Message from the Editor

Although I am not a particular lover of Latin phrases, the well-known expression tempus fugit comes very much to mind as I think about the European Congress of Psychology (ECP) that will take place in Oslo, Norway, in July this year. It really does not seem like two years since we were anticipating the 10th ECP in Prague – thereby planning all manner of activities related to the Journal and a celebration of the 25th Anniversary of the foundation of EFPA – and that I was at the beginning of my second and final three year term as Editor-in-Chief of the European Psychologist (EP). But here we are, making plans for the 11th ECP, for more exciting journal-related activities, and for the hand over to a new Editor-in-Chief as my term of office comes to an end in December this year.

With regard to my final year in office as Editor-in-Chief, I will write more in the last 2009 issue of EP and therefore refrain from lengthy thanks and comments here. However, I think it is particularly appropriate at this time to say a very special thank you to our publishers for their support of EP in general, but especially at the biennial ECPs. Those of you attending the 11th ECP in Oslo will know exactly what I mean – every participant will have received a free copy of the journal in their Congress “Welcome Pack,” many will have taken advantage of their hospitality both at the Hogrefe official stand and at other events, and a few lucky people will be able to read EP free of charge for a year. I think that is worthy of special comment.

While on the subject of publishers and the march of time, I am very much aware of how science and science publishing have developed in recent years – for example, online access has become standard and has increasingly broadened the outreach of our journal. Now, in light of the increasing interest in open access publishing, it is with pleasure that I can draw your attention to an exciting development from our publisher – the OpenMind open access publishing program that will give authors an additional option once their papers are accepted for publication. For more details of what this entails, please read the article by Dr. G.-Jürgen Hogrefe, CEO of the Hogrefe group, at the end of this issue (Hogrefe, 2009, this issue, p. 258).

Concerning the ECP in Oslo, the main Journal activity will be a “Meet the Editor” session where you can hear all the good things about our Journal and why you should support it. As at previous such events, you will also be able to question me, members of the editorial team, and representatives of our publishers, Hogrefe & Huber, about the policies and workings of EP, as well as joining us afterwards for some light refreshments – courtesy of our publishers and EFPA – where discussions can be continued in a more informal atmosphere. Another EP-related activity, and one of which I am particularly proud, is the continuation of the Hogrefe & Huber prize for Best Poster (a year’s free subscription to the European Psychologist), first presented at the Prague ECP in 2007. The prize will be presented at the closing ceremony of the ECP.

Finally, to those of you reading this whilst in Oslo – I hope you enjoy the Congress and your free copy of EP, and that you will find time to join us for the “Meet the Editor” session. This is currently scheduled for Wednesday 8th July, starting at 5 p.m., but please check for location and any last minute changes.