Professional Documents
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2007 Regional Report PDF
2007 Regional Report PDF
2007 Regional Report PDF
PSYCHOLOGISTS
T he Second Middle East and North Africa Regional Conference of Psychology was held in Amman from 27
April – 1 May 2007 under the Royal Patronage of Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah and the auspices
of the International Union of Psychological Science, the International Association of Applied Psychology, and
the International Association of Cross-Cultural Psychology. It was hosted by the Jordanian Psychological
Association whose President was Dr. Asaad Zuby. The President of the Conference and the Local Organizing
Committee was Dr. Adnan Farah, the Chair of the Scientific Program Committee was Dr. Mohammad Rimawi,
and the Chair of the Regional Advisory Committee was Dr. Marwan Dwairy. The Conference succeeded in
attracting participants from 28 countries, including 15 from the Middle East and North Africa region. The
Scientific Program explored ways and means to promote the role of psychology in meeting life challenges at
regional and international levels. The Conference concluded with the signing of a formal Declaration which
called upon governments, academic and professional institutions and organizations, non-governmental
organization and other civil society groups, and the United Nations, to work together and to make every
possible effort individually and collectively to achieve these goals.
Correspondence should be addressed to Professor Michael Knowles, Faculty of Business and Economics, N6.28, Department of
Management, Monash University, PO Box 197, Caulfield East, Melbourne, Victoria 3145, Australia.
(E-mail: Mike.Knowles@BusEco.monash.edu.au).
# 2008 International Union of Psychological Science
http://www.psypress.com/ijp DOI: 10.1080/00207590801983967
MENA REGIONAL CONFERENCE, AMMAN 131
L a Segunda Conferencia Regional de Psicologı́a para el Norte de Africa y para Oriente Medio se celebró en
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Amman del 27 de Abril al 1 de Mayo del 2007 con el patrocinio de su Majestad la Reina Rania Al-
Abdulllah y los auspicios de la Unión Internacional de Psicologı́a Cientifica (IUPsyS), de la Asociación
Internacional de Psicologia Aplicada y la Asociación Internacional de Psicologı́a Transcultural. El anfitrión fue
la Asociación Jordana de Psicologı́a que preside el Dr. Asaad Zuby. El presidente de la Conferencia y del Comité
Local Organizador fue el Dr. Adnan Farah, el presidente del comité cientı́fico fue el Dr. Mohammad Rimawi, y
el president del Comité Asesor Regional fue el Dr. Marwan Dwairy. Participaron en la conferencia
representantes de 28 paı́ses, quince de ellos de Oriente Medio y del Norte de África. El programa cientı́fico
exploró modos y medios de propiciar la intervención psicológica a la hora de promover cambios en el estilo de
vida regional e internacional. La Conferencia concluyó con la firma de una Declaración convocando a los
gobiernos, a las instituciones académicas y profesional, a organismos no gubernamentales, a otros grupos sociales
y a las Naciones Unidad para actuar de modo conjunto y aportar todo tipo de esfuerzos individuales o colectivos
para la consecución de tales metas.
included a practical emphasis on healing both findings were a higher rate of mortality and
mental and psychosomatic disorders. increased levels of post-traumatic stress disorder
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The early decades of the 20th Century saw the (PTSD), tension, stress, depression and death
advent of the scientific study of psychology when obsession. Other effects of traumatic events
Egypt and Lebanon became the first Arab included pessimism, anhedonia, fatigue, somatic
countries in which modern psychology began to complaints, weak concentration and sleep pro-
emerge. Other countries such as Syria, Iraq, and blems.
