In this issue of our semi-annual newsletter, we once again provide you with news of the International Society of Behavioral Medicine (ISBM) as well as developments in behavioural medicine research and practice from around the world. In his Letter from the President, Redford Williams reports on the appointment of Richard Peter as Interim Chair of the Communications Committee, progress in the revision of the Society’s bylaws, and a number of exciting initiatives for promoting the advancement and application of behavioural medicine in China, Brazil, South Africa, Spain, Portugal, and other regions. Joost Dekker, our new Editor-In-Chief of the International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, identifies the current editorial scope for the journal and its unique niche in the arena of health journals.  

This issue also provides an update on the upcoming International Congress of Behavioral Medicine in Tokyo. Theresa Marteau, Chair of the Scientific Program Committee, reports on the exciting keynote lectures, workshops, master lectures and panels that have been lined up so far. The Local Organizing Committee, chaired by Yuji Sakano, has been making excellent progress with preparations on all fronts; news of the latest developments as well as travel information can be found on the website:  www.icbm2008.jp  Instructions for abstract submissions will be available on the website in early August, so now is the time to start making plans to submit abstracts for symposia, workshops, and oral and poster presentations.

This issue also features several innovative initiatives for advancing the breadth and quality of behavioural medicine research. Norito Kawakami, Chair of the ISBM International Collaborative Studies Committee, describes several activities that the committee is undertaking to facilitate international research collaborations and networks. In addition, we report on a new web-based resource, Measuring Health Constructs, which provides guidance on how to select appropriate constructs and measures for health behaviour research.  Finally, be sure to check out the announcements of the many scientific meetings around the world that will be held in coming year.

Please share news from your member societies and regions with the rest of ISBM by sending in announcements and reports for inclusion in these newsletters. Items for the next issue, scheduled for publication in December 2007, can be sent to my email address:  L.cameron@auckland.ac.nz

There has been good progress on several fronts since my last report on 14 December 2006. 

First, I am very happy to announce that Richard Peter has accepted, and the Board has approved, an interim appointment as Chair of the Communications Committee, replacing Hege Eriksen who is now President-Elect.  An ad hoc committee composed of Ed Fisher, Petra Lindfors, Marc Gellman and myself proposed, and the Board approved, that the $5,000 allocated by the GC in Bangkok to provide administrative and communications support for ISBM governance functions be forwarded to Richard, and he now has an administrative assistant to help him provide this support.  The website is now up and running at http://www.isbm.info/ -- please visit to catch up on the latest news!

Second, I have appointed two ad hoc committees to work on two important projects.  The first, led by Andrew Steptoe with members Linda Baumann, Kazunori Kayaba, Holger Ursin and Antti Uutela, will do a comprehensive review of the Bylaws and propose appropriate revisions in time for the next GC meeting in Tokyo prior to the 10th ICBM in August, 2008.  The second, “ISBM as Change Agent Working Group”, will be led by Strategic Planning Chair Brian Oldenburg and includes Linda Baumann, Graciela Rodriguez and Neil Schneiderman.  Its charge is to develop a proposal for projects whereby ISBM can become a change agent for reducing health disparities in developing regions.  This proposal, hopefully to be ready for consideration by the GC at the 2008 ICBM, will be used to obtain funding from foundations and/or other funding sources to support the new projects. 

Third, I have been working with Membership Chair Neil Schneiderman and others to stimulate existing societies to join ISBM and to foster the formation of societies of behavioral medicine in several regions of the world.  Neil is currently following up with the Chinese Behavioral Medicine Association to ensure that they become members in time for the 10th ICBM in Tokyo next year.  I will be visiting Brazil in late June to give a both a research talk and a presentation on ISBM at the VII Congress of the International Stress Management Association.  I will meet with Ana Maria Rossi and Brazilian colleagues to initiate discussions regarding formation of a Brazilian SBM. 

On 11 May 2007 I had a very constructive meeting in Washington with Dr. Saths Cooper, President of the Psychological Society of South Africa, during which we discussed the steps that need to be taken for the formation of a South African SBM.  We concluded that the next step should be a meeting in South Africa during which Dr. Cooper and his colleagues would convene with a group of ISBM leaders in what will essentially be an awareness-raising and open-ended meeting that begins with mutual exploration of the situation in South Africa and the sorts of behavioral medicine approaches that might be helpful in ameliorating the problems that he and his colleagues see as critical and then moves on to brainstorming about what would be the best next steps to take.  Although this initial meeting will be attended only by South African colleagues, we anticipate that a strong and functioning South African SBM will provide a platform whereby other countries in the region can begin to develop behavioral medicine research and practice, much as the Hungarian society was able to do for the Central and Eastern European SBM.

