer of Division 12 (Clinical Psychology) of the American Psychological Association (APA), he resigned as editor and Art Wiens, PhD, president of SPP, asked Diane Willis, PhD from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, to serve as the Editor. Willis was editor from 1973 to 1975 and transitioned the newsletter into the JPP, with quarterly publication.

Since its inception there have been twelve editors of JPP (Figure 2), 5 female and 7 male, and 35 unique associate editors, including 7 who served under two different editors (Table I). Donald Routh, PhD, at that time from the University of North Carolina/Chapel Hill, succeeded Willis, and served as Editor from 1976 to 1982. Subsequent editors of JPP (with their primary institutional affiliations at the time of their service) were: Gerald P. Koocher, PhD, Boston Children’s Hospital (1983–1987); Michael C. Roberts, PhD, University of Alabama/University of Kansas (1988–1992), Annette M. La Greca, PhD, University of Miami (1993–1997), Anne E. Kazak, PhD, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (1998–2002), Ronald T. Brown, PhD, Medical University of South Carolina/Temple University (2003–2007); Dennis Drotar, PhD, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center (2008–2012); Grayson N. Holmbeck, PhD, Loyola University Chicago (2013–2017) and Tonya M. Palermo, University of Washington and Seattle Children’s Hospital (2018–present).

Table I.

Editors and Associate Editors of Journal of Pediatric Psychology

Editor	Term	Associate editors2
Diane Willis	1973–1975	Arlene Schaefer
Donald Routh	1976–1982	Gary Mesibov
Gerald Koocher	1983–1987	Michael Roberts
Michael Roberts	1988–1992	Dennis Harper
		Annette La Greca
		Jan Wallander
Annette La Greca	1993–1997	Dennis Drotar
		Anne Kazak
		Kathleen Lemanek
		Jan Wallander
Anne Kazak	1998–2002	Christine Eiser
		Jack Finney
		Kathleen Lemanek
		Anthony Spirito
		Robert Thompson
Ronald Brown	2003–2007	Maureen Black
		Barbara Fiese
		Grayson Holmbeck
		John Lavigne
		Raymond Mulhern
		Lonnie Zeltzer
Dennis Drotar	2008–2012	Lamia Barakat
		Grayson Holmbeck
		John Lavigne
		Beth McQuaid
		Tonya Palermo
		Michael Rapoff
		Lori Stark
		Ken Tercyak
		Tim Wysocki
Grayson Holmbeck	2013–2017	Dean Beebe
		John Lavigne
		Tonya Palermo
		Lori Stark
		Ric SteeleTim Wysocki
Tonya Palermo	2018–present	Melissa Alderfer
		Dean Beebe
		Ana Gutierez-Colina*
		Marisa Hilliard
		Aimee Hildenbrand*
		David Janicke
		Bryan Karazsia
		Avani Modi
		Caitlin Murray*

*

Note. Assistant Editor for Transparent Reporting.

Figure 2.

Editors of Pediatric Psychology and the Journal of Pediatric Psychology.

There are several papers that document the history of JPP and that provide detailed information. Starting with Roberts (Roberts, 1992), each editor published a vale dictum at the end of their term, providing detailed data about submissions, editorial metrics (editorial lag, rejection rates, pages published, etc.), special issues, and highlighting key trends during their terms (Brown, 2007; Drotar, 2012; Holmbeck, 2017; Kazak, 2002; La Greca, 1997).¹ At the 25th anniversary of JPP, the editor at that time (Kazak) asked the former editors (Willis, Routh, Koocher, Roberts, and La Greca) to contribute to a paper on the history of the journal (Kazak, 2000). This article provides information about pivotal events in JPP history (e.g., information about the founding of the journal, publishing contracts) and a description from each editor about the emphasis of the journal during their terms.

