The theme of APA 2024, “All In,” seemed to resonate with so many of you during our annual convention in Seattle in August. There was a palpable sense throughout the event that “this is psychology’s time.” As individuals, as an association, and as a field, there is no more important time to be all in—embracing our roles as psychologists, taking on the critical issues of the day, and committing to use our expertise in ways that improve people’s lives. With most of the complex issues facing our society rooted in human behavior, we have a responsibility to bring psychological knowledge to bear in addressing them.
And our members are rising to this challenge. Across the APA 2024 stages, psychologists were illuminating big, complicated issues, like artificial intelligence (AI), misinformation, loneliness, and immigration. Some of you are, for instance, using developmental psychology to inform media storytelling in ways that support youth health and well-being. Others are equipping organizations with knowledge from industrial-organizational psychology to enhance the effectiveness of teams in high-stakes settings like emergency departments and even outer space. Many of you are using psychological science to help people navigate difficult dialogues, to shape systems, and to inform public policy.
As a field, we are expanding the public’s often narrow understanding of what a psychologist is by demonstrating how our expertise addresses a wide range of issues. As a result, we are having greater impact and witnessing a growing appreciation for how our skills and knowledge are urgently needed to tackle nuanced societal challenges.
As an association, APA is taking a similar tack. On issues like AI, we are not only helping the profession and discipline react, adapt, and evolve, but also proactively using psychology to shape the development of AI technologies. With the nation’s mental health crisis, we are actively promoting the necessity of a population health perspective and the importance of expanding our paradigm for mental health, reimagining what is possible when it comes to optimizing the psychological well-being for all people.
All these issues share a common thread: At the heart are people. If the big, complex issues of our time are going to be resolved, we have to use the science of people—the science of human behavior. As an association and field, we must not back down. In fact, more than ever, we need to continue to push ourselves to color outside the lines and find novel ways to apply psychological knowledge and expertise. Let us not underestimate the power we have to do good and improve the human condition.