And lastly, the Board will be holding its 2007 meeting in Madrid on 8 July 2007.  This meeting will be held in conjunction with a joint meeting of the Spanish SBM and the emerging Portuguese society on 5-7 July 2007.  At its last meeting in Bangkok, the GC allocated a sum of US$10,000 that could be used to support activities to promote the development of behavioral medicine in various regions.  In response to a request from the organizers of this Spain-Portugal meeting, the Board approved a grant of US$3,000 to provide support for this joint meeting.  I hope this will encourage other societies and groups in other regions to develop proposals whereby such grants could support their efforts to increase the impact of behavioral medicine in their regions.

Onward!

Redford Williams
President

As of December 2006, Ulf Lundberg has resigned as editor-in-chief. In recent years, IJBM has grown both literally – its pages have gotten bigger to accommodate more high-quality submissions – and figuratively – its impact factor is increasing, an electronic version of IJBM has become available, and IJBM is indexed in Index Medicus and five other major databases. All this has been achieved under the leadership of Ulf Lundberg, editor-in-chief since 2000. We all owe him a debt of gratitude.

It is a great honor for me to follow in my predecessor’s footsteps. I am fortunate to work with a very strong editorial team, consisting of  Michael Antoni (USA), Wolfgang Hiller (Germany), Norito Kawakami (Japan), Christina Lee (Australia), Linda Powell (USA) and Katri Raikkonen (Finland). And I am most grateful to the highly qualified members of our editorial board, listed on the inside front cover of IJBM and representing four continents and thirteen countries, for their willingness to work for the success of IJBM. 
           
IJBM’s editorial scope, recently revised, now reads: “The International Journal of Behavioral Medicine is the official publication of the International Society of Behavioral Medicine. It publishes original research and integrative reviews on interactions among behavioral, psychosocial, environmental, genetic and biomedical factors relevant to health and illness. The scope of the IJBM extends from research on biobehavioral mechanisms; clinical studies on diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation; to research on public health, including health promotion and prevention. As an international journal, the IJBM publishes research originating from all continents. In addition, the IJBM invites research on multinational, multicultural and global aspects of health and illness.”  Thus, in the arena of behavioral medicine, three features define IJBM’s editorial niche:

• IJBM uniquely publishes articles in three fields: biobehavioral mechanisms, clinical care and public health

• IJBM is a truly international journal, with manuscripts coming from all over the world and articles addressing multinational and multicultural issues

• IJBM, as the official publication of the International Society of Behavioral Medicine, offers the Society a platform for scientific discussions

           
IJBM’s continued success depends on the quality and quantity of submitted manuscripts. I have seen strong manuscripts being submitted and accepted for publication. I wish that this trend continues.

Joost Dekker
Editor-in-Chief IJBM

Update on the Scientific Program

Members of the Scientific Program Committee are working to produce a program that promises to bring the best of behavioural medicine from all corners of the globe spanning research from basic physiological processes to epidemiology and health behaviour change. We highlight below the parts of the Program that are confirmed.   The ultimate success of the conference however depends upon all of us encouraging our colleagues (and indeed ourselves!) to submit workshops (deadline: 31 August 2007), symposia and papers (deadline: 1st December 2007) to ensure Tokyo is an ICBM to remember.

Keynote Lectures

We have been able to attract three excellent Keynote Speakers from three continents:

• Peter Gluckman from New Zealand
• Juliana Chan from China
• James Jackson from the USA

Peter Gluckman, Professor and Director of the Liggins Institute at the University of Auckland, has been described as the “top medical researcher in NZ”, having won numerous prestigious prizes. He is an endocrinologist and fetal physiologist working on the hormonal control of growth before and after birth. As a basic medical scientist, he is strongly committed to translating basic medical research into public health policy and practice. His keynote lecture will cover the themes in his recent book: Mismatch: Why our World No Longer Fits Our Bodies.

Juliana Chan is Professor of Medicine and Therapeutics and head of the Diabetes, Endocrinology and Clinical Pharmacology Centre at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She has a particular interest in both the epidemiology and clinical management of diabetes and metabolic syndrome in Asia, including the scientific use of traditional Chinese medicine. Her keynote lecture will provide an Asian perspective on diabetes and the metabolic syndrome.

