APA's Guidelines for the Undergraduate Psychology Major , Version 2.0 call for students to adopt values that will help them build community at the local, national and global levels. But how do you infuse an international perspective into education? Here's advice on ways to gain a more global viewpoint, whether you're a professor or a student.
If you're a faculty member
Incorporate international content into courses . At Pace University, psychology professor Richard Velayo, PhD, encourages students to collaborate on research projects with students abroad or conduct research on international topics, such as interviewing international psychologists. He requires that 10 percent to 20 percent of articles cited in students' final papers be from international sources. He also invites international students to share what they know about a particular nation's psychology and behavior.
Even a class as seemingly universal as research methodology can be internationalized, Velayo adds. He asks students to consider whether Western psychological constructs and research findings apply to other countries, for instance. He asks his students how they would tackle research in countries where citizens' primary language isn't English or where there may not be an institutional review board. "I try to infuse an awareness that the way scientific or psychological research is done in other countries may be different from what they're used to," says Velayo.
Professors can also incorporate global documents relevant to psychology into their classes, says Merry Bullock, PhD, president-elect of APA's Div. 52 (International Psychology). In a developmental psychology course, for example, teachers can refer to the Universal Declaration of the Rights of the Child. When talking about psychopathology, they can discuss the World Health Organization's mental health plan. For similar ideas, go to the APA Office of International Affairs introduction to the United Nations and its documents at www.apa.org/international/united-nations.
Create a separate international psychology course or program . Saybrook University, for example, offers a certificate in international psychology. And the Chicago School of Professional Psychology offers an international psychology graduate program that includes the same sort of courses as those in the general psychology department but with content viewed through an international lens. Students are also required to participate in nine-day field experiences abroad.
Other schools offer individual cross-cultural psychology classes. Irene López, PhD, an associate professor of psychology at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, for example, is teaching a course with Wejdan S. Felmban, PhD, an assistant professor of psychology at Effat University in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the initiative provides what López calls a "virtual" study-abroad experience for both sets of students. The two courses use the same textbook and similar syllabi, and both professors guest-lecture in each other's classes via videoconferencing. Students also have joint assignments, interviewing each other about their lives and discussing a textbook chapter on mental health over WhatsApp, Snapchat and other social media platforms. Students often view their own practices and values as the norm, says López, "but making a personal connection with someone in a different culture really helps students re-evaluate their assumptions and, by extension, helps them become better consumers and producers of science."
Keep abreast of international developments . Join international psychology organizations, suggests Kelley Haynes-Mendez, PsyD, an associate professor of psychology in the Chicago School of Professional Psychology and chair of the International Relations Committee of APA's Div. 2 (Society for the Teaching of Psychology). Possibilities include global groups, such as the International Association of Applied Psychology, International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology or the International Council of Psychologists; regional organizations, such as the Interamerican Society of Psychology; and international organizations for specific subfields, such as the International Psychogeriatric Association. (See www.apa.org/international/networks/organizations for a complete list of international organizations.) "Being a member of international organizations gives me an opportunity to network with colleagues from around the world who have similar interests," says Haynes-Mendez. The APA journal International Perspectives in Psychology can also keep you on top of current topics, she adds.
Teach in another country . One of the best ways to educate yourself about international issues is to spend a sabbatical or summer session teaching abroad, says Haynes-Mendez, who spent a summer teaching two courses at Cornerstone College in Cape Town, South Africa, in 2008. "I encourage people to not be afraid of reaching out to psychology instructors in other countries," she says, explaining that she researched South African psychology departments, contacted the ones she felt were a good match and offered to guest lecture there. She then used faculty professional development funds to help support her travel. "It broadened my perspective quite a bit," she says.
If you're a student
Spend time abroad . Studying abroad is another way to help students challenge beliefs they may believe are universal, says associate psychology professor Ken Abrams, PhD, who takes his students from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, to the Czech Republic for a class in cross-cultural psychopathology. Students can find study-abroad and internship opportunities by asking the study-abroad office at their school, or checking such websites as www.studyabroad.comopens in new window .
"Even better are internships or short-term employment abroad," says Richard L. Griffith, PhD, a professor of industrial/organizational psychology at the Florida Institute of Technology. "When you're an exchange student, you're often in a bubble with kids from your own country; you need to be out in the culture."
As a less expensive alternative to going abroad, students can use Facebook, Twitter and other social media to build relationships with psychologists and psychology graduate students in other countries, says Velayo.
Share what you've learned . "People come back from study-abroad programs and typically move straight into their next semester without any formal way to address what they've learned and share that with other students," says Abrams. At his school, returning students can take a course in which they meet with a professor and other students to discuss current events in the countries they've studied and further their language skills. Carleton also invites returning students to present at poster sessions about the research they conducted abroad. Returning students could also be seen as "mini-experts" who could present in classes, says Abrams.
