2004 Annual Reports for Boards and Committees

COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN, YOUTH, AND FAMILIES 2004 ANNUAL REPORT

COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN, YOUTH, AND FAMILIES

The Committee on Children, Youth, and Families (CYF) was established by a vote of Council in August 1985 to ensure “…that children, youth, and families receive the full attention of the Association…in order that all human resources are actualized.” The Committee consists of six members and reports to the Council of Representatives through the Board for the Advancement of Psychology in the Public Interest (BAPPI). The 2004 CYF Annual Report provides information on CYF's goals and a summary of activities as they relate to the Committee's goals.

COMPOSITION

The six members of the Committee on Children, Youth, and Families (CYF) for 2004 were Sue Limber, PhD (chair); Beth Doll, PhD (chair-elect); Nancy Hill, PhD; Larke Huang PhD; Marsha Kline Pruett, PhD; and John Lochman, PhD.

MEETINGS

The Committee held two formal meetings in the Washington, DC, area on March 26-28, 2004, and October 1-2, 2004. In addition to these sessions, other Committee business was accomplished by e-mail exchange.

LIAISON FUNCTIONS

CYF maintains active monitor and liaison relationships with APA divisions, boards, committees and task forces. Division liaisons to CYF are active and involved in the work of the Committee. Liaisons who participated in one or more meetings during 2004 included: Kathy S. Katz, PhD, Division 7; Karen Saywitz, PhD, Division 37; James Bray, PhD, Division 43; Marilyn Erickson, PhD, Division 53; and Randi Streisand, PhD, Division 54.

Each CYF member is a monitor or liaison to several APA boards and committees. They review pertinent material and bring relevant issues to CYF's attention. In addition, CYF strives to comment appropriately on all crosscutting agenda items that have some pertinence to children, youth, and families to ensure that adequate and accurate consideration is devoted to those issues.

MISSION AND GOALS

The mission of CYF is to further the central purpose of APA -- to advance psychology as a science and a profession and as a means of promoting health, education, and human welfare -- by specifically ensuring that children, youth, and families receive the full attention of the Association in order that all human resources are actualized. CYF's goals are to:

• Identify and disseminate information concerning the psychological status of children, youth, and families for psychologists, other professionals, policy makers, and the public; • Offer consultation to relevant APA boards and committees responsible for psychologists who conduct research and provide services for children, youth, and families; • Encourage psychological research on the factors that promote or inhibit the development of individual and family competence; • Contribute to the formulation and support of policies that facilitate the optimal development of children and youth within families; • Designate priorities for APA involvement in the issues affecting children, youth, and families including issues related to gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and disability.

SUMMARY OF CYF 2004 ACTIVITIES

The Committee continued ongoing activities and initiated new efforts in 2004 to fulfill its mission. Major activities are summarized below as they relate to each of the Committee's five goals.

I. Identify and Disseminate Information

Newsletter

CYF NEWS is the primary vehicle for communication of information about CYF activities and issues of concern. Two members of the Committee edit the newsletter. Drs. Hill and Lochman shared that responsibility in 2004. Copies of the newsletter are available on the Internet at http://www.apa.org/pi/cyf/cyfnews.html. The Committee also uses other APA vehicles to disseminate information to members (i.e., APA Monitor on Psychology, APA Division Dialogue) and public information pieces (i.e. Tips for Talking with Adolescents and Yes…It's Normal for Adolescents to… bookmarks in English and Spanish.)

Diversity

CYF works diligently to ensure that diversity issues receive the committee's full attention. For example, CYF's 2005 membership is diverse with respect to ethnicity, gender, and geographic location; the committee solicits nominations from ethnic minority psychological associations; and the committee advocates for or develops publications, policies and programs that are appropriate with regard to developmental and age level, culture, ethnicity, language, disability and socioeconomic status. CYF members look forward to implementation of the Council action allocating funds to support the cost of diversity training at the consolidated meetings.

Other Activities

Association of Family Conciliation Courts (AFCC): Through the work of Marsha Kline Pruett, PhD, APA was invited to be a collaborating organization for the AFCC's 42nd Annual Conference, May 18-21, 2005 in Seattle, WA. This builds on the success of APA's conference with the American Bar Association and enhances the working relationship between psychology and law. This will benefit the professions and children, youth, and families.

In addition to this initiative, the Committee discussed other matters of concern. These included: (a) empirical research findings from multiple disciplines on the roles of family school relationships for children's educational outcomes; (b) immigrant children, youth, and families; and (c) dissemination of information on effective prevention strategies.

II. Provide Consultation: Consultation was provided to a variety of APA boards, committees, task forces, and divisions through CYF liaison and monitor relationships to these groups.

Board for the Advancement of Psychology in the Public Interest (BAPPI)

At the request of BAPPI, the Committee discussed the processes through which The Guidelines on Multicultural Education, Training, Research, Practice, and Organizational Change for Psychologists (The Guidelines) could be infused or implemented throughout the Association. CYF reviewed The Guidelines and forwarded recommendations to BAPPI.