Sudan introduced scientific psychology around the For example, two studies from Kuwait con-
middle of the 20th century with most of the cerned the effect of the 1990 Iraqi invasion on
remaining Arab countries following in the 1960s. Kuwaiti civilians who remained in their home
As in most Western countries, the Universities country during the occupation and the effect of the
were the cradle of this development. Today the current war in Iraq on the memory of young
MENA region has an overall population of well Kuwaitis. The first study reported a 20 per cent
over 100,000,000 people and in it the number of higher rate of fatality plus dramatic changes in
trained psychologists is steadily growing. health and mental health, especially PTSD. The
second study found that the young Kuwaitis
experienced intrusive images of tortured and
THE SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM
mutilated bodies, and either obsessive, anxious
vigilance about the war or complete disengage-
The content and structure of the 2nd MENARCP
ment, as well as increased post-invasion aggres-
was planned around the general theme of
sion, use of drugs and alcohol, and promiscuity.
‘‘Psychology and Modern Life Challenges’’ and,
Many of these young Kuwaitis also reported
as would be expected, the majority of its presenta-
increased mistrust, nationalism and ethnic chau-
tions reflected the issues and concerns of the
vinism, no sense of future or future planning,
Middle East and North Africa. The Scientific
numbness and emptiness, and insecurity and
Program encompassed 20 Keynote Addresses, 6
confusion about human accountability, i.e., who
Workshops, 4 Round Table Discussions, and 56
to blame for their traumatic experiences.
Individual Papers—which, for the sake of analysis,
In another study, the relationship between
have been grouped under seven major themes:
stressful events and aggressive behaviour was
(1) the role of psychology in disasters and crisis examined among university students. It was found
intervention; that the most common aggressive behaviours were
(2) psychological aspects of terrorism; aggression toward self, aggression towards others,
(3) psychology, psychiatry and mental health and aggression directed toward university aca-
issues; demic staff, in that rank order. A study conducted
(4) cross-cultural issues; for the national Police Service in Iraq on what has
(5) wider, etic issue and local, emic issues; been described as ‘‘the most dangerous job in the
(6) fundamental experimental psychology; and world’’ (The Washington Times, February 23,
(7) the profession of psychology. 2005) confirmed that recruits to the Police
Service experienced high levels of trauma and
Each will now be briefly discussed. stress and showed elevated levels of PTSD
symptoms. Another study investigated the effect
Theme 1: The role of psychology in disasters of war broadcasting upon children with respect to
and crisis intervention PTSD and supplementary disorders such as
depression and anxiety. Results showed that
Because life in recent decades in a number of PTSD disorders varied with age and sex, with
countries in the region has been characterized by female children as the most vulnerable group.
traumatic events affecting many people, and Significant correlations were also found between
because exposure to multiple traumas is common, PTSD, depression and anxiety.
it is not surprising that the largest number of In keeping with the high levels of trauma and
papers at the Conference could be grouped under stress experienced by those who are directly
this heading. A good deal of the public health, involved in horrific events, research has also
epidemiological, psychological and psychiatric shown similar problems of trauma and stress in
research reported at the Conference examined the those indirectly involved in these events such as
consequence of invasion and occupation, and relief workers and counsellors. The consequences
covered issues relating to war, suicide, death and of this type of work were discussed in a Capacity
trauma as well as natural disasters. The common Building Workshop titled ‘‘Peace in the Middle
MENA REGIONAL CONFERENCE, AMMAN 133
East: What can Psychologists do?’’ This forum anxiety disorders, uni- and bipolar mood disor-
brought together representatives from the national ders, borderline personality disorder and antisocial
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psychology societies and associations in the region. personality disorders were frequently the conse-
Participants shared their experiences in under- quences of family violence. It was also reported
taking this kind of work. One point to emerge that, because violence could be either the cause
from the discussions was a call for attention to the and/or the effect of these conditions, a vicious
positive changes that can follow disasters, often circle may arise to compound the problem.
