The Abstracts of the 40th Annual Conference of the Australian Psychological Society 28 September − 2 October 2005 Crown Promenade Hotel, Melbourne, Victoria

We are pleased to present the abstracts from the 40th Annual Conference of the Australian Psychological Society. This year’s abstracts provide information about individual presentations, symposia, professional fora, workshops and rapid communication posters. All submissions were subject to blind peer review by at least two reviewers. The abstracts are listed in alphabetical order of the first author’s family name. We are extremely fortunate to have attracted five diverse and exciting keynote speakers. Our two international speakers are from Sweden and the Untied States. Professor Gerhard Andersson has conducted research at the cutting edge of clinical psychology: he has developed, implemented and evaluated a number of internet-based intervention programs for the treatment of psychological disorders. Professor Carol Ryff has been conducting research in the area of psychological well being for a number of years. This is a particularly important area for our communities in the 21st century. Carol will provide an overview of the factors related to well being throughout the lifespan. These international speakers are complemented by three excellent local Australian academics. Professor Mark Dadds from the University of New South Wales will provide an overview of changes in clinical child psychology over the last few decades, with a particular emphasis on where we are heading in the next ten years. Professor Deborah Terry will provide insights into the area of social psychology, most particularly the importance of the social identity approach to the study of group processes. Finally, Professor Ross Day has been awarded the APS Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award, and will provide an interesting update on our past and current thinking of perceptual illusions. APS research award winners and APS early career teaching award winners from 2004, and APS Excellence in Teaching Award winners from 2003 and 2004, are also represented. In addition to helping you choose which sessions to attend during the conference, we are confident that this set of abstracts will be a valuable reference source in the future, providing a snapshot of current research and practice in Australian psychology.