CYF discussed the Council New Business Item calling for a Committee on Socioeconomic Status. CYF developed a report at the request of BAPPI on the degree to which issues of socioeconomic status (SES) are included and integrated into activities of CYF. The Committee also forwarded to BAPPI recommendations to help to ensure that APA and its existing boards and committees attend to SES matters.

Other Consultations

Norman Anderson, PhD, asked the Committee for input into several questions posed by the Board of Directors regarding his 5 points of emphasis for APA. The Committee gave priority to and forwarded comments on the following 3 points of emphasis: (2) increase the influence of psychology in the world; (3) work to ensure that APA and psychology can meet the science and practice needs of a multicultural nation and world; and (4) help psychology expand its role and capitalize on new opportunities.

III. Encourage Psychological Research and

IV. Formulate Policy:

CYF's initiatives, listed below, encompass activities that concurrently address both of these important aspects of the Committee's responsibilities.

Draft Resolution on Violence in Video Game and Interactive Media

The Committee continued its work with the Division 46 (Media Psychology) Ad Hoc Committee on APA Resolution on Violence in Video Games and Interactive Media. The draft resolution was included in the March 2004 cross cutting agenda for review and comment by boards and committees. The resolution is now under consideration by the Board of Directors.

Resolution on Bullying among Children and Youth

The Council of Representatives approved as APA policy the CYF originated Resolution on Bulling among Children and Youth at their July 2004 meeting.

Corporal Punishment

The Committee reviewed the existing APA policy statement on corporal punishment and recognized that a literature review was necessary to enhance their deliberations. The Committee decided to work with the Section on Child Maltreatment Corporal Punishment Task Force on this important issue.

Updating Lesbian & Gary Parenting: A Resource for Psychologists

CYF reviewed and discussed the draft document titled Updating Lesbian & Gay Parenting: A Resource for Psychologists and forwarded recommendations for possible changes. The Committee will work to identify reviewers and collaborators with the appropriate expertise who can contribute to the document's refinement.

Rural Children's Mental Health

At its July 2004 meeting, Council considered a motion to withdraw Council New Business Item No. 58C: Rural Children's Mental Health Services. Council referred the item to CYF, requesting information on what APA is doing on the issue of rural children's mental health services. At its October 2004 meeting, CYF noted that rural children are underserved, particularly rural children of color, and that little information was available on APA efforts to address this population's needs. The Committee currently is working to gather information about APA's efforts related to rural children's mental health.

Additional Topics:

The Committee also reviewed and commented on the following: Draft Resolution on Families of Incarcerated Offenders (to BAPPI), Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Girls and Women (to the Joint Division 17 & 35 Task Force), Report of the Children and Adolescent Task Force of the Ad Hoc Committee on End-of-Life Issues (to the Ad Hoc Committee), and Report of the Task Force on Psychological Effects of Efforts to Prevent Terrorism (to the Task Force).

V. Designate APA Priorities for Children, Youth, and Families

This goal permeates every aspect of CYF's work and is evident through the variety of consultation efforts, working groups and task forces described earlier. In recognition that CYF is particularly effective when its members have expertise to respond to contemporary events affecting children, youth, and families, the nominations statement for terms beginning in 2006 explicitly encourages applicants with such expertise, including (but not limited) to rural mental health; promotion of healthy lifestyles for children, youth, and families; and underserved and ethnic minority populations.

Revised Legislative Priorities

After consultation with staff from the Public Policy Office (PPO), the Committee revised the CYF legislative priorities to include the following:

Advocate for federal support for research on the prevention, intervention and treatment of the sexual exploitation of children and for increased involvement of psychologists and the behavioral science in this area; Advocate for federal support for suicide prevention research; Advocate for research on safe and effective use of psychotropic medications with children and adolescents; Advocate for federal support for a continuum of mental health services for children and adolescents in need, particularly with respect for the mental health needs of youth in the juvenile justice system; Advocate for federal policies to promote maternal and child health and mental health with particular attention to the development of children in impoverished families and the impact of welfare reform on families; Advocate for the dissemination of empirically supported, developmentally appropriate interventions to service networks and providers for whom they are intended; Advocate for federal funding and support to train psychologists to work with children, youth, and families with particular attention to children, youth, and families of color, those who are linguistically diverse, poor and those in rural areas; Advocate for dissemination of crisis intervention policies and procedures related to community disasters and trauma. Advocate for policies that monitor and lead to a reduction in negative environmental effects on children and youth's healthy growth and development.

Conclusion

Different from most APA committees, CYF advocates for and provides service to a population that is not represented among the membership, nor capable of promoting its best interests without the assistance of others. CYF's strives to use psychological knowledge and practice to improve and enhance the lives of young people both as individuals, as well as within the family structure. The notion of public service truly underlies all of CYF's efforts.

CYF focuses APA's organizational efforts and capabilities on issues of critical social importance. During the past year, those efforts have encompassed numerous topics for which APA has provided assistance in the areas of education, information dissemination, training, and public policy recommendations. These contributions clearly enhance the reputation of the association while at the same time delivering important public service. CYF members are proud of this service and confident that it has had a meaningful positive impact on the lives of many young people and families.