James Jackson is the Daniel Katz Distinguished University Professor of Psychology and Director of the Institute for Social Research (ISR) at the University of Michigan, where he directs the ISR Research Center for Group Dynamics and the Program for Research on Black Americans. He is also a member of the Institute of Medicine of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. His keynote lecture will focus on health disparities.

The Master Lectures

Our four Master Lecturers are:

• Shin Fukudo from Japan, who will talk about his research on brain-gut links
• Johannes Siegrist from Germany, who will talk on job stress in a globalised economy
• Edith Chen from Canada, who will present her work on the psychobiological  mediators of the link between adversity in life circumstances and illness in children
• Neville Owen from Australia, who will present an update on research aimed at increasing levels of physical activity in the population.

We are currently working to finalise the Master Panels which will cover Tobacco Control, Psychoneuroimmunology, genetic and developmental aspects of obesity, and applications of cognitive behaviour therapy.

• Kerry E. Evers (USA): "Developing interventions based on the Transtheoretical Model of Behavioral Change"
• Bernt Lindahl (Sweden) and Pilvikki Absetz (Finland): "Stress, metabolic syndrome and health behavior change"
• Maria M. Llabre, (USA): "Applications of structural equation models in behavioral medicine research"
• Frank van Lenthe (NL) and Jos Twisk (NL): "Multilevel modeling in health related behavioral research"

We are however seeking more submissions for workshops. The deadline for workshop submissions is 31 August 2007.

Engaging Colleagues in Less Economically Developed Countries

We are working hard to engage our colleagues in Africa where there are some exciting developments in Behavioural Medicine, being fostered by our President who has made it a specific goal of his presidency to develop Societies of Behavioral Medicine in less economically developed countries.

Theresa Marteau
Program Chair, 10th ICBM

News from the ISBM International Collaborative Studies Committee (ICSC)

The ISBM International Collaborative Studies Committee (ICSC) had a meeting on Dec 1, 2006 during the 9th ICBM Congress, Bangkok, Thailand, with its Chair (Norito Kawakami, Japan), Co-Chairs (Holger Ursin, Norway; Per Olof Ostergren, Sweden), James Sallis (USA), and other congress participants.  First, a proposal to invite Prof. Edwin Fisher (USA) as an additional co-chair was approved.

All agreed that it is important to have a simple mechanism for facilitating international collaborative studies within the ISBM. Among action plans which the ICSC will undertake for this purpose is to establish a mechanism through the ISBM website and e-mails networks. As soon as approved by the ISBM board, the ICSC will open its own page within the ISBM website to call for proposals of international collaborations from members and non-members. The ICSC chair and co-chairs will review the proposals and circulate the information to ISBM member societies via e-mail. The proposals also will be posted on the ISBM webpage so that researchers interested in initiating an international collaboration will be able to contact researchers with similar interests. The ICSC also plans to advertise new proposals of international collaboration in the ISBM newsletter, and to arrange meetings during ICBM conferences to exchange ideas on international collaborations.

In addition, a “Needs Survey” will be distributed to member societies in order to identify topics and areas for which societies and their members may be interested in international collaboration. This survey should also provide us with information on ongoing international collaborations.

One ISCS initiative for promoting international collaboration in behavioral medicine is the sponsorship of a network for the study of subjective and unexplained health complaints (INSUHC). The network has a web site (http://www.uib.no/insuhc/) which reports recent publications and activities, including contact information. The ICSC also has a plan to develop an international research network on job stress and perhaps one on social support.

Norito Kawakami, MD
The ISBM International Collaborative Studies Committee Chair
kawakami@m.u-tokyo.ac.jp

New Web-Based Resource for Measuring Health Constructs is Now Available

Measuring Health Constructs: Theory and Research
Building Blocks of Health Behavior Research
www.cancercontrol.cancer.gov/constructs

The U.S. National Cancer Institute has created an open-access, web-based resource for behavioural scientists. Measuring Health Constructs describes major theoretical constructs used in health behavioural research and includes definitions, history, references and state-of-the-art measures.

Written by leading scientists, this resource is designed for researchers in public health, health communications, nursing and psychology. The resource includes:

• Discussions of the meaning, history, and measurement of key constructs, such as dispositional optimism, worry, self-efficacy and perceived control;
• Recommended measures, descriptions of applicable theories, links to publications using the constructs and measures, related constructs and detailed lists of relevant references; and
• Guidance on how best to select appropriate constructs and measures.