called post-traumatic growth. This emphasis was
supported by results from a study conducted after Alzheimer’s. This study examined the effect of
the earthquake in Turkey where it was found that Alzheimer’s on the caregiver—often a family
relief work was perceived to be an important life member who presides over the degeneration of
experience that was bolstered by feelings of self- someone they dearly love while being required to
efficacy, compassion, and the significance of cope with personal insults, negotiating unrealistic
community solidarity. Similar results were also requests, and witnessing a continuous slide of the
reported after the earthquake in Algeria where patient into derangement. For many it is a
techniques including the psychotherapy of reliev- thankless, twenty-four hours a day and seven days
ing and collective sharing were used, and where a week task that the caregiver is required to accept
psychology now constitutes one of the pillars of with grace and goodwill. In this context, this paper
public health. focused upon what has come to be called
Other papers also dealt with the application of ‘‘Caregiver’s Dementia’’, a term used to describe
crisis intervention techniques specific to particular the overpowering symptoms of stress, fatigue, and
crisis situations, models of crisis intervention, forgetfulness that often come with the role of the
assessment instruments in crisis intervention, crisis Alzheimer’s caregiver. It was explained that the
intervention planning, and service delivery in a term is not intended to refer to a biological
variety of local agencies. For example, one study dementia but to a stress-induced psychological
reported on the effectiveness of a counselling condition that has become increasingly common:
program in alleviating the severity of PTSD One estimate is that approximately half of all
among Palestinian children who experienced Al caregivers struggle with this form of clinical
Aqsa Intifada. depression.
Theme 2: Psychology, psychiatry and mental Drugs and drug addiction. One study examined
health issues the relationship between drug use and anger.
Using the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety
Psychology in the Middle East plays a major role Inventory, it was found that drug-addicted
in the assessment of mental health, and the patients recorded statistically significant higher
profession works in close collaboration with other levels of both trait and state than anger than non-
professions, especially psychiatry, medicine, and addicts. This research also described a treatment
law. Papers in this group dealt with mental health program that was based on increasing the addict’s
screening, assessment and management of different understanding of the nature of anger emotion,
disorders, comparisons of efficacy of drug and mechanisms for dealing with it, and mechanisms
non-drug treatment programs, the promotion of for preventing relapses in the condition. The
mental health and well-being, and advances in efficacy of the therapeutic program in decreasing
behavioural medicine, psychiatry, and law. The state and trait anger was significantly different
following is a summary of examples of papers compared with that of control group. Another
addressing the specific topics of family violence, study examined attitudes toward drug addiction
Alzheimer’s, drugs and drug addiction, and health among Iranian high school students and showed
care delivery. that more positive attitudes toward drugs and drug
addiction were associated with field of study
Family violence. The results of one study found (humanities), home conditions (extended house-
that the perpetrators of family violence were holds lacking friendly relations), and leisure
characterized by low intellectual function, activities (more positive attitudes among students
impulsivity, poor socioeconomic status, sadism who did little to no exercise and who spent their
and psychopathic traits. The victims were mostly spare time with friends). The results also showed
females and children who sustained both physical that boys had more positive attitudes toward drugs
and psychological harm. Conditions such as and drug addiction than girls.
134 KNOWLES AND SABOURIN
Health care delivery. In recent years, psychother- country of origin, perceptions of the receiving
apeutic interventions have shifted toward a new country, and social interactions within school and
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orientation in which the focus is on a patient’s community. In another paper, four case studies in
strengths and resources rather than on their Kuwait were presented to examine how adoles-
weaknesses or limitations. A variety of terms such cents attempt to construct personal identity within
as solution-oriented, solution-focused, brief, stra- the host society and cope with issues such as race,
tegic, narrative, and constructivist therapy have class and culture. The principal results showed
been used to describe this new approach to that individuals do not need to sacrifice their
psychotherapy. A Workshop provided an intro- personal or social selves but can lead dual lives
duction to this model and covered a range of within their particular social context. These results
topics including: underlying assumptions to create were similar regardless of sex and/or age. They
possibilities; how to define problems; co-creating also indicated that a critical factor affecting
conversations for change through ‘solution talk’; adolescents’ ability to resolve conflicts arising
changing how the problem is viewed; changing the from the competing demands of multiple cultural
patterns of actions and interactions surrounding worlds involved bonds or attachments among
the problem; depathologizing by rewriting significant adults at home and at school.
