In Romania, the pupils of the German psychologist Wundt founded psychology at the beginning of the twentieth century. Beginning in 1977, and then definitively in 1982, the former communist president Ceausescu forbade the programs in psychology, including those in academia. He was afraid that the work of psychologists could interfere with his efforts to create a new human being, "the communist human being". Ceausescu also invoked the training programs in psychotherapy (e.g., hypnosis and transcendental meditation) organized by the Romanian Psychological Association during the communist period, to forbid the practice of psychology. He stated that those activities subverted the authority of the State and were not scientific according to the communist philosophy based on the dialectical materialism of Marx. After the Romanian Anticommunist Revolution of 1989 and our move towards democracy, the universities reinstated programs in psychology. In Romania, psychotherapy was closely related to psychology (e.g., medical schools have no courses in psychotherapy at the level of licensed physician), and consequently, the psychotherapy shared the same fate, evolution, and history as psychology.

The Romanian Association of Hypnosis and Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy (RAHCP) was officially founded in 2000 around the infrastructure of Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca. The University has one of the most influential psychology departments in Romania; the Psychology Department emphasizes the study of experimental cognitive psychology and cognitive behavioral therapies (CBT). The Association is a member of our national umbrella psychotherapy associations and of the international psychotherapy organizations. It focuses on the scientist-practitioner perspective and empirically validated treatments in clinical psychology and psychotherapy. The aim of the Association is to contribute to the science and practice of cognitive behavioral psychotherapies and scientifically oriented hypnosis. The Romanian Journal of Cognitive and Behavioral Psychotherapies is the official publication of this professional organization and a tool that is used to help it attain its aim.

We have very strong feelings about the journal and we think are worth sharing here in the inaugural number. The journal is the only journal of its kind in Romania and maybe in the Eastern Europe. To our knowledge, there are no other journals dedicated to cognitive and behavioral psychotherapies in the Eastern Europe. The publication of this journal reflects both the editorial board’s and publisher’s belief that it fills a gap in the scientific literature available on this topic. We are planning to involve colleagues from Romania and abroad to publish in this journal and consequently, the publication of its articles in the English language and the inclusion of an English abstract of those articles written in Romanian language is viewed as an important objective of the publication.

The journal is divided into three main sections.

• Articles Section. We are actively seeking to involve cognitive behavioral and hypnosis colleagues from Romania and abroad as contributors of the journal. Both original theoretical and research articles are encouraged.
• Clinical Forum Section. We want to encourage thoughtful clinical papers that respect the scientific foundation of our domain. Two types of articles are of particular interest in this section. The first type discusses sophisticated and/or new clinical case conceptualization and techniques, accompanied by a point-counter point exchange on a preselected topic. The second type reviews established clinical techniques; the aim is to promote the use of these techniques in the clinical community by showing how they can be applied to a wide range of clinical problems. In each number it will be at least one paper focusing on pressing clinical issues of theory, technique, and training, typically written by some of our most experienced clinicians.
• Development and Resources Section. Letters to the Editor, reviews and abstracts of books, tapes and films, salient findings in CBT, and other information relevant to the journal’s goal will be included in the Development and Resources Section. The salient findings will be a collection of brief (200-250 words) summaries of very important and very recent articles about/related to CBTs and/or hypnosis, which have appeared in the general medical, general psychological, and broad scientific literature. In this way, our readership will not only be appraised of new developments in the field, but will also be updated on how cognitive-behavior theory and therapy are represented in the broader scientific literatures. Only those articles believed to be most pertinent to individuals in the cognitive behavioral psychotherapies community will be summarized. Brief descriptions of grant opportunities and other announcements that might be of interest to laboratory researchers and clinicians will be included to the extent that they can be found and published in a timely manner.

Although there is a strong movement toward a more homogenous science and theory of CBT, the current CBT paradigm is still somehow fragmented. Current CBT paradigm consists mainly of three schools and systems of thought: rational emotive behavior therapy (created by Albert Ellis), cognitive therapy (created by Aaron Beck) and cognitive-behavior modifications (created by Donald Meichenbaum). Within each school, there are also multiple variations. Consequently, we believe that the best introductions to CBTs the journal can provide for its readers, are those provided by the founders of the CBT paradigm and by the leaders of the most influential forms of CBT. The journal plans to publish a series of interviews in cooperation with the founders of the “cognitive paradigm” in psychotherapy. Interviews with Dr. Albert Ellis and other CBT pioneers have been planned, and will appear in a series of upcoming issues. It is clear from the content of the interviews that all of the interviewees hope to see current CBT theories converge into a more homogenous science of CBT that moves beyond the current fragmentation. The Association hopes that the journal will make a large contribution to this movement toward an integrative science and practice of CBT.

In sum, the journal’s mission and format are indicative of the Association’s vision for the future of CBT. The journal starts at the beginning of the new millennium, enthusiastically committed to join in full partnership with others who seek to understand the nature of cognitive behavioral psychotherapies.

Finally, we want to thank to the distinguished group of academics and practitioners scientists who have agreed to serve during our tenure. They are the journal’s definitive source of continuity and integrity.
  

Dr. Daniel David, Editor
Dr. Mircea Miclea, Associate Editor