Other articles have analyzed JPP publications and describe the types of papers published, document trends, and assess the impact of the journal. Indeed, interest in examining the characteristics of the Journal began very early in its development. Routh and Mesibov (1979) reviewed articles published up to 1979. They found that most articles were clinically oriented or literature reviews, rather than original research and report that JPP articles most frequently cited Pediatrics and Child Development. Routh (1980) examined the most cited authors of JPP articles with backgrounds in psychology, psychiatry, and pediatrics. A content analysis of 10 years of JPP volumes (1976–1986) reported on the age of samples studied, population types, article types, theoretical orientation, senior author affiliation, and sex of authors and editors (Elkins & Roberts, 1988). During these 10 years, an increase in empirical papers, in applied papers and a focus on children with medical problems was observed. Over her term as editor, La Greca (1997) reported more data-based papers and increased attention to articles on assessment and intervention. These trends are consistent with broader findings by Canter, Amaro, Noser, and Roberts (2018) who analyzed the types of articles published from 1976 to 2015. They noted a shift in the types of papers published after 1986 with more quantitative papers and an expanded focus on patient groups. Importantly, there was consistency in the content of papers (e.g., family systems, cognitive functioning, and measurement) and trends that reflects changes in healthcare more generally (e.g., prevention, intervention, and adherence). Aylward, Roberts, Colombo, and Steele (2008) identified the top 100 articles with the largest number of citations from 1976 to 2016. These “classics” focused on chronic childhood illnesses and involved participant samples that spanned a large age range. With respect to how papers have influenced subsequent research, Steele, Graves, Roberts, and Steele (2007) found that JPP articles were quite widely cited, often in other journals, thereby showing a broader range of influence.

SPPAC Symposium on the History of JPP

The current paper is unique in summarizing the presentations of nine editors of JPP reflecting on the history of the journal and key accomplishments during their editorial terms. Editors Willis, Routh, Roberts, La Greca, Kazak, Holmbeck, and Palermo participated in person. Brown and Koocher were unable to attend but prepared materials that are integrated in this article. Drotar is deceased but Palermo (an associate editor during his term) represented his term. Each editor addressed the following three groups of questions in their presentation:

1. What were the prominent types of papers that were published during your term? What papers stood out as most influential?

2. How did the papers published during your term influence our current practices in pediatric psychology? What would you have predicted when you were editor? What is surprising to you in terms of the field today?

3. What will JPP and the field look like in another 50 years?

This article was prepared by summarizing key points from the oral presentations and reviews of the materials presented. All of the authors reviewed and contributed to this article in order to expand on key points and assure consistency in the material for each editorial term and to integrate the material presented.

In her history of JPP, Kazak observed the changes in the appearance of the journal over time (Supplementary Figure 1). Pediatric Psychology (the newsletter) and the initial volumes of JPP were self-published by the Society of Pediatric Psychology. Routh used “Carolina Blue” for the cover, reflecting his affiliation at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Beginning in 1979, JPP was published by Plenum Press as a journal using a small footprint (6” × 9”) with a light “Carolina Blue” on the cover, which was changed to a more dramatic, darker shade of blue in 1993. Beginning in 1998 and continuing to the present, JPP was published by Oxford University Press and introduced a full-page size journal. The cover color changed with each editor’s term, as is typical in scholarly publishing, mostly retaining the tradition of a blue cover.

With regard to editorial metrics, Kazak presented a summary of trends with respect to submissions, rejection rate, and Impact Factor, using available data from the vale dictums and from Oxford University Press. The number of submissions per year has increased steadily and the rejection rates have also been quite stable, typically over 70% (Figures 3–5). The Impact Factor increased steadily until showing a slight downward trend in the past decade. From a historical perspective of interest are special issues and special sections which have been a consistently important component of JPP (Table II). While the topics of special issues reflect trends in psychology and medicine more generally, JPP has consistently published special issues related to assessment, interventions, training, chronic illness, adolescents, pain, and families.

Table II.

