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With this issue, the journal completes its first quarter century of publication. This felicitous anniversary may serve as an opportunity to take stock of what the journal has contributed in the past, as well as to speculate about its future. As most readers know, the The Journal of the American Academy of Psychoanalysis replaced Science and Psychoanalysis, a bound, hardcover annual consisting of the proceedings of Academy meetings that were sent to members. The decision to produce a quarterly journal was based on the desire to widen readership, to create a more comprehensive publication that included papers not presented at meetings, and, thereby, to become a stronger, more influential voice in psychoanalysis and related disciplines.
The initial decision involved considerable risk, as it was far from certain that yet another psychoanalytic publication would survive. This appropriate sense of apprehension was more than offset, however, by a strong belief that a publication of high quality which was free from any dogmatic restraint—openly reflecting the changes and progress in psychoanalytic thought and practice—would have a particular appeal to members of the mental health community. Each issue of the twenty-five volumes which have appeared to date amply demonstrates the freedom to publish worthy articles that are sufficiently scholarly and that make a significant contribution to the field—regardless of the theoretical orientation or the professional affiliation of the author.
The very first issue included a very distinguished group of contributors whose eminence was matched by the diversity of their respective theoretical positions. Among these were: Harry Guntrip, Ken Kenniston, Irving Bieber, Lionel Ovesey and Ethel Person, Victor Frankl, and Samuel Safirstein—along with an editorial by Silvano Arieti, a book review by Ralph Crowley and an obituary by Leon Salzman. From this most impressive start, the aspiration to excellence within a framework of complete academic