Div. 34/SEPCP Call for Proposals

Proposals due: Oct. 15.

Formats accepted: Individual papers.

Submission procedure: Send paper submissions to the contact person listed below each theme.

The APA Central Programming Group (CPG) has set aside 125 programming hours for proposals of broad relevance whose content spans at least two different APA divisions. Div. 34/SEPCP has been working with over a dozen other APA divisions to craft a set of exciting, cross-cutting themes for collaborative submissions (see our eight themes below). The next step is for you to submit a short summary of your paper to the respective Div. 34 contact (listed below each collaborative theme). Individual paper submissions from collaborating divisions then will be combined to create symposia. These collaborative session ideas will be forwarded to the CPG and will receive a rapid review based on the following criteria: broad appeal, current and timely topic, originality and innovativeness, interactive/creative format, scientific basis, and attention to diversity. Any proposals not accepted by CPG will be considered for Div. 34 programming. The conference features eight collaborative themes:

1. Environmental decision-making: Consumer behavior in a "green" world

Collaborating divisions:

• 3 — Experimental
• 21 — Applied Experimental and Engineering
• 23 — Society for Consumer Psychology

Individuals and institutions alike are frequently presented with opportunities to make pro- environmental decisions. Consumer decision-making now often incorporates concepts such as "green," "earth-friendly," and "sustainable" at both the individual and institutional levels. We are looking for submissions that examine psychological phenomena related to the broad theme of "green consumerism" (e .g., the role of identity and affect, goal pursuit, heuristics, how emerging technologies affect consumer decision-making, and other topics) that shape environmental decision-making and policy within and beyond the context of consumer choice.

Contact: Christie Manning

2. What is the "real world" anyway? Exploring design in the natural, built, and virtual worlds

Collaborating divisions:

• 46 — Society for Media Psychology and Technology

Potential collaborating division:

• 10 — Society for the Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity and the Arts

We know from decades of research that the design of a space can impact how people behave within it. This research area is rapidly changing for many reasons. This theme welcomes proposals that advance and disseminate knowledge of the relationships between people and their natural, built and social worlds. Welcome topics include, for example, sustainable design, design for psychological well-being, virtual vs. place-based interaction, "media spaces" including social media and online education, and technology in counseling practice.

Contact: Elise Amel

3. Environmental Behavior in Organizations

Collaborating divisions:

• 14 — Society for Industrial Organizational Psychology

Potential collaborating division:

• 13 — Consulting Psychology

We would like to highlight advances within the broad theme of "environmentally sustainable organizational behavior." We are looking for research from Div. 34 members relating to organizational behavior and from Div. 14 and Div. 13 members conducting research on environmental issues. Ideal symposia will integrate measurement and organizational behavior expertise (e.g., leadership, group dynamics, motivation, training, assessment) with substantive environmental sustainability interventions and outcomes.

We are also interested in work that addresses the following themes:

• Mitigation and adaptation to climate change within organizations and at the organizational level.
• Organizational communication about environmental problems.
• Integrating sustainability themes into Industrial/Organizational Psychology courses.
• The impact of the natural environment on human health.
• Changing organizational behavior that degrades the environment.
• How technology use in organizations might result in both positive and negative environmental outcomes.

Contact: Daniel Benkendorf

4. From Preschool to Grad School: Effective Pedagogy for the Psychology of Sustainability

Collaborating divisions:

• 2 — Teaching of Psychology
• 15 — Educational Psychology

How do you inspire new generations of psychologists to investigate and engage in the psychology of sustainability? How do you empower future citizens to use psychology effectively to address environmental problems? We invite teachers to submit approaches and tools they have found to effectively influence understanding, attitudes, and /or behavior of students in or out of the classroom. Methods supported by empirical data and analyses are especially encouraged.

Contact: Elise Amel

5. "Engendering" Sustainability

Collaborating divisions:

• 35 — Society for the Psychology of Women
• 51 — Psychology of Men and Masculinity

Potential collaborating division:

• 44 — Society for the Psychological Study of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues.

This theme addresses gendered and/or sex-related aspects of the following:

• Environmental attitudes, behaviors and risk assessment.
• Psychological connection to nonhuman nature, environmental identity.
• Environmental advocacy and activism.
• Environmental (in)justice.
• Nature-based therapies.

Contact: Britain Scott

6. What's Good for the Planet is Good for Us

Collaborating divisions:

• 33 — Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
• 38 — Health Psychology
• 47 — Exercise and Sport Psychology

Potential collaborating divisions:

• 12 — Society for Clinical Psychology
• 29 — Psychotherapy
• 49 — Society for Group Psychology and Group Psychotherapy
• 56 — Trauma Psychology

This theme addresses the reciprocal relationship between human and planetary well- being. Many ecologically unsustainable aspects of the industrialized lifestyle are also proving deleterious to psychological and physical health; conversely, behavior change in a more ecologically sustainable direction often involves lifestyle modifications that are beneficial to human functioning. Topics that could fit with this theme include, but are not limited to, how cognitive and emotional development/functioning/well-being are related to:

• Elements in the industrialized environment (e.g., light and noise pollution, toxicants).
• Aspects of the industrialized lifestyle (e.g., inactivity, sleep deprivation, indoor living, technology, the Standard American Diet).
• Physical contact with, or immersion in, natural settings (e.g., restoration in nature, wilderness therapy, rewilding).
• Contact with nonhuman species (e.g., animal-assisted therapies).

Contact: Britain Scott

7. Sustainable (Child) Development

Collaborating divisions:

• 7 — Developmental Psychology
• 16 — School Psychology
• 53 — Society for Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology

Child development experts and laypeople express growing concern that children are spending too much time indoors and too little time engaging the natural world. Some argue children are missing out on experiences in nature that provide critical developmental support; some emphasize the mental health benefits children experience when they have access to nature; and others suggest that significant contact with nonhuman nature is necessary to nurture pro-environmental values, attitudes and behaviors. How important are experiences in nature for optimal child development and mental health? Are they necessary to foster a future generation who will aim to live more sustainably than their predecessors?

Contact: Britain Scott

8. Community Resilience in the Face of Climate Change

Collaborating divisions:

• 8 — Society for Personality and Social Psychology
• 9 — Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues

Potential collaborating division:

• 27 — Society for Community Research and Action

Global climate change is a crisis already causing great human suffering around the world. It is easy to become despondent as international and national efforts to enact meaningful policy fall short. However, a great deal of exciting work is happening at the community level. Communities, and the social networks within them, are the foundation for psychological resilience, and capacity for adaptation. This session will highlight research on climate change at the intersection of community psychology, social psychology and the psychology of sustainability. We invite submissions that highlight both theoretical considerations and empirical findings relevant to climate change (and related ecological dilemmas) as a social and community issue.

Contact: Christie Manning

Proposals due: Dec. 1

Formats accepted: Symposia, panels, skill-building sessions, conversation hours, individual papers and posters

Submission procedure:  Online submission

Program proposals may address any topic of potential interest to Div. 34 members. Papers submitted to any of the collaborative themes listed above that are not accepted by CPG will be considered at this time.