Membership
As of 2017, the American Psychological Association (APA) had a total of 115,492 members (76,174 full members and 39,318 affiliate members, including 31,560 students).
Mission Statement
APA is the leading scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States. Its mission is to “advance the creation, communication, and application of psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve people’s lives.” APA achieves this mission through four interrelated directorates, which focus on education, science, practice, and the public interest. APA’s current strategic plan has three primary goals: (1) maximize organizational effectiveness, (2) expand psychology’s role in advancing health, and (3) increase recognition of psychology as a science.
History
The APA was founded in 1892 at Clark University by a small group of scholars interested in the “new psychology” (Fernberger 1932). G. Stanley Hall was elected as the inaugural president. The...
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References and Readings
American Psychological Association. (2002). Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct. Retrieved from: http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/
American Psychological Association. (2016). About APA. Retrieved from: http://www.apa.org/about/index.aspx
Benjamin, L. T., Jr. (2009). A history of psychology: Original sources and contemporary research (3rd ed.). Malden: Blackwell Publishing.
Dewsbury, D. A. (1997). On the evolution of divisions. American Psychologist, 52, 733–741. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.52.7.733.
Evans, R. B., Sexton, V. S., & Cadwallader, T. C. (Eds.). (1992). The American Psychological Association: A historical perspective. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Fernberger, S. W. (1932). The American Psychological Association: A historical summary, 1892–1930. Psychological Bulletin, 29, 1–89. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0075733.
Guthrie, R. V. (2004). Even the rat was white: A historical view of psychology. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Pickren, W. E., & Schneider, S. F. (Eds.). (2005). Psychology and the National Institute of Mental Health: A historical analysis of science, practice, and policy. Washington, DC: APA Books.
World Health Organisation. (1992). International statistical classification of diseases and related health problems, 10th revision (ICD-10). Geneva: WHO.
Yohn, D. L. (January 2016). To stay relevant, professional associations must rebrand. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from: https://hbr.org/2016/01/to-stay-relevant-professional-associations-must-rebrand
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Kaslow, N.J., Doran, J.M. (2017). American Psychological Association (APA). In: Kreutzer, J., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56782-2_593-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56782-2_593-3
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