The APA Council of Representatives met in August 2018 in conjunction with the annual convention in San Francisco. Most newsworthy are the actions that were taken, all of which are reported here.
Council voted to move forward with transitioning APA to an integrated (c)(3)/(c)(6) advocacy model. Council received the report of the presidential workgroup on an expanded APA advocacy model, which was convened after Council’s March meeting. Council approved the workgroup’s recommendations, including the concept of a unified Finance Committee and a single Board of Directors to serve both the (c)(3) and (c)(6), the allocation of 2019 member dues 60 percent to the (c)(6) and 40 percent to the (c)(3), and (c)(6) bylaw changes to expand the purpose of the (c)(6) and create a new Advocacy Coordinating Committee.
Council voted down an item which would have supported military psychologists to provide health care services to detainees in any national security setting. After more than an hour of debate on both sides of the issue, Council voted 105-57, with 11 abstentions, to retain the existing policy that restricts the role of military psychologists in detention sites that are in violation of the U.S. Constitution or international law. The individuals who proposed the measure said it was aimed at allowing military psychologists to provide needed health care to detainees without any restrictions as to the setting in which services are provided, making the role of psychologists consistent with the role of psychiatrists and other military health providers who may treat detainees at any site. Many of those who opposed the measure indicated that they feared it would open the door to military psychologists becoming involved in detainee interrogations and risk compromising the human rights of detainees.
Council voted to approve that, for a three-year trial period, the Board of Directors and Council leadership team will publish their members’ votes on each open session agenda item on APA’s website with access for members only. Additionally, for a three-year trial period, Council will be asked to vote at the beginning of each meeting to agree to publish Council member votes on each open session agenda item.
Council approved the formation of two task forces that are important for Div. 37:
(1) A task force that will conduct a comprehensive, up-to-date, and systematic review of the violent video game literature and to recommend whether the 2015 Resolution on Violent Video Games should be amended.
(2) A task force on differences in sex development that will, as part of its mandate, review current literature and policies in this area and develop recommendations for education, training, practice and further research.
Council voted to adopt as APA policy “Principles for the Validation and Use of Personnel Selection Procedures” (5th ed.) and approved August 2028 as the expiration date for the document.
Finally, Council voted to remove from APA’s website the page featuring the Independent Review (IR or “Hoffman Report”). Instead, the Timeline of APA Policies and Actions Related to Detainee Welfare and Professional Ethics in the Context of Interrogation and National Security, posted on the APA website, will retain a link to the IR report, along with links to the appendices.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or desire more information regarding any of these actions.All APA members are able to access the Council of Representatives agenda booklogin required.