APA 2014 program report

Mark your calendars. The Div. 20 program for the 2014 APA convention in Washington, D.C., August 7-10, 2014, is in motion, and it looks great. The presidential theme selected this year by Bill Haley is "Translating Aging Theory and Research to Intervention and Practice," and speakers will address this theme from several perspectives. Baltes Award recipient Roger Dixon (University of Alberta) will talk about "Epidemiological Approaches to Cognitive Aging: Trajectories, Transitions, Modifiers, and Mechanisms," and invited speaker David Roth (Johns Hopkins University) will offer his view on "Updating Randomized Trials of Interventions for Older Adults with Needed Methodological Innovations." In his presidential address, Bill Haley will tell us about how "It Takes a Network: The Social Side of Research.” This year, APA launched a new collaborative programming format, and Div. 20 had four symposia accepted, in collaboration with Divs. 3, 6, 12, 21 and 22. We will also be hosting eight other symposia and special sessions, including the 4th annual session of "Speed Mentoring: Building Research Careers in Geropsychology and Neuropsychology," developed through a collaboration with Div. 40 and the Committee on Aging (CONA). An invited symposium, "The Coming of Age of APA's Committee on Aging: Influencing Aging Research, Practice, and Policy," will feature past/present CONA members who will discuss milestones in CONA programming and contributions since its establishment in 1998. Sixty posters were accepted, reflecting diverse, contemporary topics ranging from clinical evaluations of dementia to fashion and the aging self. We will also be co-listed on over 15 other divisional programs, reflecting topics such as research with transgender people across the lifespan, discrimination and health among women at midlife, and lifespan traffic and transport psychology. We expect several of our programs to offer continuing education credits for attendees, and we invite members to meet new fellows in their presentation session. This year, the social hour will be on-site, in collaboration with Div. 12 Section 2 (Clinical Geropsychology), which we hope will prove to be an accessible and resourceful way to gather together, network, and enjoy the company of colleagues. The APA convention programming office is reviewing our scheduling requests, and we should know more by June about the final program schedule. We look forward to seeing you in D.C.