The JMHC news: changes and stability. (Editorials).

Although it may seem odd, I am surprised to find myself as the editor of the Journal of Mental Health Counseling. Until the opportunity arose, being a journal editor was never a conscious part of my career goals. Nonetheless, in the past few months of being the editor-elect, I have discovered that, despite the worries, details, and responsibilities, this position is an exciting and enjoyable one.

Moreover, I am especially pleased to be editor of this journal. My interest in and allegiance to this journal is linked to an incident that occurred early in my career. I had submitted a manuscript to JMHC to be reviewed for publication. When the reviews were returned, the editor, Larry Gerstein, sent me a rejection letter that I read and filed. I then began recovering from my disappointment and feelings of rejection. Later in the year, I happened to see Larry at a conference. He asked why I had not revised and resubmitted my manuscript. When I reminded him that he had rejected it, he replied, "No, I didn't. Re-read your letter; I asked you to revise and resubmit it." Clearly, I did not understand some of the nuances of the process of publication or the meaning of "revise and resubmit." Because of this serendipitous encounter, my article was revised with additional statistical analyses and subsequently published. More importantly, I never again expected a first-round acceptance or misunderstood an editor's invitation to revise and resubmit a manuscript. Through his work as editor, Gerstein provided me with a useful professional development experience and captured my allegiance to the JMHC.

BUILDING ON THE SHOULDERS OF THE PAST

The previous editors, Weikel (1979), Wiggins (1980), Seligman (1984, 1988), Gerstein (1987), Ginter (1993), and Kelly (1996), along with their editorial boards, have established and developed a scholarly and useful journal that serves several purposes and constituencies, in particular the members of the American Mental Health Counselors Association (AMHCA). JMHC is one of the ways that AMHCA and mental health counselors (MHCs) endorse their commitment to research, theory, and development of the profession and its professionals. The dialogue that occurs through the journal's contributors and readers represents an interdisciplinary, scientist-practitioner exchange for students as well as early- and later-career professionals. The primary focus is on health care services and the evolving knowledge base, including the history and current status of MHC and its identity.

As a vehicle of intra- and inter-professional dialogue, especially on emerging and stable issues that have an impact on the practice of MHC, the journal publishes articles on all aspects of practice, theory, research, and professionalism. Because many MHCs are in practice positions, authors need to identify how their conceptualizations and findings are relevant to service delivery. Furthermore, because we live in a technologically linked, global economy where cultures bump up against one another, it is imperative that authors discuss their theoretical and scientific ideas in relation to multicultural diversity (e.g., ethnicity, age, capableness, gender, religion, geographical area) and the broader social context (e.g., the socio-economic-historical times, the multicultural-family matrix). Changes in the social environment influence whether the beliefs, rules, and traditions we were raised with continue to be congruent with healthy, effective living. For instance, many of the patterns from the so-called traditional family of the 1950s seem inconsistent with the opportunities and challenges to romantic relationships and family life in the new millennium. In addition, social changes bring forth new concerns for MHCs to address. With the technological advances and the aging of the United States' population, older individuals, couples, and their families, seeking the mental health counseling services that were beneficial during their younger years, will popularize a new set of issues such as caregiving older generation adults, repairing family rifts while grieving an older parent's life-threatening illness or impending death, and generating vigor and engagement in retirement years. Through its articles, the JMHC provides a forum for timely dialogue about issues relevant to people's lives and work and also demonstrates leadership for inclusivity and nonbiased community.

THE NEXT THREE YEARS

Because I think the journal currently reflects a solid professional quality and a sensible organization, my plan is to maintain its usefulness and relevance for its readers and professional organization. That is, according to the Southern expression, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." There must, however, be some changes, albeit minor ones. As for potential innovations, I have two ideas which are designed to make JMHC more interactive and of greater benefit to its readers. As suggested by Midge Williams, AMHCA's 2001-2002 president, it might be useful to have a column, special issue, or a series of articles related to psychopharmacology. Second, borrowing from Bill Weikel (1979) and stimulated by the AMHCA Board's suggestion, it might be possible to initiate a "Reflections Page" with comments or special columns from the editorial board, the AMHCA board, or the journal's readers.

Also, with the transition in editorship comes a change in the JMHC's Editorial Board. The newly appointed Board includes professionals who are continuing as well as newly associated with the journal. The Associate Editors, Jim Rogers and Alex Hall, have an ongoing history with the Editorial Board; and the reviewers include both senior and junior professionals, as is consistent with the traditions of this journal. These voices will be an important part of reflecting and shaping mental health counseling during the next three years, as these individuals devote their time and expertise to reviewing manuscripts. Like the persons who write their research, theoretical, and professional ideas, the Board members provide an important and valuable service that strengthens the vitality of the journal and the profession. These professionals, who strive to provide feedback to authors that is fair, educational, and useful, perform the task primarily out of their commitment to the profession, accomplishing timely, expert reviews even when pressured by other career obligations and aspirations. Because this team has been together for several months, I can already say that they are a pleasure to work with. I think the spirit of the profession and its journal is also reflected by the transition that I have experienced as editor. I deeply appreciate Kevin Kelly's thoughtfulness, knowledge, and availability, at the moment, for questions and processing related to editing the journal. To borrow the word used by Mark Hamilton, Executive Director of AMHCA, the transition has been "seamless."

