Advancing Psychology Education and Training
A Psychologist's Guide to Federal Advocacy

The American Psychological Association’s (APA) Education Directorate and the Education Public Policy Office are pleased to provide you with Advancing Psychology Education and Training: A Psychologist’s Guide to Federal Advocacy. This guide is designed to encourage greater political participation by psychologists in the public policy process.

Taking part in the political life of our country is a right and privilege exercised by too few Americans. It is our hope that you, as a citizen and psychologist, will use this guide to develop and maintain contact with your U.S. Senators and Representative and advocate for psychology. The guide will inform you about how to do this, in a way that will not require you to learn all the subtleties of public policymaking or to make advocacy your full-time job. Each APA Directorate, in fact, maintains a vigorous and effective advocacy agenda. However, your direct contact with Congress, as a constituent, is a vital component of APA’s advocacy efforts. Your special training and expertise uniquely qualify you to contribute to the development of federal policies and programs to the reshaping of political attitudes toward psychology, in particular, psychology education and training and the application of psychology to education (teaching and learning).

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I. Title Page/Table of Contents [PDF 393K] II. The Legislative Process [PDF 743K] III. Effective Communications [PDF 768K] IV. Conclusion, Glossary, and Resources [PDF 488K] Requires free download of Adobe Reader.