In Brief
To learn more about practitioners' professional activities, APA's Practice Directorate is launching PracticeNet, an Internet-based data collection system. Volunteer practitioners are needed to enroll in the system and participate in brief, online surveys about their activity during a recent hour of practice, such as an episode of clinical care, practice administration or supervision (the survey does not ask for any information that would identify a client).
"The Practice Directorate hopes that psychologists with a broad range of interests and specialties will participate in PracticeNet so that the information collected reflects the full range of psychological practice," says Stefanie Klein, PhD, PracticeNet's director.
The system is unique, she says, because its methodology focuses on a single care episode at a specific time for all participating practitioners--therefore eliminating selection bias--and because survey results can be posted immediately.
"PracticeNet will provide up-to-the-minute, specific information about practice patterns. And that information will help the APA Practice Directorate's decisions and actions affecting the future of psychology practice," says Russ Newman, PhD, JD, APA's executive director for practice.
The Practice Directorate also plans to disseminate PracticeNet's survey results through news publications and special reports.
--D. SMITH