‘‘spoiled identity’’ stories; possibilities and colla- The preservation of ethnic identity has also been
boration to avoid blaming with clients using their an issue for psychologists and educators concerned
expertise; and creating a positive vision of the with the threat to ethnicity and the vulnerability of
future for clients and their families. Another self-esteem and well-being among ethnic minority
Workshop dealt with emotional intelligence (EQ) groups. Another study investigated the relation-
and coached participants in the use of methods to ship between ethnic identity and self-esteem
increase people’s understanding of their emotions, among fourth-generation Armenian high school
the components of EQ, and the resources available students in Lebanon.
to manage effectively. A number of studies focussed upon differences
across cultures. The results of this research may be
summarized as follows:
Religion and psychological characteristics were designed to help health and mental health profes-
compared in a number of studies. One study sionals develop insight and skills in working with
investigated the relationship between altruism and diverse populations differing in age, sex, socio-
religiosity in a United States Christian sample and economic status, sexual orientation, disability,
a Jordanian Muslim sample. It was found that religion, education, profession, and immigration.
orthodoxy, fantasy, empathy, and extrinsic reli- Another paper raised methodological issues in this
gious orientation correlated significantly with type of work. For example a study of attitudes
altruism in the United States sample, and that toward counselling among Jordanian students
extrinsic and intrinsic religious orientation corre- found unacceptably low reliability estimates (a 5
lated significantly with altruism in the Jordanian .14) in the sample. These results led to a call to
sample. One of the Keynote Addresses also dealt researchers to create culturally-specific instru-
with religious beliefs across countries and com- ments in this line of research rather than translate
pared the role of the family in influencing the and use Western measures.
development of values in dominant religions Differences in culture and how to manage such
such as Christian Orthodoxy, Catholicism, differences were also addressed. One paper
Protestantism, and Islam. described the work of Questscope, a non-govern-
mental organization for social development in the
Middle East whose aim is to incorporate marginal
Theme 4: Etic and emic issues communities and their children into mainstream
Jordanian society. It involves: (a) an ongoing
Today, many of the world’s problems such as program development/evaluation model docu-
influenza pandemics, SARS outbreaks, terrorism, menting the improvements of marginalized youth
forced migration, refugee struggles, and immigra- from participation in Questscope’s youth mentor-
tion are global. To address these problems, there is ing and related programs; (b) the development of
a need to pool resources, strengthen collaboration, community-based programs throughout Jordan;
and share knowledge and experiences. In one (c) the development of an extensive cadre of
paper, a model to reach across disciplines and socially aware and involved young professionals
international boundaries to bring together part- who have been trained as mentors, and; (d)
ners to provide education, training, and research adoption of this model through Questscope’s
programs in the primary care, behavioural health- agreements with Jordan’s Ministry of Social
care, and public health area was presented. This Development and Ministry of Education.
model included creating a Global Health Another paper described peace-building efforts
Consortium. A Keynote Address focused upon in the three southern provinces of Thailand where
some of the major issues that are likely to affect ongoing ethno-political conflict between Muslims
psychology around the world. These include the and Buddhists has escalated to the point where
effects of pre-college education, the relationship violence has ruptured community relations. Using
between the demographics of a society’s psychol- an action research methodology the author
ogy and the society’s human population, the worked with community leaders to develop an
increasing participation of psychological scientists approach that was grounded in the local culture
in interdisciplinary programs, the implementation and utilized indigenous wisdom and spirituality.
of evidence-based practice, and the vital impor- Through the use of narratives, participants
tance that psychology become a truly international described their experiences of the conflict, the
discipline. effects of the ongoing conflict on communities and
There was also attention to the need to families, and the healing that occurs in the process
recognize the importance of regional issues and of collaboration.
