Legislative Issues and Advocacy Training Tools

APA Services Advocacy Initiatives

• Learn more about our advocacy of health and human rights, education and training, research, violence prevention, and the practice of psychology
• Sign up for the Psychology Action Network

Federal and State Advocacy Topics

• Student debt
• Ending the internship crisis
• Medicaid reimbursement for trainees

Bills on Capitol Hill

• Search by any issue areaopens in new window
  consider these search terms, or use your own: psychology, mental health, health care, behavioral sciences, education.
• Use GovTrack.Usopens in new window to track upcoming votes and hearings; view voting records; read hot topic issue analyses; and subscribe to updates on congressional activity for specific issues you care about.

Elected Officials

• Find your federal and state officialsopens in new window

Free Phone Apps

View federal bills, votes and officials:

• Example for Androidopens in new window

How a Bill Becomes a Law

• Schoolhouse Rock: "I'm Just a Bill" music videoopens in new window
• State by stateopens in new window

Tips and Advice

• Psychologist’s Guide to Advocacy
• Sample scripts to respond to advocacy-reluctant peers
• Using social media for advocacy and legislative visits (PDF, 247KB)opens in new window
• Glossary of legislative and political terms
• American Counseling Association Advocacy Competencies (PDF, 139KB)opens in new window
• Measuring advocacy and policy impactopens in new window
• "The Psychology of Advocacy and the Advocacy of Psychology" (PDF, 48KB)opens in new window
  A broad-based article about advancing advocacy for the field.
• The Community Tool Boxopens in new window
  Find more than 300 free social-change tools on community assessment, planning, intervention, evaluation and advocacy.

Case Studies

See how psychologists become advocates:

• Psychologists as policy advocates

Find a Network

• Join APA's Div. 31 (State, Provincial and Territorial Affairs)opens in new window to stay current on issues affecting psychology and practice at the state level. This division offers free student membership.
• Join your State, Provincial, or Territorial Psychological Association. These smaller networks provide numerous benefits to students and are the changemakers for psychology at the local level.
• Consider taking part in the Scholar Strategy Networkopens in new window to translate your research for policymakers and the media.

Become a Congressional Fellow

• During or after your degree, consider spending a year with APA and on Capitol Hill as a congressional fellow or executive branch fellow
• Div. 9 (Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues) Policy Programopens in new window
• Society for Research in Child Development Policy Fellowshipsopens in new window