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Welcome message from the ChairThe Developmental Section is one of the largest of the British Psychological Society’s sections. It has a mission to promote high quality research into Developmental Psychology and generally to raise the profile of British developmental research in an international arena. These aims are pursued in various ways, one being through the continuing success of the British Journal of Developmental Psychology. The Journal has had an impressive history, acting as an outlet for seminal work on children’s drawing, imagination, communication, attachment, reasoning, theory of mind, developmental disorders (including autism) and many other topics. Currently, with the advent of target articles published alongside peer commentary, the Journal is going from strength to strength.
Another of the main activities of the Developmental Section surrounds the Annual Conference. Usually held in early September, this conference is consistently notable for excellent keynote addresses delivered by internationally outstanding scholars, some based in the UK and some from other parts of the world. Recently, the profile of the conference has been increased even further with the inclusion of high-quality invited symposia that have brought together internationally leading figures. The conference typically has 200 to 250 delegates, making it large enough to ensure quality and variety but small enough to allow free debate and friendliness.
Another aspect of the Section’s mission is to promote the career of young researchers. To this end, the Section offers a variety of prizes and honours. The Neil O’Connor Prize is awarded for an outstanding published article on the topic of developmental disorders by a researcher who is within 10 years of completion of their PhD. The Margaret Donaldson Early Career Prize is for a researcher within 8 years of their PhD, who has made an outstanding impact on the field of Developmental Psychology. The winners of these prizes are invited to give keynote addresses at the Section’s Annual Conference. The Section is also very keen to support PhD students, and we award an annual prize for the best poster presented by a PhD student at the Conference. Furthermore, a number of bursaries are available competitively to offer financial support to PhD students who are giving presentations at the Conference.
In summary, the Developmental Section is thriving, the British Journal of Developmental Psychology is going from strength to strength, and the Annual Conference is lively and exciting. Developmental Psychology is flourishing in the UK.
Christine Howe
Developmental Section Chair
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Awards Call for Applications 2008