to respect local culture, values, and practices. A third issue examined the need to strike a
Three presentations dealt with issues in this area. balance between global and local demands. The
One Keynote Address highlighted the importance issues raised in a Keynote Address were continued
of taking culture into consideration in clinical and in the associated Roundtable Discussion which
consulting work where many cultural differences dealt with the challenge of formulating a Universal
are subtle but have a profound impact upon Declaration of Ethical Principles for
results. The speaker noted that differences in Psychologists. A draft declaration was presented
values and attitudes require an ability to accept and comments and advice on the cultural appro-
new perspectives in order for cross-cultural priateness of the definitions, concepts, and
136 KNOWLES AND SABOURIN
language used in the draft were solicited to move East). Although there are different types of
the project further towards developing a universal terrorism in South-east Asia, much occurs in
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declaration that is sensitive to national and situations where the majority of the population is
cultural differences and relevant to local commu- Islamic and where the terrorist operates in a
nities and indigenous values. supportive and conducive environment. Although
The contrast of global and local values was this type of terrorism is similar to that found in
addressed in a report of an action research study some other parts of the world such as Palestine,
focusing on the effects of religious rites on children. Iraq, Afghanistan, and Chechnya, it is different
Every year Muslims around the world celebrate a from the sort of terrorism encountered in Ireland,
religious holiday with a festival called Eid al-Adha England, France, Spain, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and
in Arabic, Kurban Bayrami in Turkish, and the the Philippines. The paper dealt with the way
Festival of Sacrifice in English. In this religious terrorism has developed in South-east Asia and the
holiday, the central theme is the sacrificial killing of institutions that have grown to support it, drawing
a lamb or another animal in the name of God. upon the Indonesian experience as an example.
Because this practice is frequently witnessed by The paper then examined the process by which a
children, and because it is well-known that young person becomes a terrorist and the factors
children have difficulty understanding death, the conducive to the making of a terrorist. Lastly,
negative psychological consequences of exposure to the paper discussed strategies for managing
the killing of such animals were outlined in this terrorism in general and the terrorist in particular
action-research study conducted in Turkey in 2005 with emphasis on rehabilitation rather than
and 2006. incarceration.
from the chronic disease of cancer where it was addressed, as were the conditions that foster the
found that a positive self image and perceptions creation and growth of psychology as a profession,
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favoured patients’ acceptance of the disease and including funding through membership fees to
fostered the development of positive attitudes establish an active professional society or associa-
toward treatment. tion, and robust psychology departments.
One Keynote Address reported research inves- These points were illustrated by examples from
tigating plasticity and reorganization of the brain the American Psychological Association (founded
following sensory loss. Using ERPs, fMRI and in 1892) in one paper, and were contrasted with
PET imaging methodologies with blind subjects, it those of the Jordanian Psychological Association
was found that some of these stimuli evoke activity (founded in 1995) in another. The Jordanian
in the visual cortex, as well as in their designated Psychological Association has grown to the point
cortical regions, and that such activity was where it holds a national conference in psychol-
correlated with performance. Also, it was shown ogy, regulates the practice of psychology in
that cochlear implants in deaf subjects that re- collaboration with the Ministry of Health, issues
establish the function through prosthesis can and maintains a code of ethics for practicing
either reactivate the auditory cortex and lead to psychological services, conducts training work-
improved auditory performance or else the cortex shops, and participates in community awareness
continues to respond to relevant visual stimulation programs through media, lectures and symposia.
and interferes with a number of auditory func- Another Keynote Address described the devel-
tions. In other words, in the absence of input from opment of psychology in South Africa. Its history
a sensory system, the brain reassigns cortical was chequered, ranging from repression during the
‘‘territory’’ to other sensory systems. nation’s oppressive past to current prominence in
Another Keynote Address reported on the the country’s society which now enjoys universal
sensory modalities of newborn babies. After a education. Advances in the establishment of
review of the newborn’s wide range of sensory professional training programs in psychology, the
abilities, including hearing sounds, smelling aro- growth of organized psychology, and the develop-
mas, tasting, seeing, and responding to tactile ment of the private practice of psychology were
stimulation, the Keynote reported a series of described.