Special Issues and Sections in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology

Editor	Term	Special issue/Section topics (n, if > 1)
Diane Willis	1973–1975	Learning disabilities/hyperactivity
		Enuresis and encopresis
		Abuse and neglect
		Neuropsychology
Donald Routh	1976–1982	Cancer
		Adolescents
		Autism
		Hyperactivity
		Infancy
		Developmental disabilities
		Learning disabilities
		Communication disorders
		Training
		Social skills
		Chronic illness
		Bioethics
Gerald Koocher	1983–1987	Assessment
		Adolescent issues
Michael Roberts	1988–1992	Family issues
		Adherence
		Rehabilitation
		Theory-driven research
		Pain
		Diabetes
		Adjustment to conditions
Annette La Greca	1993–1997	Assessment (3)
		Chronic conditions (6)
		Family (4)
		High risk children (2)
		Interventions (5)
		HIV/AIDS (3)
		Injury (3)
		Craniofacial anomalies
		Hospitalization
		Parental health risk
		International pediatric psychology
		Pediatric healthcare
		Neuropsychology
		Pain
		Peer perceptions
Anne Kazak	1998–2002	Empirically supported treatments Recurrent headache Recurrent abdominal pain Procedure related pain Disease related pain Severe Fading problems Obesity Disease related symptoms Sleep Enuresis Constipation and encopresis Adherence
		Primary care
		International pediatric psychology
		Clinical interventions
		Methodology and design
		Low income and ethnic minority children
		Adolescent health and illness (2)
		Qualitative research
		Otitis media and learning
		Peer relationships
		HV/AIDS and families
Ronald Brown	2003–2007	Training
		Public health
		Cancer survival
		Adolescent smoking
		Dedicated to Lizette Peterson (injury)
		Family based interventions
		Parental substance exposure
		Posttraumatic stress
		Chronic Pain
		Longitudinal research
		Overweight
		ADHD
		Dedicated to Ray Mulhern (cancer)
		HIV
		Broadening scope of research and practice
Dennis Drotar	2008–2012	eHealth
		Genomics
		Quality improvement
		Health care transition
		Rural health
		Tobacco use and second hand smoke exposure Sleep
		Central nervous system (CNS) disorders
		Training
		Reimbursement
		Evidence based assessment
		Family assessment
		Research ethics
		Families, health and culture
Grayson Holmbeck	2013–2017	Quantitative methods
		Direct observation
		Evidence based interventions Chronic pain Needle-related pain and distress Obesity Child pedestrian safety Cognitive interventions (CNS and neurodevelopmental disorders) Parent and family interventions for chronic medical problems Fecal incontinence with constipation Feeding problems Treatment adherence Insomnia Health promotion
		Cost effectiveness Integrated pediatric primary care
		Obesity
		Disorders of sex development
		Injury
		Trauma
		Adherence
		Peer relations
		Family processes and outcomes
		Resilience
		Diversity
		Sleep
		Adolescents and young adults
Tonya Palermo	2018–present	Tribute to Dennis Drotar (adherence)
		Pain
		Neural processes
		Adherence
		eHealth/mHealth
		Historical influences
		Innovations in assessment
		Diversity

Figure 3.

Journal of Pediatric Psychology Annual Submissions 1985–2018.

Note. Submissions per year were reported as an average for 1998–2002 Kazak (2002). Values for 1997 and 2003 were not available.

Figure 4.

Journal of Pediatric Psychology Rejection Rates 1985–2018.

Note. Values for 2002 and 2003 were not available.

Figure 5.

Journal of Pediatric Psychology Impact Factor 1997–2017.

