As the push against equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) intensifies, the field of psychology can play a unique and essential role in evolving this work and demonstrating its importance to others. As the “science of people,” we cannot claim legitimacy without our discipline and profession embracing the breadth of humanity. Simply put, EDI enables us to make this happen by addressing the barriers that prevent us from achieving our goals.
APA’s recent apology to communities of color noted some of the historical harms caused by our field. Without question, psychology needs to address those harms, but our work must also address other important dimensions of human diversity, such as disability status, gender, and sexual orientation.
Our approach to EDI is rooted in the belief that it is essential for our association to function, our field to advance, and our ability to use psychological science to address critical societal issues. But we are faced with a challenging question: How do we advance EDI in an environment where these ideas are not only increasingly misunderstood but often maligned?
In response, we must position psychology as one of the key disciplines that can clarify how the principles of EDI are connected to the issues people care about. As a field, that means we need to highlight the ways that EDI is essential for our research, practice, and training. In research, for example, representative samples enable us to make appropriate generalizations and ensure that our literature speaks to specific subpopulations.
We also must show how the issues our society cares about—from educational achievement, to business profitability, to healthy communities—are advanced through EDI. For example, research shows that increasing diversity on college campuses benefits the educational experiences of all students. Bringing this kind of research into the public discourse is an important role for our field, shifting debates around EDI from reactive, political posturing to more reasoned public policy.
For decades, APA has worked to infuse EDI principles into the fabric of the association—not simply because it is a good thing to do, but because it is essential to achieving our mission. Our goals are multifaceted—to have a highly effective organization, a relevant and thriving field, and a society in which psychological knowledge is maximally applied to important issues.
Despite the headwinds that exist, APA remains committed to EDI. We understand the moral imperative that the current climate around EDI presents for the association and the field and we are up to the task. We will continue to take on complex issues like tenure and promotion for faculty of color, health equity, bias in AI, and more. This work will require policy, structural, and cultural shifts in our field and in broader society to create substantive, transformative, and sustainable change. Most of all, it will require a clear-eyed understanding of why we do this work and a commitment to our underlying values to improve the human condition through psychology.
