I have terrific news to share in my first Presidential Address. APA Council of Representatives, at its August 2018 meeting, approved the renewal of couple and family psychology as a specialty in professional psychology. Congratulations and much gratitude to Tom Sexton, PhD, who spearheaded the petition, as well as to Div. 43, the American Academy of Couple & Family Psychologyopens in new window and the American Board of Couple and Family Psychologyopens in new window for this monumental achievement. We will have a grand celebration of this important development for Div. 43 at our 2019 APA convention.
A specialty is a defined area in the practice of psychology that connotes special competency acquired through an organized sequence of formal education, training and experience. There are merely 16 specialty areas in APA, so this recognition is significant. The much-belabored 378-page Petition for the recognition of a specialty in professional psychologyopens in new window (PDF, 13.98MB) is an absolute masterpiece. The couple and family psychology (CFP) petition documents the:
- Scientific and theoretical knowledge germane to the specialty.
- Applications of this knowledge to selected problems and populations in particular settings, through use of procedures and techniques.
- Systematic training that provides various levels of training at the doctoral, internship, postdoctoral and post-licensure levels.
The focus on both systemic and relational elements of behavior that is unique to CFP is highlighted. It is a must-read for everyone in our specialty.
Board certification
Many individuals claim competency in couple and family psychology without any assurance of appropriate education, training, supervision or demonstration of pertinent skills. Individuals within our specialty have the privilege of being awarded board certification in couple and family psychology. Board certification by the (American Board of Professional Psychology) ABPP assures your colleagues and the public that as a specialist you have successfully completed the educational, training and experiential requirements of couple and family psychology.
The designation of board certification is the clearest way to communicate our specialized training. The ABPP represents the highest level of credentialing possible and is the gold standard.
Tolerate your anxiety
The medical profession has evolved to make board certification the standard of practice for physicians. If we are going to claim equal parity with other professions, such as medicine, we must hold ourselves to that same standard for peer competency evaluation. The procedure of board certification is clearly needed in that it recognizes the competent practice of couple and family psychology. Many people are unnecessarily anxious about applying. Please applyopens in new window. There is little reason to avoid the process. You will receive a CFP mentor and will be guided so that the process is as simple as possible. I have heard more people appreciate the process and relish reflecting on their work, rather than see it as arduous. It's a way to demonstrate that we have training and expertise in couple and family psychology.
Board certification lifts our profession
Each of us in this division who identify as a couple and family psychologist must live up to the honor of being in a specialty area by becoming board certified. Certification lifts the CFP profession. We are risking extinguishing our specialty if we don't go down this road collaboratively. This is how we declare ourselves experts and advocate for the field.
We have a special need for early career psychologists (ECPs) to become board certified. We need the next generation of CFP to take root, continue the CFP work and help the field to evolve. The future of the specialty is counting on ECPs.
In 2017, only four percent of psychologists in the U.S. were board certified. It's time that couple and family psychology stop being the best kept secret. We have an opportunity to really stand out and share what it means to be a couple and family psychologist and especially to be a certified specialist.
Not only is board certification vital for our profession, but it is also important for the public. It is a disservice to the public for clinicians to do couple and family psychology without CFP courses, training or supervision. Being board certified assures the public that you are accountable for your work and you have the training and experience you need.
Board certification can also increase your marketability. Insurance companies are increasingly requiring that the specialists on their panels be ABPP certified. More jobs require that you be board certified, which can bring increases in rank and pay.
Online CE program
Our Div. 43 website will embrace our specialty status. The website will aid faculty in creating more CFP areas of specialty and provide more up-to-date CFP syllabi. The website identifies CFP internships and postdoctoral fellowships. Within the next month, we will launch our online CE program so that we can provide additional training in CFP and provide specialty-specific requirements for ABPP certification. There will be a CE course aimed to help you prepare for ABPP certification.
I am grateful to have this opportunity to be president of Div. 43 and want to hear how this Society can be more helpful to you in your research, teaching and professional life.