studies of tactile stimulation and responses of Another model for the national development of
pleasure and annoyance, suggesting that how psychology was illustrated by a paper describing
babies respond differentially to pleasant and Germany’s experience. The Society for
unpleasant stimulation may form the basis of later Experimental Psychology, established in 1904,
classical and operant conditioning. was renamed the German Psychological Society
(Deutsche Gesellschaft für Psychologie, DGP) in
1929. In 1946, the Association of German
Theme 7: The profession of psychology Professional Psychologists (Bundesverband
Deutscher Psychologinnen und Psychologen,
In this theme, papers covered the training, accred- BDP) was founded. Both organizations cooperate
itation and licensing of psychologists, the curricula at the national level as the Federation of German
of psychology in a changing world, and the Psychologists’ Associations. The Association of
regional and national organization of psychology German Professional Psychologists is also a
as a profession. One Keynote Address dealt with member of the European Federation of
issues specific to professional practitioners, parti- Psychologists’ Associations (EFPA), whose range
cularly in the traditional fields in the health and of activities was described in another Keynote
mental health areas such as clinical, counselling, Address that covered the historic development of
school, and health psychology. What was empha- EFPA, its Member Associations of 34 national
sized was the importance of striking a balance in associations or societies of psychology throughout
training between coursework, practical training to Europe, its authorizing or accrediting procedures,
develop therapeutic skills, and required experi- and the development of EuroPsy, the European
ence, plus the subsequent evaluation of such certificate of psychological competencies.
University or College training programs by The EFPA experience has particular relevance
the professional society or association. The for the MENA region. This issue was raised in a
development of ethical standards and codes of Keynote Address that discussed topics such as
conduct, the licensing of psychologists, the impor- psychology university curricula, the qualification
tance of legal and public recognition and protec- and training of psychologists, professional and
tion of the title of psychologist were also ethical standards, and licensing systems, This
138 KNOWLES AND SABOURIN
raised the possibility of developing a unified Sabourin, M., & Knowles, M. C. (2004). Middle East
approach among Arab-speaking countries for the and North Africa Regional Conference of
Psychology, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
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training and licensing of psychologists, and International Journal of Psychology, 39, 145–152.
discussion included the value of developing colla- Zhang, H. (1996). Asian-Pacific Conference of
borative professional networks among countries. Psychology, Guangzhou, China. International
Another Keynote Address described how a core Journal of Psychology, 31, 59–60.
group of psychologists from Indonesia, India, Sri
Lanka, and Thailand came together in a Capacity-
building Workshop to share ideas, programs, and APPENDIX
plans in the wake of the Indian Ocean tsunami in
December 2004 that has since led to the develop-
ment of psychology at the regional level. Amman Declaration, May 2007
In contemporary society, psychologists work in
collaboration with many other professions. One of
the conference’s Workshops dealt with the inter-
Preface
face between psychology and law. It defined the
multiple roles that psychologists play in the The Capital City of Jordan, Amman, hosted the
judiciary system and the results of these interven- Second Middle East and North Africa Regional
tions. These roles include: being a trial preparation Conference of Psychology (2nd MENARCP) from
consultant; an expert in credibility assessment; an April 27th – May 1st 2007. The conference was
expert witness in criminal, civil cases and child held under the Royal Patronage of Her Majesty
custody cases; and a mediator. Psychologists also Queen Rania Al-Abdullah, and organized by the
advise on eye witness testimony and jury selection.
Jordanian Psychological Association (JPA), under
The many Keynotes and papers addressing the auspices of the International Union of
issues in organized psychology set a context for a Psychological Science (IUPsyS), the International
Round Table Discussion entitled ‘‘Psychology in
Association of Applied Psychology (IAAP),and
the Middle East: Present and Future Challenges’’.
the International Association for Cross-Cultural
This Roundtable generated a vigorous and enthu-
Psychology (IACCP). The Conference explored
siastic exchange of ideas between psychologists of
ways and means to promote the role of psychology
the MENA countries.
in meeting life challenges at regional and interna-
tional levels, and witnessed the participation of
AMMAN DECLARATION 150 participants from 28 countries, namely,
Algeria, Australia, Canada, Denmark, Egypt,
As was the case in Dubai four years earlier England, France, Germany, Greece, Iran, Iraq,
(Sabourin & Knowles, 2004), the Conference Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon,
concluded with the adoption of a statement urging
Libya, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia,
cooperation and action. Called the ‘‘Amman
Singapore, South Africa, Turkey, United Arab
Declaration for Action to Promote Mental
Emirates, USA, Yemen. The conference recorded
Health Worldwide’’, the statement is presented in
the delivery of 20 keynote addresses, 6 workshops,
full in the Appendix.
