APA Science Directorate Update

—Steve Breckler

Greetings from the APA Science Directorate.  We have been working hard on your behalf these last few months, expanding our staff and promoting the science of psychology.

Howard Kurtzman to Join APA Staff

 On September 17, Howard Kurtzman joins the APA Science Directorate Staff as Deputy Executive Director for Science.  Most members of Division 3 are likely to know Howard, who has been at the National Institute of Mental Health since 1992, most recently serving as program chief for cognitive science.  He was on the faculty at Cornell University from 1985 to 1992.  Howard will be a source of leadership in several areas, including governance, research ethics, and the Advanced Training Institutes.

Protecting Psychology at NSF

 As many members of Division 3 know, support for behavioral and cognitive sciences at the National Science Foundation is being threatened.  Initial language in the NSF reauthorization bill would have excluded these areas of science from the priority areas targeted for growth.  In the debates surrounding the reauthorization bill, efforts were made to exclude grants already awarded by NSF’s Division for Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences.  Due in large part to the advocacy efforts of the APA Science Government Relations Office, the final reauthorization bill (signed into law just weeks ago) restores our sciences to the list of priorities.  And those efforts to rescind grants already awarded were defeated.

Improving Convention

 The APA Council of Representatives proposed and funded the establishment of the Task Force on Recommending Changes to the APA Convention That Would Appeal to Scientists.  The Task Force will be meeting in September and plans to look at the APA Convention and provide recommendations on how it can be enhanced to attract more scientists to attend and to be on the program.  Task Force members will consider convention program coordination, programming structures, programming content and development, and time distribution.  Any suggestions you may have should be forwarded to Lisa Oakes, the chair of the Task Force or to Science Directorate staff.

New Publications on fMRI

 As the capstone of our Advanced Training Institute (ATI) on functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), which had its last session in 2006, we have published two booklets on fMRI and psychological science.  One booklet is intended for an adult audience and the other for teenagers.   Booklets are free of charge in packages of up to 25 booklets, which are mailed directly to requesters for classroom use.  In addition, online pdf versions of both booklets can be read or printed from our website, at http://www.apa.org/science/fmriBooklets.html.

Office of Applied Psychological Science

 The office, which was the focus of our March, 2007 update, is collaborating with the APA Education Directorate on a project that involves the promotion of applied psychological science in secondary and post-secondary schools.  We are working with both the DC public school system and the Prince Georges County (Maryland) school system to implement this initiative.

Stay Tuned

 This is just sampling of activities over the past few months.  To stay current on everything happening in the APA Science Directorate, be sure to subscribe to our monthly newsletter, Psychological Science Agenda (PSA), and our science policy newsletter, Science Policy Insider News (SPIN).