Sample psychology?s international flavor

By Raymond D. Fowler, PhD
APA Chief Executive Officer

Psychology has often been viewed as largely an American profession, but it is now becoming a global profession at a very rapid pace. In the post?World War II decades, the growth of APA so eclipsed the rest of the world that psychologists trained during this time were told that psychology was an American discipline and that there was little to learn from the war-torn countries of Europe and Asia or from the developing nations of the world.

If that admonition had any validity in the past, it certainly has none today. Although the United States still has a disproportionate number of the world?s psychologists, psychology has begun to grow rapidly around the world, especially in Europe and Asia. Some countries are now experiencing the kind of explosive growth that occurred in the United States 50 years ago, and more growth is sure to follow. Exciting developments are taking place in scientific and applied psychology all over the world, and we have much to learn from them.

An international history

Although this international growth is a relatively recent phenomenon, psychology and APA have had an international orientation since the beginning. Most of APA?s founders were young men trained in Germany who moved comfortably in international circles, spoke European languages fluently and participated in international meetings. Today, in many ways, APA is an international as well as national association, with more than 3,000 international affiliates representing an astonishing 121 countries. In addition, about 1,000 regular members live and work in other countries, and 1,750 Canadians are full members of APA.

The Committee on International Relations in Psychology (CIRP) and the APA Office on International Affairs are the principal focus of APA?s international activities. Established in 1944, CIRP is one of APA?s oldest committees. The Office of International Affairs coordinates a number of programs including book and journal donations to libraries in less affluent countries, travel grants, the monitoring of international human-rights issues, publication of a newsletter and a special section in the American Psychologist, and a network of 75 national psychology organizations around the world.

?Bridging the Millennia?

APA will serve as host to the 24th International Congress of Applied Psychology, sponsored by the International Association of Applied Psychologists (IAAP), which will convene in the United States for the first time. The congress will be held in San Francisco Aug. 9?14, immediately before APA?s Annual Convention. If you have never attended an international meeting, this would be an excellent opportunity to sample psychology?s international flavor.

The 1998 congress will be the last major worldwide congress of psychology to be held in the 21st century, and its theme will be 'The challenge for applied psychology: bridging the millennia.' Because San Francisco is located on the Pacific rim, the congress will be likely to attract psychologists from Asia, Australia, Oceana and Latin America as well as a large number of other European and Middle Eastern countries. This broad international representation will give psychologists from around the world the opportunity to view issues of mutual concern from a variety of cultural perspectives. Sessions will address diverse topics such as psychology and economics, sports, aging, law, politics, health, the environment and even traffic and transportation.

The congress will feature a keynote address by San Francisco?s dynamic mayor, Willie Lewis Brown, Jr. There will also be continuing education workshops and exhibits. Friday, Aug. 14, will be an overlap day between the congress and APA?s Annual Convention that will include special jointly sponsored symposiums and events. Among these events will be a 'world?s fair' where participants can visit with representatives of dozens of national and international psychological associations from around the world. The American Psychological Association of Graduate Students (APAGS) will host a program to facilitate exchange between international students and APAGS members. The congress will hold its closing ceremony during the Opening Session for APA?s Annual Convention on Friday evening, and it will be followed by a joint reception.

As you make your convention plans, consider attending at least part of the international congress. It will expand your knowledge of psychology in other cultures and enable you to exchange ideas with colleagues from around the world. To limit our information to developments in the United States now makes no more sense for psychologists than it does for economists, chemists or political scientists. More than ever, we are all citizens of the world.

For more information about the congress, contact APA's International Affairs Office at (202) 336-6024; e-mail; fax: (202) 336-5956.