Articles on special populations published in Psychiatric Services between 1950 and 1999

The authors sought to determine the number of articles on special populations published in this journal between 1950 and 1999 and the specific populations addressed.

The authors reviewed original articles, review articles, brief reports, and columns published in this journal between 1950 and 1999. They tallied articles on the mentally retarded population, women, children and adolescents, elderly persons, gays and lesbians, and parents and families. Articles that addressed patients' communities and villages were also counted, as were articles in the multicultural category-those that addressed more than one racial or ethnic group.

Between 1950 and 1999, 578 issues of the journal were published, containing approximately 7,976 articles. A total of 555 of articles (7 percent) addressed special populations. More than two-thirds of these articles addressed the mental health issues of elderly persons (178 articles) and of children and adolescents (200 articles). Thirty-eight of the 555 articles (7 percent) addressed women's issues. A total of 120 articles (22 percent) addressed one or more racial or ethnic group; the largest proportion-36 articles-focused on African Americans, 21 addressed issues of Latinos, and 27 had a multicultural focus. Only two articles published during the 50-year period addressed mental health issues of gays and lesbians, and only five focused on the mentally retarded population.

The journal has made continuous progress in increasing the number of articles on special populations. Editorial policies can help encourage submission and publication of articles on these groups.