APJNT is a joint publication of Applied Neuroscience Society of Australasia (ANSA)  and Asia Pacific Neuro-Biofeedback Association (APNA) .

A central goal of the journal is to advance the field of Neurotherapy by promoting research in Neurotherapy and providing a platform for those interested in Neurotherapy to share knowledge and expertise. The focus will be on Neurotherapy treatments for psychiatric and neurological disorders.  This will include research regarding electroencephalography (EEG), neurofeedback, quantitative electroencephalography (QEEG), transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS).

What is ANSA?

The Applied Neuroscience Society of Australasia (ANSA) is a membership organization of health professionals from Australia, Australasia and New Zealand, who are involved in the promotion of professional excellence in the fields of Applied Psychophysiology, Neurotherapy and Nutrition. ANSA works to obtain broad acceptance of this combination of disciplines as a viable treatment approach in mental health care and for optimal performance.

ANSA aims to:

  • advance the scientific study and professional practice of applied neuroscience (biofeedback, neurotherapy, applied psychophysiology and nutrition);
  • function as a professional and educational society in the field of applied neuroscience;
  • promulgate, foster, and maintain high ethical standards in the use of applied neuroscience;
  • advocate and promote applied neurosciences to professionals in the community;
  • establish/support the achievement of best practice for clinical applications of applied neuroscience;
  • promote training and further education for health professionals in the application of biofeedback, neurotherapy, applied psychophysiology, nutrition and other self-regulator modalities as therapeutic tools;
  • nurture and/or maintain interactions with similar international Societies such as ISNR, AAPB, etc.;
  • increase public & professional awareness of applied neurosciences as integral to the health system;
  • Encourage research and expansion of clinical and educational applications of applied neurosciences.

Message from President ANSA

On behalf of the ANSA Executive Committee, I extend my sincere thanks to the APJNT Editorial Board for their efforts to bring you this first edition of the non-profit, on-line Asia Pacific Journal of Neurotherapy, a joint initiative between ANSA and the Asia Pacific Neuro-Biofeedback Association (APNA). I further extend my thanks to those contributors who have given of their time to prepare manuscripts for this first release of the journal.  Your work serves dual purposes for our readers: interpreting outcomes from research and practice; and modelling methodologies that may teach and encourage our peers to share their work.

Criticism of studies in our field may highlight sample sizes, randomization, control groups, and specificity of the treatment effects, however, well-designed single-case or uncontrolled studies may have valuable clinical utility. Furthermore, case studies may serve to test the feasibility of more systematic research of the efficacy of assessment and intervention methods.  I strongly encourage clinicians to develop their confidence and capacity to contribute to our field as scientist-practitioners.  Consider the following references:

Barlow, Nock & Hersen, (2009). Single Case Experimental Designs: Strategies for Studying Behavior Change, 3rd Edition, Pearson.

Kazdin, A. E. (2011). Single-case research designs: Methods for clinical and applied settings (2nd ed.). New York, NY, US: Oxford University Press.

Segool, N. K., Brinkman, T. M., & Carlson, J. S. (2007). Enhancing accountability in behavioral consultation through the use of single-case designs. International Journal of Behavioral Consultation and Therapy, 3(2), 310-321. doi: 10.1037/h0100805

One proven strategy for developing work for publication is to share the topic as a presentation at a meeting of peers. In the context of an annual conference, for example the ANSA Annual Conference*, contributors tend to benefit from informal peer review and may subsequently refine their work for later submission to a peer-reviewed journal such as the APJNT.  (*To learn more about the ANSA Conference being held in Cairns 22–27 August 2019, please visit Eventbrite at https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/2019-ansa-conference-workshops-gateway-to-health-tickets-48189068802.

I trust that members of ANSA and APNA will come to value this journal as it promotes Neurotherapy research in clinical practice and provides a platform to showcase our knowledge and expertise.

Michelle Aniftos

ANSA President 2017 – 2109

 
 
 
 
 

Asia Pacific Neuro-biofeedback Association

Message from President APNA

Greetings and welcome to this inaugural issue of Asia Pacific Journal of Neurotherapy. I am deeply honored to be the President of the Asia Pacific Neuro-Biofeedback Association (APNA) when this journal is launched. I would like to acknowledge our Founder President, the late Dr. Kenneth Kang for all the groundwork he has done to set up this Association. As the President of APNA, I have witnessed the Association’s steady growth, thanks to the efforts of all practitioners and researchers who have come together to help make the dissemination of information possible.

APNA is a non-profit organization with the express purpose of providing a common platform for the dissemination of the results of practitioners and researchers who are involved in the research, technology and the clinical applications of neurofeedback and biofeedback in community healthcare. APNA is also involved in defining the qualities of neurofeedback practitioner through its training programmes and certification exercises.

APNA publishes a newsletter, Neuro-Eastern regularly since 2016. A conference is held every two years within the Asia Pacific Region. Every attending participant had noted the increased awareness of the health benefits of neurofeedback and biofeedback among the general public. As such, the demand for this type of intervention has increased. This awareness has created a need for dissemination of knowledge in the field.

As President of APNA, I recognized the need for an umbrella organization to bring together groups of practitioners in the diverse fields of neurofeedback and its technology into a global network for collaboration and mutual sharing of resources in order to provide a more evidence-based foundation for neurofeeedback applications.

The APNA journal aims to spread knowledge to and update members with the latest clinical applications of neurofeedback and biofeedback interventions. APNA would like to encourage our members who are certified practitioners of neurofeedback to contribute and share their experience. Publication of our results and experiences remain a fundamental function of the Association which will lead APNA into a recognized domain in neuroscience and its technology.

Finally, I want to express my gratitude to the editorial board and all authors who contributed to this inaugural publication. I look forward to working together with the Board, committees, and membership to strengthen APNA’s role in neuroscience in general and neurofeedback in particular.

Dato’ Prof Dr. See Ching Mey

APNA president