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Degree In Sight

Follow the leaders

Psychology is all over Twitter. Whom should you track?

By Jamie Chamberlin

gradPSYCH Staff

Print version: page 10

Twitter
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Twitter

For most people, Twitter isn't about broadcasting what you ate for lunch — it's for gathering news, skimming what people are buzzing about and having real-time chats with far-flung folks. For psychology graduate students, Twitter can also be a great place to hunt for jobs, follow psychology news, read up on new studies and even get career advice.

"Twitter has morphed into experts online," says psychologist Michael Britt, PhD, a Twitter regular (@mbritt) who develops e-learning software at Pearson. "You can follow some real thought leaders of psychology on there."

Still, Twitter is massive: The directory Wefollow.comopens in new window lists more than 1,200 psychology-related accounts. To help you choose the best folks to follow, gradPSYCH asked Britt and other psychologists to share their top picks:

  • @psychcentralopens in new window: The Twitter handle for the mental health news website Psych Centralopens in new window is run by psychologist John Grohol, PsyD. "I always appreciate how he compiles and reviews current mental health research without all of the jargon for both consumers and clinicians," says Keely Kolmes, PsyD (@drkkolmes), a psychologist in San Francisco who posts mental health tweets and has more than 20,000 followers.

  • @linksforshrinksopens in new window: "This is a great hub for therapists looking to network," says Kolmes. "They also post and re-tweet a lot of great mental health information."

  • @researchdigestopens in new window: The posts at this account are written by Christian Jarrett, editor of the British Psychological Society Research Digest Blog. "A great source for psychology research, especially for what's going on in the United Kingdom," says APA's David W. Ballard, PsyD, MBA (@DrDavidBallard), who tweets on health-care news and business and technology information for clinicians.

  • @psychjobsopens in new window: A job postings feed that is a must-follow if you're looking for a position in personality or social psychology, says Britt.

  • @DrStephSmithopens in new window: Stephanie Smith, PsyD, APA's Public Education Campaign coordinator for the Colorado Psychological Association, tweets mental health news. "Stephanie posts from a practitioner's perspective with an emphasis on public education and sharing psychology's expertise with the community," says Ballard.

  • @DrKathleenYoungopens in new window: Chicago practitioner Kathleen Young, PsyD, tweets about treating trauma, such as child abuse and post-traumatic stress disorder. While many popular tweeters just broadcast news and don't talk with people who follow them, Young answers questions, Kolmes says. "She's a very generous and friendly professional who loves to engage other tweeters," says Kolmes.

APA also has a strong presence on Twitter, with six feeds:

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