4 round table discussions, and 56 papers.
REFERENCES Preamble
Barnes, B., & Knowles, M. C. (2003). The Southeast Based on:
Asian Regional Congress on Scientific and Applied
Psychology. International Journal of Psychology, 38, N The minutes and proceedings of the 2nd
119–124. MENARCP
Knowles, M. C. (1996). 1995 Asian-Pacific Conference
of Psychology, Guangzhou, China. Newsletter of the
N The assertions of the organizing and sponsoring
International Association of Applied Psychology, 8, organizations (JPA, IUPsyS, IAAP, IACCP,
5–7. and APA)
Knowles, M. C. (1998). Regional Congress of N The deliberations of the participating psychol-
Psychology for Professionals in the Americas. ogists
International Journal of Psychology, 33, 363–366.
Knowles, M. C. (2006). Asian Applied Psychology N The ethical and professional commitment
International-Regional Conference, Bangkok. towards enhancing the mental health of indivi-
International Journal of Psychology, 41, 423–429. duals and communities
MENA REGIONAL CONFERENCE, AMMAN 139
Therefore, the delegates, participants and the psychological organizations and promote
signatories to this Declaration call upon govern- full exchange among colleagues of knowl-
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ments, academic and professional institutions and edge, information, research and best prac-
organizations, non-governmental organization and tices;
other civil society groups, at national, regional, and (9) Making determined efforts to resist commer-
international levels, and the United Nations to cialism which can dominate and negatively
work together and to make every possible effort affect best research and clinical practices,
individually and collectively to achieve the follow- as a by-product of globalization or the
ing: interests of various stakeholders, (e.g.,
corporations);
(1) Protecting mankind and humanity, with
(10) Affirming the commitment of every psychol-
regard to individuals and communities,
ogist to serve as a role model in his/her
against injustice and oppression in all forms;
professional performance, and therefore fol-
(2) Dedicating themselves towards active work
low ethical principles, and seek continuous
to sanctify, consolidate, maintain and
professional development;
strengthen human rights such as the right
to life, liberty and dignity; (11) Supporting organizations which adopt prin-
(3) Refusing to accept passivity and lack of ciples and stances which reflect a similar
intervention with regard to every and all spirit of the contents of this declaration;
aspects which affect health, happiness and (12) Assuming responsibility individually and
productivity of all individuals; collectively to mobilize all possible helping
(4) Adopting a rejecting attitude, and express resources, to provide professional assistance
refusal of conflicts and systematic abuse to victims of war, disasters and crises
which are directed towards either individuals regardless of the cause, whether natural or
or communities, and to support all efforts man-made.
which are aimed at establishing peace and The delegates and participating psychologists
dignity for all; attending the 2nd MENARCP implore all psy-
(5) Opposing all hostile, aggressive and unjust chologists worldwide to put this call into action,
behavior targeted towards victims; and to help achieving the aforementioned goals
(6) Recognizing that there is a human soul and commitments through plans and programs of
behind aggressive and hostile behavior, and any related organization, and through initiating
that it is the duty of psychologists to try in mutual consultation and cooperation, and by
every possible and legitimate way, to help establishing groups to stand for the well-being of
change attitudes and behaviors of aggressors; human beings regardless of origin, ethnicity, race
(7) Supporting in every possible and legitimate or religion.
way any efforts towards reconciliation
between aggressors and victims; Declared and approved by all participants, dele-
(8) Maintaining determined efforts to establish gates and participating organizations at the closing
professional partnership among professional ceremony in May 01, 2007.