By providing a common understanding of the theoretical constructs that serve as the building blocks for behavioural research, this new resource supports consistency across disciplines. This common understanding can help advance theory-based basic and intervention research and facilitate transdisciplinary collaboration.  This resource:

• Clarifies distinctions and commonalities between constructs;
• Makes measures easily available, including information on reliability, validity and current uses—thereby encouraging practical and sophisticated research;
• Simplifies incorporating theory testing and development into research; and
• Facilitates comparison of major theoretical elements.

 This resource was developed by the Behavioral Research Program, one of the organizational units that make up the Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences (DCCP). Robert T. Croyle, Ph.D., is the Director of the DCCP and Acting Director of the Behavioral Research Program. This unit directs a comprehensive program focused on the development, testing and dissemination of disease prevention and health promotion interventions. Research priorities addressed by the Program’s five branches include applied screening, basic and biobehavior, health communication and informatics, health disparities, health promotion, and the prevention, treatment and control of tobacco use. A primary role of the Program is to develop resources that increase the quality, efficiency and rigor of research. Measuring Health Constructs is one such resource that will facilitate the development and assessment of health behaviour theories in a variety of clinical and public health settings.

For more information about the Behavioral Research Program, visit their website: http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/brp/

Symposium Hispano-Luso de Medicina Conductual y Psicología de la Salud. 5-7 Julio 2007 en Madrid, Espaňa. Sociedad Portuguesa de Medicina Conductual, Instituto Europeo de Psicoterapias de Tiempo Limitado, y la Sociedad Esaňola de Medicine Conductual y Psicología de la Salud. Información e inscripciones:  secretaria@psicoterapiadetiempolimitado.com o semeps@yahoo.es

The International Academy of Behavioral Medicine, Counseling and Psychotherapy, Inc. (IABMCP) is co-sponsoring a national conference, Advanced Clinical Training and Strategies: For Experienced Clinicians. This conference will be held on July 19th - July 22nd, 2007 in Boulder, Colorado. A prominent faculty will present on a wide variety of relevant topics. On October 18th- 21st, 2007, the Academy will be co-sponsoring an exciting conference in Tempe, Arizona entitled Innovative Modalities for Psychotherapy. Conference presenters will include Drs. William Glasser and Nathaniel Branden, both IABMCP Diplomates and Members of The Academy's Professional Advisory Council. Significant tuition discounts are available for Academy Diplomates/Members.  For additional information and registration materials, e-mail IABMCP@att.net. Please provide your complete postal address, as the information is better sent via surface mail.  For information about The Academy (including requirements and application materials for Diplomate Status), visit the website: www.IABMCP.net   The Academy currently offers Diplomate status in four areas: Behavioral Medicine, Professional Psychotherapy, Professional Counseling, and Chemical Dependency Counseling.  Clinical Membership is also available. 

The 21st European Health Psychology Society Conference will be held August 15-18, 2007 in Maastricht, The Netherlands. With Health Psychology and Society as its theme, the conference will focus on health promotion and interventions at the population level. Specific sub themes include: interventions at a population level; intervention mapping; collaboration with industry, policy makers, media; e-health; and changing environmental conditions for health. The CREATE and SYNERGY workshops will be held August 12-14, 2007 at Hasselt University in Belgium. The 9th CREATE workshop is Intervention Mapping: Developing Theory- and Evidence-Based Health Promotion Programs; for more information, see www.ehps.net/create/worshops.htm The SYNERGY workshop is Culture, Health and Illness Representations: Developing an International Agenda for Cross-Cultural Health Psychological Research. More information about the EHPS 2007 conference and the pre- and post-conference workshops can be found at:  www.ehps2007.com
 
115th annual convention of the American Psychological Association, August 17-20, 2007, San Francisco, California. Further information can be found on the APA website: www.apa.org/convention07

The First Conference of the Central and Eastern European Society of Behavioral Medicine will be held in Pécs, Hungary on August 20-22, 2007. The theme of the conference is Culture and Health: Regional Challenges and Perspectives of Behavioral Medicine in Central and Eastern Europe. This regional meeting will provide an opportunity for researchers, clinicians and other health care and health policy professionals from Central Eastern European countries to meet and discuss how behavioural medicine research and practice can be used to understand the health issues of countries undergoing rapid political and economic transition and how to address these health challenges in the future. More information can be found at:  www.aok.pte.hu/ceesbm-pecs  or www.ceebm-net.hu

World Conference of Stress: Hans Selye 1907-2007. This conference, which includes the 3rd Cell Stress Society International Congress on Stress Responses in Biology and Medicine, will be held in Budapest, Hungary, 23-26 August, 2007. A primary aim of this meeting is to celebrate the centennial birth anniversary of Hans Selye, the founder of the stress concept who was born in Hungary. For more information, visit www.stress07.com

