To: Walter Logeman Subject: Usage guidelines for NETPSY From: "L-Soft list server at St. John's University (1.8b)" Date: Sun, 13 Oct 1996 08:16:38 -0400 Welcome to NetPsy, a forum for the discussion of the psychological and psychotherapeutic services delivered via all aspects of the Internet. You are now officially a subscriber of NetPsy. We hope you will find this forum interesting and useful. This file was composed to address the most pertinent questions regarding our forum. It will be updated periodically. However, please make a hard copy and save. If you do, you will have a reference for how to unsubscribe, netiquette, etc. If you haven't begun a folder in your email program to organize and easily find such documentation, please do so. You will save us all needless time and energy if you make it a point to read and save this file. Thank you. This list is not intended to be a replacement for psychotherapy or private consultation. Individuals needing professional advice are redirected to professionals in their local geographic area, to meet with them face - to - face and examine their problem with the proper attention it deserves. Rather this list is intended to serve as a loose "sounding board" for professionals to discuss issues not yet shown effective by research. It is not intended to offer direct advice to any individual. Non-professionals are only invited to participate with the above understanding. Examples of relevant topics include (but are not limited to) the following; *online ethics; *online demographics; *positive and negative influences of the online community in the lives of users; *new additions to mental-health terminology and symbols related to affective expressions; new behavioral patterns online; *positive and negative influences of current and innovative forms of online technology; *innovative uses of online technology to treat disorders as classified in DSM-IV; *reviews of resource sites, newsletters, and mail groups related to mental health online; and short editorials or comments on various topics of relevance to psychology online. *What are the effects of not having visual or auditory feedback in interpersonal communications ? (both group and individual) *To what extent does projection play a greater role in net communications, if it does? ~~~Forwarded postings you receive from other mail lists which you believe to be pertinent to practice are also welcomed. Make sure the list from which you draw postings allows you to post to other groups. ~~~When writing, avoid the use of carriage returns within a paragraph, tabs, or other "special effects" beyond and symbols available from the average keyboard. Many types of programs are used to read messages-- and special effects are not always received as intended. ~~~Be aware that this mail list is not part of the "PsychNet" system by the American Psychological Association, nor is NetPsy affiliated with the PsyUSA system in any way. ~~~Not all mail will be of interest to you, and you may "delete" mail without reading it if it has a subject line which is not of interest. How Can you Help? You might begin by giving us a short introduction--how you'd like to be addressed, what you do, what you'd like to be doing, and what you are seeking from this forum. Check your email daily. Experiment with the group. Even one-line questions can generate extremely useful information to someone in the group who might be able to help us all. Just be sure to clearly label your topic area addressed in the subject line. This will eliminate tedious sorting through mail for those subscribers not drawn to that topic. Netiquette: Feel free to post informal notes, but please review before sending. Remember that email is not confidential. No matter how much we ask participants to keep this a closed list, such agreements cannot be enforced. Your mail may end up on someone's desk, or you may be questioned about it in court when testifying for clients. Make sure your message is correctly addressed, that it is free of typos, and that you intend every word of your message. Conciseness and clarity are lauded. Emoticons: Be cautious with sarcasm and humor. Without nonverbal cues and voice tone, "subtle" humor can easily be interpreted as searing sarcasm. Use the developing Internet conventions of smiley faces, etc. Here are some examples. Tilt your head to the left to get full impact: Smiley face, :-) or :) :-] :-}, 8-) if you have glasses and a beard, or >8-)> if you are worried, but smiling and have glasses and a beard. To be understood as completely as possible, it is a good idea to err on the side of reminding people of your emotional overtone. Copyright: Understand that once something is posted to the Internet through email, it is *probably* in the public domain unless you own the appropriate rights (for example, if you wrote it yourself) and you post it with a valid copyright notice. This is still hotly debated, so don't assume you are not giving away your information copyright. Don't post trade secrets. Use professional guidelines in citing references. Answering Mail: When responding to someone's note, include the relevant appropriate quotes from the original note. Avoid including the whole note, since it might irritate the people who have already seen it. Even if responding to the whole note, summarize your points of discussion. Keep things simple, short, and clearly stated. Professionalism: Please remember, hundreds of colleagues may read your messages. They may include individuals you know, may have as a client, or someone you may employ or seek employment from in the future. Information blindly or impulsively posted on the Net can come back to haunt you. Flaming: Accept full responsibility for your participation. Even if you get "flamed," (flamers are severely frowned upon) you will live, and can continue to contribute. If you are upset by someone's posting, sleep on it, talk it over with a few colleagues, and then decide what to do. If you decide to respond , present facts, not attacks. One way to avoid such unpleasantries is to comment on issues, not people. Use basic psychological principles of communication...and being polite is the first rule of order. Enlist Colleagues: Encourage your non-email-connected colleagues to get connected. Help them if they need assistance. As a profession, we need everyone's united efforts Keep encouraging them if they are reluctant. Our usual, self-selected tendency as psychotherapists may have been to isolate/insulate ourselves within our private offices. This is contrary to our needs as professionals at this point in time. Be willing to deal with resistance of colleagues who have energy or information to contribute, but are reluctant to become computer-literate or "get hooked by the Internet." Challenge this as the type of all-or-nothing thinking that may have gotten us into trouble as a profession in the first place. Spread the word about this forum through whatever print publications or other media avenues possible. Warning & Disclaimer Neither NetPsy, the list owners, administrators, or their delegates; nor contributors can be held liable in any way for any information and/or data made available, or omitted, from any and all information distributed through this forum. It is understood that any information distributed may or may not have been checked for accuracy. Participation in this forum shows your complete agreement to hold harmless the above named parties against any and all liability for any action that you may or may not take; and any and all other consequences regarding all postings, regardless of the cause, effects, or fault of any of the parties. We are all here to help one another and the profession, but will act and accept full responsibility for ourselves as individual agents. You also agree to act within all guidelines set forth by the American Psychological Association and the Netiquette Guidelines described above. If you accept the above terms, welcome aboard. Read others' notes for awhile, and begin posting! Marlene M. Maheu, Ph.D. NetPsy List Co-Moderator & Owner Storm King NetPsy List Co-Moderator