The Early Years of JPP (1969–1983)

Editors Willis and Routh portrayed the early years of JPP when colleagues came together to define the field. Willis had one associate editor and a seven-member editorial board (Richard A. Brown, Phyllis R. Magrab, Lee Salk, June Tuma, Joseph Weaver, Arthur Wiens, and Logan Wright) along with 16 “ad hoc editorial consultants.” Willis noted some important societal changes in the early 1970’s that impacted the types of papers that were being submitted. Specifically, these included Public Law 94-142, Education of All Handicapped Children Act, passed in 1975 that guaranteed a “free appropriate education to each child with a disability” (Education of All Handicapped Children Act, 1975) and led to more papers in JPP on children with disabilities. Another change was broader recognition of child maltreatment as a public health concern and an area of emphasis for psychology. Willis also noted the expansion of neurosciences and the emergence of neuropsychology as a specialty. JPP published four issues a year at this time, including special issues on these three topics.

During Routh’s term, with Associate Editor Gary Mesibov, JPP had its first contract with a professional publisher, Plenum Press, starting in 1979. Unsolicited submissions increased, the popularity of the journal grew, and the journal’s focus on chronic illness became more prominent. During these early years the financial viability of the journal was a major concern. Funded by SPP, itself a fledgling organization, there were concerns about meeting publication costs and discussions of steps that might be necessary to assure that the journal would be sustained (Kazak, 2000).

The 1980’s and 1990’s

Gerald Koocher became editor in 1983. At the outset of his term he announced a plan to cluster papers related by topical area, many of which focused on intervention techniques or specific illness or symptom control issues. There were relatively few literature reviews or conceptual papers. With a successful publishing contract, JPP became profitable for SPP, and increased the number of pages published and expanded its institutional subscriptions (Kazak, 2000). The focus on chronic illness was clear at this time, as was the broad range of types of articles (e.g., case reports, presidential addresses, and data-based papers). Some of the classic articles published in this era included papers in cancer and diabetes. Pediatric psychology was growing rapidly as a field within healthcare and pediatric psychologists were viewed increasingly as the “go to” professional for child health issues in children’s hospitals. Koocher also introduced a book review feature. The number of relevant books published in pediatric psychology and related fields was increasing. Readers were interested in learning about them and critical reviews served an important service.

Michael Roberts succeeded Koocher as Editor in 1988. During his term the journal increased its frequency of publication to 6 issues/year. A new masthead statement highlighted the breadth of the field and remains very similar to the current statement (Table III). Roberts noted that JPP endorsed a policy of “people first language,” noting the importance of humanizing individuals with a medical condition (e.g., “a child with diabetes” rather than “a diabetic”), a consideration that remains timely today but still not universally implemented. Seven articles that were published during Roberts’ term, all related to chronic pediatric illness and issues of coping, adjustment, assessment, or pain were noted to be classics in the Aylward et al. (2008) analysis (Kupst & Schulman, 1988; Lavigne & Faier-Routman, 1992; Perrin, Stein, & Drotar, 1991; Spirito, Stark, & Williams, 1988; Walker & Greene, 1989; Wallander, Varni, Babani, Banis, & Wilcox, 1988, 1989). Special issues were in emerging areas, such as Family Issues, Adherence, Pediatric Rehabilitation, and Theory-Driven Research. During Roberts’ terms, 150 book reviews were published about relevant resources. Roberts also published two books of reprinted JPP articles (Roberts, Koocher, Routh, & Willis, 1993; Roberts & Wallander 1992). In his vale dictum Roberts offered these observations on his term (Roberts, 1992). First, pediatric psychologists are providing competent services that are appreciated by referral sources and parents. Second, pediatric psychologists are clarifying relationships of psychological and pediatric phenomena. And, third, pediatric psychologists are examining issues of ethics, training, and self-definition as a profession.

Table III.

Masthead of the Journal of Pediatric Psychology in 1975, 1988, and 2019

1975

The field and the content of this Journal, are defined by the interests and concerns of psychologists who work in interdisciplinary settings such as children’s hospitals, developmental clinics, and pediatric or medical group practices.

