Impact in action: Examples of APA’s strategic plan implementation progress

As we work together to evolve our strategic plan, it is important to assess what we have accomplished under the current plan. That plan, the first in many years, was cocreated by APA’s membership and adopted by APA’s Council of Representatives in 2019. APA’s strategic goals, objectives, and guiding and operating principles have all driven APA’s work since their introduction, fueling impact on issues affecting the field and broader society.

Since the strategic plan was adopted, APA has regularly gathered information to assess progress in advancing its short- and long-term goals. The result is indicators of real momentum.

Some examples follow. View the full Impact in Action report (PDF, 1.78MB)opens in new window.

• The only organization with multiple invitations to present to President Biden’s Covid-19 Health Equity Task Force, APA shared psychology’s critical role in national Covid-19 recovery efforts.
• APA’s health advisory on youth and social media, released May 2023, includes recommendations to empower parents and others, and has reached millions of people through more than 3,000 media mentions (everyone from Scientific American to the Today show) and 600,000 impressions on social media.
• Since 2019, APA’s Amicus Brief program has filed 17 science-based briefs (of its 250 filed to-date), which have been cited in nearly 50 court decisions.
• APA adopted a formal apology to people of color in 2021, spurring development of a Racial Equity Action Plan (PDF, 1.3MB)opens in new window to ensure meaningful and sustainable progress toward reconciliation, repair, and renewal.
• APA has produced several reports on climate change, elevating psychology’s role in this issue on Capitol Hill and among advocacy organizations pushing for informed climate policy and social change.

• From 2018 to 2022, media clips featuring APA, our members, and research from our journals grew 945%.
• APA has promoted psychology’s role in informing the future of work, including shaping the Surgeon General’s framework on workplace well-beingopens in new window and enlisting 200+ organizations to commit to mental health excellence in the workplace.
• APA’s award-winning podcast Speaking of Psychology has been downloaded more than 10.3 million times since it was reimagined in 2017, with more than 3.4 million downloads in 2022 alone.
• APA’s Stress in America survey continues to receive national media attention because of its representative data and educational tips on healthy ways to manage stress.

• APA’s membership has grown from 114,436 in 2017 to over 146,000 at the end of 2022.
• Using a more proactive approach, APA has grown member engagement around our policy work. For example, with regard to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) policy, we have seen a 30% increase in comments submitted from 2021–2022 in response to CMS’ proposed physician fee schedule. This engagement, in part, has led to the recent establishment of new billing codes for psychologists working in integrated primary care.
• In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, APA quickly developed an online hub for telehealth resources and tools, and has led advocacy efforts for expanded and extended telehealth coverage (e.g., audio-only services).
• APA has elevated and expanded content relevant to basic and applied scientists, including efforts like Science Spotlight, Essential Science Conversations, and Science Training Sessions.
• APA’s Introductory Psychology Initiative has helped educators shape their courses and implement meaningful learning outcomes, affecting 1.6 million undergraduate students each year.

• APA created a Leadership Development Institute to enhance APA’s existing leadership programs and expand psychology’s capacity by building more leadership pathways in APA and the field.
• With an integrated advocacy structure, APA is more effectively speaking with one voice for the entire field and elevating psychology within the 85+ advocacy coalitions to which we belong.
• Through advocacy summits across a range of topics, over 1,000 members from 35+ divisions and 50 state psychological associations have participated, advocating for the profession and discipline of psychology and on issues affecting populations with/for whom we work.
• APA has produced high quality, highly utilized science-based standards and guidelines for the field, like Journal Article Reporting Standards and Practice Guidelines, as well as guidance for other disciplines and the public, like Inclusive Language Guidelines.

As APA takes on the process of revisiting and revising its strategic plan this year, we hope that this snapshot provides a sense of how the strategy that Council adopted has guided the collective impact of APA’s elected and appointed leaders, members, and staff. We hope that it sparks dialogue regarding new approaches and ideas. And, most importantly, we hope it energizes you as, together, we lead APA and the field of psychology forward.

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