Societa Italiana di Medicina Psicosociale, affilata alla International Society of Behavioral Medicine: II Congresso Nazionale, Salute, Qualita della Vita e Ben-essere.  31 Agosto – 1 Settembre 2007 en Aci Castello, Catania. Per ulteriori informazioni:  tscrima@tin.it
The Italian Society of Psychological Medicine, affiliate of the International Society of Behavioral Medicine, presents the 2nd National Congress, Health, Quality of Life and Well-Being. August 31-September 2007 in Aci Castello, Catania.  For more information, email:  tscrima@tin.it

The 2nd International Congress on Immune-Mediated Diseases will held in Moscow, Russia on September 10-15, 2007. The event is co-sponsored by GTCbio and the University of Pittsburgh. The congress allows scientists, medical practitioners and specialists, students, research and development experts and patients to meet together every other year and discuss the latest therapeutic, preventive and diagnostic developments in the field. The deadline for abstracts is August 1, 2007. For more information, visit:  www.gtcbio.com/conference/conferenceDetails.aspx?id=91

The American Academy of Pain Management invites you to the 18th Annual Clinical Meeting, Pain Management: Knowledge, Compassion and Care. The event will be held September 27-30, 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit: www.aapainmanage.org

The Fourth International Conference on the (Non)Expression of Emotions in Health and Disease will be held October 22-24, 2007 at Tilburg University in The Netherlands. The conference will offer a broad scope of topics related to the way people express their feelings, factors inhibiting the display of emotions, and the psychological and physiological effects of emotional expression and inhibition. The emphasis will be on research relevant for clinical practice and applications in health psychology, behavioural medicine, psychiatry, and psychosomatics. More information may be obtained from the website :  www.tilburguniversity.nl/faculties/fsw/emotions2007/   or by email: emotions2007@uvt.nl

The United Kingdom Society of Behavioural Medicine’s 3rd Annual Scientific Meeting will be held at the University of Warwick in Coventry, UK on December 10, 2007.  The theme of the meeting is Health and Behaviour: Population or Individual Action for Change? All clinical practitioners, public health physicians, epidemiologists, health psychologists, medical sociologists, health economists, statisticians, nurses and all others interested in behavioural medicine are invited to participate. For more information, visit the UKSBM website: www.uksbm.org.uk

The 5th Annual Scientific Conference of the Australasian Society for Behavioural Health and Medicine (ASBHM) is taking place in Sydney, Australia on 31 January – 2 February 2008.  The conference theme is Behavioural Medicine: Making a Difference to Health.  Abstract submissions are due 1 October 2007. Submissions for Rpaid Communication Posters are due 4 January 2008. See the ASBHM website for more conference details:  www.asbhm.org

The 66th Annual Scientific Conference of the American Psychosomatic Society, A Focus on Liaison in Psychosomatic Medicine: Fostering Interdisciplinary Research and Integrative Patient Care, will take place March 12-15, 2008 in Baltimore, Maryland. Abstract Submissions will begin Summer 2007 with a due date of early October 2007. For more information, visit: www.psychosomatic.org

The 29th Annual Meeting and Scientific Sessions of the Society of Behavioral Medicine USA will be held March 26-29, 2008 in San Diego, California. The theme is Celebrating the Past, Inspiring the Future. The abstract submission deadline is September 17, 2007. For more information, visit: www.sbm.org/meeting/2008

Save the Date! The 2008 National Conference on Child Health Psychology will be held April 10th-12th, 2008 in Miami Beach, Florida. The conference is sponsored by the Society of Pediatric Psychology and the Departments of Psychology and Pediatrics at the University of Miami. Specific themes include: Community and School-based Interventions in Child Health Psychology; Evidence-based Approaches to Assessment in Pediatric Psychology; Evaluating and Treating Trauma in Pediatric Settings, and Motivational Interviewing: Applications to Child Health Psychology. Keynote Speaker Dr. Donna Shalala, former US Secretary of Health and Human Services, will speak on Public Policy and Child Health. Submissions for posters and oral presentations are due October 15, 2007 and may address any topic related to child health psychology. For more information, visit: www.societyofpediatricpsychology.org or www.apa.org/divisions/div54  or the University of Miami Psychology website www.psy.miami.edu/department/announcements.html

ISBM Board and Governing Council Meetings
www.isbm.info/members/members.html (password protected)