The APA Council of Representatives met Feb. 28 - March 1, 2020. Most newsworthy are the actions that were taken, all of which are reported here. Council voted overwhelmingly in favor of two sets of guidelines: (1) Education and Training Guidelines for Psychological Assessment in Health Service Psychology; and (2) Guidelines for Psychological Assessment and Evaluation (a new conceptualization of the Test User Qualifications guidelines which expired in 2016). Both will soon be available on the APA website.
Council voted nearly unanimously to approve three new policies related to LGBTQ issues: (1) the Resolution on Supporting Sexual/Gender Diverse Children and Adolescents in Schools, replacing something similar that was passed in 2015. The new resolution was a collaboration with the National Association of School Psychologists, which will also adopt it; (2) the Resolution on Opposing Discriminatory Laws, Policies and Practices Aimed at LGBTQ+ Persons (replacing one from 2007); and (3) the Resolution on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, Parents and Their Children (replacing a 2004 resolution). All of these are updates due to changes in laws, societal context and scientific literature.
Council was provided a robust overview of psychological science related to climate change and an update of APA activities in this area (including leading a global summit in 2019). Council approved a policy statement reaffirming APA’s 2011 policy resolution on climate change, committing APA to collaborate on climate change with other organizations in the United States and internationally, and establishing an expert task force to advise on APA’s future activities on climate change.
Council received a report of a 2019 Violent Video Games Task Force, which reviewed the findings of the 2015 Resolution on Violent Video Games, conducted an updated literature review (articles published 2014-2019), and affirmed the major finding in the resolution that there is a small, reliable association between violent video games and some forms of aggression. The task force recommended adding preamble language to the resolution, given that it has been weaponized (e.g., blaming violent video games for mass shootings). The Child, Adolescent, and Family Caucus introduced an amendment to revise this language to be more understandable to the public, and council voted overwhelmingly to approve revised language.
Finally, council was asked to make the trial delegation of various responsibilities to the Board of Directors (BOD) permanent; they had arisen from the Good Governance project. Of those present, 76 percent voted to review financial information every three years, rather than delegate to financial committee and BOD permanently. In addition, 95 percent voted that the Council of Representatives needs to approve any dues increases (but not dues decreases) and to review dues policy and other authorities every three years.
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.