An independent newspaper http://www.dailyemerald.com Tuesday, March 9, 2004 Since 1900 University of Oregon Eugene, Oregon Volume 105, Issue 116 A prized researcher GTF George Slavich received the inaugural Albert Bandura Award for psychology research By Jared Paben Senior News Reporter niversity graduate teaching fellow George Slavich has won the first ever Psi Chi/APS Albert Bandura Graduate Research Award, a national recognition that honors graduate students for research in the field of psychology. Slavich won the award for his paper entitled "The Role of Life Stress in the Ac tivation of Dysfunctional Attitudes in Depression," which explores the connec tion between life stresses and depression. "We found that individuals who experi enced severe life stress prior to depression onset exhibited significantly more dys functional attitudes about themselves, oth ers and their futures than did their no stress counterparts," Slavich said in a press release from Psi Chi, a national psycholo gy honor society. "This is an important finding because it suggests that dysfunc tional attitudes are not simply a symptom of depression and, moreover, that such at titudes are activated by severe stress." Slavich has been a GTF at the Universi ty since 2001, and he estimates he has taught about 16 different psychology classes; however, he's not teaching now and is instead focusing on his research. As a student of clinical psychology, Slavich also sees clients suffering from depression and eating disorders. The award, named in honor of renowned psychologist and Stanford University Professor Albert Bandura, is sponsored by Psi Chi and the American Psychological Society. Slavich said Bandura was an unofficial mentor of his at Stanford University. "I'm a Stanford alum and I totally looked up to this guy," Slavich said. "It's very special to me because it's celebrating the life of someone I admire greatly. I think I could have won any other award and it wouldn't have been this meaningful." The Review of General Psychology re cently ranked Bandura the fourth most Turn to AWARD, page 4 I Tim Kupsick Freelance Photographer George Slavich’s research paper on stress and depression won the first Psi Chi/APS Albert Bandura Graduate Research Award. Same-sex marriage i victorious ! in court j A Portland judge decides not to grant an injunction prohibiting issuance of same-sex licenses By Ayisha Yahya News Editor A judge ailed Monday that Multnomah County can continue issuing marriage li censes for gay couples, marking the first le gal victory for same-sex marriage propo nents in Oregon. Multnomah County Presiding Judge Dale Koch refused to grant an injunction that would temporarily bar the county from issuing licenses to same-sex couples. Koch said the plaintiffs, the Defense of Marriage Coalition, failed to show irreparable harm if the county continued to issue licenses while the defendant's lawsuit was in progress, according to KGW-TV. The coalition filed the lawsuit Friday in opposition to a county decision to issue same-sex marriage licenses, also alleging that the Multnomah County Board of ] Commissioners had violated Oregon Pub lic Meetings law when it made the decision. The coalition is a bipartisan organization of pastors, elected officials, community lead ers and citizens committed to preserving "marriage as a union only between one man and one woman," according to its Web site. The coalition had asked for a temporary restraining order as ihe legalities of the case were worked out. After ruling that the coalition had failed to provide clear and compelling evidence of harm, Koch assigned the case — which may eventually to go to trial — to another judge, according to Ihe Associated Press. Turn to SAME-SEX, page 4 Six mayoral candidates seek to replace TimTorrev City Councilor Nancy Nathanson, former state representative Kitty Piercy and four others face off in a May 18 qualifying election By Nika Carlson News Reporter Eugene voters will not be short of choic es this May when they vote for a replace ment for Eugene Mayor Jim Torrey, who announced in January he would not seek a third term. Six candidates are vying for the position. Eugene political pundits consider Ward 8 City Councilor Nancy Nathanson and former State Representative Kitty Piercy to be the leading candidates, but locals Willie Nicholas, James Whetstine, Alphonsus Donnelly and Eric Gross (Sephiroth) join them in the crowded race. Candidates face a qualifying election May 18. If one candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote, that candidate will be the only one to appear on the Novem ber 2 general election ballot. If no one gets more than 50 percent of the vote, the two candidates who receive the most votes will move on to the November election. Nancy Nathanson Ward 8 City Councilor Nancy Nathanson, whose term ends January 2005, is forgoing a run for another City Council term after near ly 12 years on the Council. The University Libraries systems manager for the Orbis Cascade Alliance has long been touted as Torrey's successor, though Torrey has yet to make any official endorsements. Nathanson said she's been on the Council long enough that she feels ready to take on new and bigger things, adding that she wants to build on the work she's done as Turn to MAYOR, page 8 Kitty Piercy Former state representative Nancy Nathanson City Councilor James Whetstine Retiree WEATHER INSIDE NEXT ISSUE LOW 35 HIGH 60 Campus buzz.4 Classifieds.6 Commentary.2 Crossword.7 Nation & World.3 Sports.5 Is crime common at the Commons?