1988

Pediatric psychology is an interdisciplinary field addressing the full range of physical and mental development, health, and illness issues affecting children, adolescents, and families…wide range of topics exploring the relationship between psychological and physical well-being of children and adolescents including: understanding, assessment, and intervention with developmental disorders; evaluation and treatment of behavioral and emotional problems and concomitants of disease and illness; the role of psychology in pediatric medicine; the promotion of health and development; and the prevention of illness and injury among children and youth.

2019

Pediatric psychology is an interdisciplinary field addressing physical, cognitive, social, and emotional functioning and development as they relate to health and illness issues in children, adolescents, and families. The journal publishes papers on a wide variety of topics exploring the interrelationship between psychological and physical well-being of children, adolescents, and families including: psychosocial and developmental factors contributing to the etiology, course, treatment, and outcome of pediatric conditions; assessment and treatment of behavioral and emotional concomitants of disease, illness, and developmental disorders; the role of psychology in healthcare settings; behavioral aspects of pediatric medicine; the promotions of health and health-related behaviors; the prevention of illness and injury among children and youth; and issues related to the training of pediatric psychologists.

Annette La Greca opened her discussion of her term with reference to the dramatic changes in computers and technology in the mid 1990’s, specifically the introduction of the worldwide web (internet) and beginning use of personal computers (with about 1 MB of internal memory). Although email was introduced in academic settings at this time (and America Online and Compuserve more broadly), manuscripts, reviews, and decision letters were still all handled in print by mail. La Greca noted that this challenging environment for science is reflected in the methodology of the studies published in JPP, which were often conducted at single sites with small samples and were cross-sectional in design. With a continued focus on chronic illness (especially cancer and diabetes, but also Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) which reflected increasing public concern about Acquired Immune Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) at that time), important questions related to how to intervene to help children and families and how to apply measures developed for other populations. Over her term, the number of empirical papers increased, and the number of book reviews (deliberately) declined. With respect to papers that continue to be influential currently, La Greca highlighted the strong interest in intervention research and assessment, including multiple special issues devoted to these topics (Table II). Many of the assessment measures developed are still used today. Other major foci were family issues in pediatric psychology, adherence, and peer relationships.

The Early 21st Century

A major change for JPP in the late 1990’s was the decision of the SPP board to change to a new publisher for JPP—Oxford University Press. The selection was based, in part, on having an academic publisher that could advance our standing in healthcare publishing. A contract favorable to SPP with the potential for ongoing revenue and Oxford’s international reputation were also considerations. The changes in technology noted by La Greca continued to accelerate during this time and Oxford offered technological advances that were appealing in moving into the 21st century. For example, JPP became available online for the first time in 2000. During Kazak’s term, the focus on chronic illness continued, with 52% of the published papers falling into this content area. Frequency of publication increased to eight issues per year. Although initially accepting book reviews, Kazak removed this feature later in her term as it became very difficult to obtain timely reviews of new books. During this time, writing book reviews were no longer valued for promotion in many academic institutions and the internet made it easier for readers to learn about new books quickly.

Kazak highlighted two sets of papers initiated during her term with regard to significant accomplishments of the journal. First, the Pioneers in Pediatric Psychology series was developed to illustrate the diverse personal and professional factors that contributed to the success of those recognized as leaders in the earlier years of pediatric psychology. Many of these featured Pioneers served as Presidents of SPP. Grayson Holmbeck and Tonya Palermo have continued the series with 19 papers published to date (Supplementary Table 1).

