Regional psychological associations are organizations representative of the scientific and professional interests of the psychologists within a given region of the country. As stated in Article XII of the American Psychological Association bylaws, regional psychological associations are affiliated with APA.
The annual meetings of the regional psychological associations provide an opportunity for psychologists and students to share knowledge, to take advantage of professional development and continuing education opportunities, and to develop professional networks. These meetings, like a small-scale APA convention, feature presentations by prominent psychologists, sessions on cutting-edge research, innovations in the practice of psychology, workshops, exhibits, social hours and so much more. A brief listing of program highlights at the 2017 regional meetings appears below. Visit the websites of the regional psychological associations to learn more.
Southeastern Psychological Association (SEPA)
The 61st annual meeting of SEPA will be held March 8-11, 2017, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Atlanta. APA President Antonio Puente will deliver a keynote address at this year’s meeting. Additional plenary speakers include Monica Baskin of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Cirleen DeBlaere of Georgia State University, Stevan Hobfall of Rush Medical College and Luis Rivera of Rutgers University.
In addition to a robust program of submitted presentations and continuing education workshops, SEPA provides concurrent programming for several affiliated professional interest groups, sessions sponsored by APA and its divisions, and methodology workshops. SEPA’s Committee on Equality of Professional Opportunity sponsors an embedded program of popular undergraduate poster sessions, diversity forums and professional development sessions.
This year, SEPA is meeting for the first time in coordination with the annual Southeastern Conference on the Teaching of Psychology, which will be held at the Grand Hyatt on March 11, 2017. This arrangement will give psychology faculty with limited travel budgets the opportunity to attend both events with a single trip.
Eastern Psychological Association (EPA)
The EPA conference will be held on March 16-18, 2017 in Boston. This year, the EPA conference recognizes the role that technology has played in our lives by featuring a conference theme, "Technology and Psychology," in several invited keynote addresses and an integrative symposium. Technology and psychology is represented in presentations that address the psychological challenges of human spaceflight and of humans working in space for prolonged durations. In addition, there are many presentations that span a broad range of topics in psychology — this meeting has something for everyone. Some of the highlights of this year’s meeting include:
- Nick Kanas (University of California) will give the opening Psi Chi/EPA Invited Address, “Psychological Aspects of Long Duration Space Mission.”
- In the Presidential Invited Keynote, Jay Buckey (Geisel School of Medical at Dartmouth) will discuss “The Psychology of a Mars Mission.”
- In a second Presidential Invited Keynote, Millard Reschke (NASA) will give a talk entitled, “NASA: Reaching New Heights- the Human Factor.”
- The Presidential Integrative Symposium addresses “Commercial Spaceflight: Psychological Considerations,” and will include presentations by Rebecca Blue (University of Texas Medical Branch), Andrea Bubka (Saint Peter’s University) and Jay Buckey (Geisel School of Medical at Dartmouth).
- Barry Schwartz (Swarthmore College) will give the Richard L. Solomon Distinguished Lecture on “Why We Work.”
- Michael Lewis (Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School) will give the APA Distinguished Scientist Lecture on “The Development of Typical and Dysfunctional Emotional Life.”
Other invited addresses cover the full range of psychological research and application:
- Teaching keynote: Chris Hakala of Quinnipiac University
- History keynote: Sue Frantz of Highline College
- Developmental keynote: Nathan Fox of the University of Maryland
- Cognitive keynote: Jeremy Wolfe of Harvard University
- Social keynote: Kathleen Vohs of the University of Minnesota
- Clinical keynote: Greg Falkin of New York University
- Behavioral neuroscience keynote: Robert Stickgold of Harvard Medical School
- Applied keynote: J. Graham Thomas of Brown University
- Learning keynote: Gavan McNally of the University of New South Wales.
Southwestern Psychological Association (SWPA)
The SWPA meeting will be held on March 31- April 2, 2017 at the Hyatt Regency on the Riverwalk in San Antonio. This year’s meeting is organized around a theme of “Fitting in/Standing out: The Psychology of Groups”. A few program highlights are listed below:
- Kip Williams, Purdue University, will explore what happens when we experience ostracism from groups, and how to cope with those experiences.
- Holly Arrow, University of Oregon, will examine what happens when groups have intractable conflicts that result in war.
- Paul Piff, University of California-Irvine, will probe how our experiences in different social classes influence our thinking and behavior.
- Joel Shenker, University of Missouri, will dig into the neuroscience of group life by showing us consequences of broken social brains.
- Kathi Miner, Texas A&M University, will analyze how discrimination affects women’s persistence in STEM fields.
- Robert Morgan, Texas Tech University, will traverse the impact of the group on topics in forensic psychology.
- Regan Gurung, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, will highlight how those of us who teach groups of students can become more like fitness trainers of learning.
Rocky Mountain Psychological Association (RMPA)
The RMPA meeting will be held at the Radisson Hotel Downtown on April 6-8, 2017 in Salt Lake City. RMPA will feature an impressive line-up of speakers:
- Regan A.R. Gurung, University of Wisconsin, Green Bay
- Deborah Licht and Misty Hull, Pikes Peak Community College
- David Raskin, University of Utah
- Jane Halonen, University of West Florida
- Clara E. Hill, University of Maryland
- Scott Bates, Utah State University
- Mary Lee Jensvold, Fauna Institute, Montreal
- Melanie Brewster, Columbia University
- Mary Pritchard, Boise State University
- Susan Nolan, Seton Hall University
RMPA also hosts the annual Portenier-Wertheimer Teaching Conference. To learn more about the full program and registration details, go to the RMPA website.
Midwestern Psychological Association (MPA)
MPA invites you to the Palmer House Hilton on April 20-22, 2017 in Chicago. MPA features an impressive line-up of speakers including the following:
- Elizabeth F. Loftus, University of California Irvine
- Kristin Buss, Pennsylvania State University
- Silvia Sara Canetto, Colorado State University
- Scott O. Lilienfeld, Emory University
- Amy J. C. Cuddy, Harvard Business School
- Ashley Gearhardt, University of Michigan
- Lynn Hasher, University of Toronto
- Allen R. McConnell, Miami University
Western Psychological Association (WPA)
The 97th annual convention of WPA will be held at the Sheraton Grand, Downtown on April 27-30, 2017 in Sacramento, California. The annual meeting is preceded by a day-long Terman Teaching Conference on April 26, 2017. In addition to symposia, workshops, posters and social programs, WPA looks forward to hosting a large number of invited convention speakers. Check the WPA website for updates to the convention program.
New England Psychological Association (NEPA)
NEPA will meet at William James College on Oct. 20-21, 2017 in Newton, Massachusetts. Details about the program are not yet available. The NEPA meeting is held in conjunction with the Northeast Conference for Teachers of Psychology on Oct. 20, 2017. For more information, visit the website.