The APA Council of Representatives held a hybrid meeting October 28–30, 2021. In many respects it was a historic meeting, both in terms of the success of the hybrid format (which will continue) and in terms of the work that was done.
Of most historical importance were a series of resolutions that were passed which advance APA progress in addressing racism—both within psychology and utilizing psychology.
- Council unanimously approved an Apology to People of Color for APA’s Role in Promoting, Perpetuating, and Failing to Challenge Racism, Racial Discrimination, and Human Hierarchy in U.S.
- APA engaged the Cummings Center for the History of Psychology at The University of Akron to develop a chronology of how psychology and APA have harmed people of color since psychology’s inception in the 1800s. Read the historical review.
- Council voted 99% in favor of a Resolution on Dismantling Systemic Racism. APA’s CEO is directed to develop a long-term plan to prioritize, operationalize and ensure accountability for achieving real action toward the goals identified in the resolutions. This plan is to be presented to the Council by its meeting in August, 2022.
- Council unanimously approved a Resolution on Psychology’s Role in Advancing Health Equity, which is the result of President Jennifer Kelly’s task force on this topic.
Additional materials on racism and discrimination can be found at the following pages:
- Supporting materials on addressing racism:
In other matters:
- Council voted 94% to approve changes to the information presented to APA members for proposed changes to Bylaws Amendments, including: the statement of the proposed change written by three authors; the Council vote in favor of, and opposed to, the change; and “pro/con” statements written by three authors each, unless 2/3 of Council deems these statements unnecessary. Authors will be chosen by the Elections Committee.
- Council voted 99% to approve a motion to support the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s October 21, 2021, guidance to add “mental health conditions” to its list of “underlying medical conditions that are directly related to increased risk of severe illness or mortality from COVID-19.”
The following guidelines were approved:
- Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Military Service Members, Veterans, and their Families with December 31, 2030, as the expiration date. The purpose of these guidelines is to “provide recommendations for psychologists who provide services to SMVF outside of Veterans Health Administration or U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) facilities.” In addition, these guidelines aim to “highlight the main issues that are unique to this particular population that would not necessarily also be of consideration in the civilian population.”
- Guidelines for Optimal Use of Social Media in Professional Psychology Practice with December 31, 2030, as the expiration date. These guidelines are designed, “to educate psychologists and provide a framework for making decisions regarding optimal social media use in professional psychological practice. They were developed as a companion document to the APA Guidelines for the Practice of Telepsychology (APA, 2013), which serve to educate and guide psychologists on aspects of health service provision using telecommunications technology, often referred to as telepsychology. Health services offered through telepsychology occur in a very different context than social media which are, by definition, accessible to the public. Therefore, efforts have been made throughout this document to distinguish the optimal use of social media by psychologists from the practice of telepsychology.”
- Council also adopted the Student Learning Outcomes for Introductory Psychology as APA policy (and approved December 2031 as the expiration date). The APA Introductory Psychology Initiative created a set of proposed outcomes as part of its effort to transform the introductory course to meet the needs of 21st century education.
- Council also approved a new journal: Educational Psychology for Policy and Practice, aimed to advance educational psychological science in the public sphere as well as to inform educational policy and practice and to serve as a peer reviewed outlet for scholarship.
Finally, Council approved three items aimed to enhance Council Effectiveness and Operations:
- Lifetime Term Limits for APA Council of Representatives: Council approved (with 61% vote) amendments to the Association Rules to establish a 12-year lifetime term limit for service on the Council of Representative. An exemption may be requested by a Division, State/Provincial/Territorial Psychological Association or Ethnic Psychological Association when the entity is unable to find two candidates who do not exceed the 12-year term limit requirement and will have only one seat on Council during the year in which the member would serve, if elected. The 12-year term limit does not include service on the Board of Directors, nor does it extend term limits to service on APA Boards and Committees. This amendment does not affect the current requirement that a Council member who has six consecutive years shall not be eligible for a term on Council for a period of one year. There will be exploration of ways to capitalize on the experience and expertise of long-term Council members who may no longer be able to serve, as well as ways to capture Council history.
- New Task Force to Oversee Recommendations and Proposals of the Council Effectiveness Work Group: Council also adopted a resolution (with 85% vote) to establish a task force to oversee recommendations and proposals related to the September 2021 Council Effectiveness Work Group Report, and a separate task force to evaluate the Council leadership team. The resolution is intended to advance the operating principles of APA’s strategic plan by helping to build a stronger association through greater collaboration and alignment of APA resources and increasing organizational effectiveness. Next steps involve a call for nominations for each of the task forces who will be selected by the APA president.
- Ombuds Assigned to Council: With an 86% vote, Council approved a new initiative to appoint at least one, and up to three, ombuds to work with individuals and groups within Council to assist in resolving conflicts, problematic issues or concerns. The ombud(s) shall be appointed for a three-year term by the Council leadership team chair, in consultation with CLT members. Much like the parliamentarian, the ombuds will not be members of Council.
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 (and those of all boards and committees).