Second, in response to growing interest in interventions and building on concerted efforts to increase the number of published intervention articles in JPP under prior editors (La Greca, 1997; Roberts, 1992), Associate Editor Anthony Spirito edited a series of 11 review articles in a series on Empirically Supported Treatments in Pediatric Psychology (Spirito, 1999). These papers adapted the recommendations of the APA Division 12 Taskforce on the Promotion and Dissemination of Psychological Procedures (Chambless & Hollon, 1998) to classify interventions at three levels based on research evidence (well-established; probably efficacious; and promising). The series demonstrated that behavioral and cognitive behavioral approaches that were probably efficacious and promising were widely available. The strongest evidence (well-established) was for interventions in pain. The series of papers was later expanded into a book with updated reviews and sample intervention protocols (Spirito & Kazak, 2006). A 2014 special issue of JPP provided methodologically updated systematic reviews of evidence-based interventions showing the dramatic changes in available evidence for a wide range of interventions in pediatric psychology (Palermo, 2014).

The journal continued to grow under the editorship of Ronald Brown and the number of issues was expanded from 8 to 10 issues in 2006 and the Impact Factor increased to its highest level for the journal at 3.2. All submissions and journal business were handled electronically by 2004. Papers related to assessment were the most common type of paper published, with a continued concerted effort during this period to increase the number of scholarly reviews, intervention studies, and randomized clinical trials. During this time, the journal focused on increasing the number of submissions of clinical trials and articles were featured on the conduct of clinical trials (McGrath, Stinson, & Davidson, 2003; Stinson, McGrath, & Yamada, 2003). Papers on cancer and diabetes continued to be prominent with an increase in research on obesity during this time.

The Past 10–15 Years

At the outset of his term, Dennis Drotar set editorial goals related to establishing sections of the journal to address priority research needs (e.g., technology, single subject studies), to improve the timeliness and consistency of reviews and editorial processes, to enhance mentorship in the review process and to encourage case studies and series. To that end, Drotar initiated a mentorship program for junior reviewers, with more than 50 mentees participating in the program during his term (Wu, Nassau, & Drotar, 2011). He also wrote a series of “how to” papers related to research rigor and transparency, guidance about how to write papers and publish, and statistical and methodological issues (Drotar, 2008, 2009a, 2009b, 2009c, 2010). Papers on assessment and genomics were particularly well received. A number of special issues were published during this term (Table II).

Grayson Holmbeck continued the use of special issues to highlight methodology, practice, adherence, peers, families, and specific populations. Some of these (e.g., methodology, evidence-based interventions) are among the most highly cited articles. Holmbeck and Tonya Palermo developed submission guidelines for topical reviews and systematic reviews in order to increase the number of reviews published. With Kazak, 12 Pioneer papers were published and a new type of article (Historical Analysis) was introduced in order to strengthen the historical context of our published work.

With the success of JPP and the overall growth in pediatric psychology generally, SPP launched a second journal in 2013. Clinical Practice in Pediatric Psychology (CPPP), focused on applied and professional issues in pediatric psychology. Published by the American Psychological Association, Holmbeck worked with Jennifer Shroff Pendley and W. Douglas Tynan, the initial editors of CPPP, to assure that CPPP and JPP worked collaboratively to maintain their separate identities while coordinating content. The two journals highlighted their complementary foci in several partnered special issues on the topics of evidence-based interventions in pediatric psychology and on sleep (the latter issue was also published jointly with Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, the publication of the Society of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics).

The current editor, Tonya Palermo, has identified priorities related to mentorship, (including a formal student journal club feature), intervention research and reporting of clinical trials, enhanced quality of methodology and statistics, practical guidance on writing and reporting, expanding the reach of findings, and increasing the participation of physicians and international scientists. She is also focusing on improving the appearance and user friendliness of the website and using more social media outreach including having authors participate in this process. Palermo appointed a new position on the editorial team devoted to the review of transparent reporting requirements for all intervention studies submitted to the journal (Hildenbrand, 2018). This initiative builds and expands on the focus on intervention research from prior editorial terms. Special issues are a continued priority including partnered issues with CPPP.