A Profile

I believe the editor's style influences the journal and its contents, and so I want to tell readers and potential authors a bit about myself. First, mental health counseling is a good fit for me, philosophically and psychologically, because of its holistic-contextual approach and its emphasis on health. Both of these elements consider the shaping forces and governing principles that (a) enhance a life process of growth, development, and differentiation and (b) militate against structural or functional impairments that hamper functioning. The profession's emphasis is on the qualities that support life, well-being, and soundness of mind, body, and spirit. Second, I have contributed to this journal as an author, ad hoc reviewer, Editorial Board member, or Associate Editor through the editorships of Gerstein, Ginter, and Kelly. So, I have a strong investment in and a history with the JMHC.

Third, my strongest and most enduring scholarship centers on attachment theory in adult romantic relationships and the counseling relationship. As a corollary to attachment theory, I am interested in professional development, and find teaching family systems courses to be invigorating and rewarding. Recently, I have become curious about those romantic relationships that flourish despite geographical distance. One of the reasons that commuter relationships are interesting is that people seem to intuitively believe that such relationships are somehow inherently flawed or the partners are not really connected and involved with one another. The available research, however, contradicts these beliefs. This seems to be a situation where the data illuminates implicit assumptions that are not particularly accurate, or at least warrant scholarly examination. Knowledge about commuter relationships can help professionals and the public better understand love relationships and the elements essential to their effectiveness in today's world.

Fourth, I believe that published work needs to be well written. Good writing is a complex, often time-consuming, and extremely important task that benefits both authors and readers. I currently teach a research practicum course which focuses strongly on writing for publication. As I tell my students, the author's work is benefited when the readers' effort is minimal; and, conversely, the author's work is disadvantaged when readers have to fill in meaning, re-read sentences to get clarity, or labor through a choppy paragraph structure. Grammar, synthesis, integration, conciseness, varied sentence structure, and topic sentences for paragraphs illuminate the rationale and scholarship so that the contribution to the literature is clear rather than obscured. Relatedly, as I have discovered from my own experience, the editorial review process contributes to enhancing the clarity and quality of the writing. For instance, Steve Duck, in his editor's feedback to me on one of my earliest submissions, reduced my first three manuscript pages to a single sentence! I am convinced that if even one reviewer does not understand what I am trying to say, then it is likely that several readers will miss the point or stop reading my article. So, I will be looking for manuscripts to be well written, focused and organized, and founded on evidentially based reasoning. Nonetheless, effective writing, despite stylistic differences among authors, is a skill that continues to develop. Like previous JMHC editors, I hope "to recognize a potential contribution" (Ginter, 1993, p. 225) and guide the author toward a more effective presentation of competent work. In this way, I can both thank and pass along the lessons from those editors who helped me to learn the process and skill of writing for publication.

Finally, sometimes a topic seems to call to me, as if the material resonates with my reasons for becoming a professional helper-educator. I can explain this point by referring to my reactions to the events of September 11, 2001. I love New York City and visit as often as possible. At the world trade center in June, 2001, I was taking a picture, trying to get the twin towers in the background, when a friend said "Don't worry about getting those buildings. They will be there!" I was strongly affected by the tragedy to the city, its people, and the nation. Although the damage and the fear induced by the events were horrific and traumatic and will be felt by service providers for months and years (Hamilton, 2001), I was most struck by people's strength, health, and coping, which co-existed with the expected reactions to trauma. The experience stimulated questions for me: "To what extent do we understand the layer of persons' social-personal matrix that generates or sustains courage and healthy, productive responses to tragic and incomprehensible events?" For me, the question is slanted differently than "how do we respond effectively to community crises?" As a profession that conceptualizes persons holistically (i.e., physically, socially, emotionally, spiritually, vocationally) within their context, my concern is "can we better understand the pieces or dimension of persons that form courage, connecting-in-crisis, `stepping up to the plate,' conviction, heroism, and integrity in purpose and connection?"

This reflecting and searching sensitized me to a line in a Law and Order rerun. In the TV show, the character of Jack McCoy, depicted as an assistant district attorney of New York City, stated in one program, "If you deny evil, you deny responsibility." In the context of the events of September 11th, I wonder about the extent to which our profession struggles with and identifies the parameters of good and evil, the borders of crime and psychopathology, or the limits of counseling. To what extent is counseling a suitable means for modifying destructive behaviors such as domestic violence, crime, and terrorism? Are there elements, which we have not yet studied, that define individuals' commitment to forces that order their lives in harmful versus benign or benevolent ways? These topics appeal to me because they connect with the current zeitgeist and speak to mental health counseling. That is, when reflected in professional work, the topics are consistent with preserving and restoring mental health, which is the quintessential element of MHC's identity (Seiler & Messina, 1979) and so a defining commitment of JMHC.

REFERENCES

Gerstein, L. H. (1987). A possibilist looks to the future: AMHCA's journal during the fourth generation. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 9, 131-133.

Ginter, E. J. (1993). A period of transition for the Journal of Mental Health Counseling: What we can learn from Necker cubes and stones. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 15, 221-227.

Hamilton, W. M. (2001, November/December). The day that changed the world. Advocate, 24, p. 3.

Kelly, K. R. (1996). Looking to the future: Professional identity, accountability, and change. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 18, 195-199.

Seiler, G., & Messina, J. J. (1979). Toward professional identity: The dimension of mental health counseling in perspective. American Mental Health Counselors Journal, 1, 3-8.

Seligman, L. (1984). Introductions and goals of the AMHCA Journal. American Mental Health Counselors Association Journal, 6, 102-103.

Seligman, L. (1988). The AMHCA Journal: 1983-1986. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 10, 23-28.

Weikel, B. (1979). Editorial. American Mental Health Counselors Association Journal, 1, 62-63.

Wiggins, J. D. (1980). Transitional times. American Mental Health Counselors Association Journal, 2, 2-3.

M. Carole Pistole, Ph.D., is an associate professor, Department of Educational Studies, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN. Email [e-mail].