Candidates for APA President
What is the greatest single challenge facing the practice of psychology?
The greatest single challenge to the continuing practice of psychology by psychologists is protecting the "scope of practice" of psychology. APA has long focused on protecting the title of "psychologist." But those not calling themselves psychologists are free to attempt interventions claimed virtually identical to psychologists' by calling themselves something else. This dramatically undermines psychologists' delivery of science-based quality interventions and services. Equally important is that lack of protection of scope of practice impedes our discipline's ability to protect the public from charlatans. Both title and scope of practice need protection...as is the case in the other health sciences.
In the past, psychology has had little influence on K-12 education. How can psychology (in all of its applications) be brought to bear to improve how children are educated?
The 2002 establishment of the Institute of Education Sciences, currently under the directorship of a psychologist, and the National Academy of Sciences' relatively new Committee on Developments in Science of Learning, also chaired by psychologists, afford us a special opportunity to influence K-12 education. To do so, APA must facilitate their work by communicating their findings as new cognitive and educational science foundations for learning. Social and counseling psychology need to be brought to bear on retention of individual students through graduation, now a crisis. Rapprochement with MA-level psychologists who have influence within the schools could leverage these efforts.