The Future

Each editor reflected on the future of JPP and the field. Specifically, what will the field be like in another 50 years (i.e., 2069)? The results show remarkable consistency in themes.³ Every editor mentioned the importance of technology and health. This includes burgeoning research in eHealth and mHealth (e.g., apps, ecological momentary assessments), as well as the integration of rapidly developing technology in healthcare more broadly (e.g., robotics, wearables, implantables, and artificial intelligence). Each editor also identified at least one point related to how broader teamwork, settings, and approaches will be common in 50 years. This includes continued use of team science and multidisciplinary/interdisciplinary models to study pediatric psychology issues more comprehensively as well as more assimilation in primary care and schools. With more diseases becoming curable, pediatric psychologists will need to partner closely with colleagues in genetics and neurosciences to contribute to gaps in care and care delivery, including social and environmental contributors to health. In particular, collaborations may focus on testing how genetic polymorphisms are associated with specific behaviors or response to pediatric psychology treatments. The editors were optimistic about continued growth and expansion in pediatric psychology, with new models of training and practice and more diversity in published work. The challenges inherent in funding research and financing clinical services and the impact of the broader socio-political environment were noted as challenges to address. Not surprising given the journal’s history, a continued focus on intervention is foreseen, with pediatric psychologists building on their strong research-to-practice orientation and methodological sophistication to generate more clinical trials and tests of specialized intervention components. With regard to methodological advancements, more experimental paradigms are expected, greater sophistication in statistical analyses, including approaches from other fields is suggested for the future. Also reflecting longstanding commitments in pediatric psychology were expectations for more work in prevention and health promotion and continued growth in international collaborations.

The editors also reflected on future trends in scholarly publishing. There is a sense that publishing will continue to change, based on observations of current trends (e.g., open access), the possibility that strong peer review prior to publication as currently implemented by JPP will be threatened or altered, and that journals as we know them may become obsolete, with more information directly uploaded to the internet (or similar), possibly using different models of editorial and peer review. Changes are also anticipated in how article relevance and journal impact are viewed in the future including use of social media to share science and introduction of new methods of evaluating the impact of science based on extent and dimensions of such sharing.

Conclusions

In surveys of SPP members through the years, JPP has been consistently ranked at the top as a Society benefit for its value and importance to the field. Clearly, the journal on its inception immediately met members’ needs and continued to adapt to changes in the field to expand and develop the field. As SPP has grown over 50 years, so too has JPP. Until the publication of CPPP in 2013, JPP was the only SPP journal and, as such, remains the primary source of information regarding scientific trends and themes in pediatric psychology over time. In some regards the journal’s emphasis has been remarkably consistent, as is evident in the recurring topics for special issues. However, the content also reflects changes in the focus and practice of pediatric psychology and in the evolution of research design and methodologies.

JPP has thrived through the 50 years of publication by providing relevant and significant informational resources to the field of pediatric psychology and other healthcare professions and disciplines. A journal, especially the flagship publication for a scientific and professional society, reflects what is happening in the field, but also helps to shape its future. JPP accomplished this with the enthusiasm and dedication of the editors, authors, and readers. The Journal survived existential and financial challenges in its past, and we might foresee potential changes in the future that may challenge the enormous financial benefits to the Society, but not fundamentally affect its existence. JPP is well established and highly regarded with clear impact and value to the integrative clinical and research field that continues to develop and expand. We anticipate that JPP will continue to adapt, influence, and advance the field in the years to come.

Supplementary Data

Supplementary data can be found at: https://academic.oup.com/jpepsy.

Conflicts of interest: None declared.

Footnotes

1

Readers are encouraged to access the vale dictum articles for detailed data about each editor’s term. The other papers describing the history of JPP similarly provide detailed information reflected in each editor’s SPPAC presentation.

3

The themes were extracted directly from the materials each editor prepared for the SPPAC symposium.

2

Associate Editors terms varied in length and may not correspond exactly to the Editor’s term.

Author notes

This paper is based, in part, on a symposium presented at the Society of Pediatric Psychology Annual Conference (SPPAC) in April 2019 in New Orleans, LA. The third through eighth author order is alphabetical.