About/Contact Grant

HOW TO VOTE FOR APA PRESIDENT

APA sends out ballots to the email address they have on record for all APA members. If you have not received your ballot and would like to vote, please email elections@apa.org to receive a new ballot. Graduate students who are members of APA for one year or more are eligible to vote in all APA elections.

The APA President-elect ballot will be sent electronically on Thursday, August 1, 2024 to your email address on file with APA with instructions and a link for voting online. The voting period will be from August 1, 2024 to September 16, 2024. The voting site will close at 11:59 p.m. EDT, September 16, 2024.

Here is a Link to Dr. Rich’s Brief Presidential Candidate Biography

Dr. Rich has over 25 years of extensive experience in leadership, research, teaching and service at state, national, and international levels. He has advocated for state Behavioral Health systems serving as lead grant writer for over $22 million in Mental Health and Substance Misuse grants for Alaska in his seven years working for its Division of Behavioral Health. He has written over 150 research articles/chapters and published 11 books, ranging from cultural/international psychology to trauma/resilience, to media psychology to child/youth development. He is a leader in international and online teaching, living and working in diverse settings including Alaska, South Asia and Southeast Asia. He has served in top leadership roles in APA divisions as well as State behavioral health projects and in international psychology organizations. He brings diverse applied clinical experience as well as a demonstrated commitment in research, teaching, and service. The breadth and depth of his experience positions him to effectively lead APA and its 150,000 members.

Endorsements: Here’s a link to some who have endorsed Dr. Rich for APA President

Dr. Rich’s Vision statement and Responses to APA’s Six Questions to Candidates

The issues facing psychologists today are many. As APA president I will aim to build unity with diversity to achieve our shared goals by:

• Encouraging excellence & representation in research & practice. Psychology is stronger when we work together effectively. Support for both those in academia & those in private practice/organizations (e.g., government/business/health facilities/hospitals).
• Creating meaningful opportunities for students/early career, mid-and senior-career-psychologists.
• Examining best practices for effectively/efficiently integrating primary care & behavioral health. Social issues today require psychologists to partner with colleagues in other disciplines on such issues as climate change, poverty, health equity, prejudice, discrimination, & decolonization (e.g., race/ethnicity, religion, gender, disability, national origin, age, LGBTQAI+). Promoting a worldview of living peacefully/cooperatively through greater international scholarship exchange.
• Ensuring ample/appropriate dissemination of psychology to healthcare providers & the public through effective use of media/technology. Making psychoeducation proactive, not just reactive crisis responding. Publications/policy briefs should be affordable/accessible in the USA & internationally.
• Working together with the profession & public towards positive social change. To succeed, psychology must partner with behavioral health professionals, policymakers, & insurance & advocacy groups. Respectfully engaging with both ends of the political spectrum, better communicating our shared mission & building a system where diverse stakeholders can meaningfully engage.

As APA president, to achieve these ambitious goals, I bring 30 years of extensive experience managing organizations/projects in APA, state government, & academe, including life/work in diverse settings (e.g., Alaska/Cambodia/India).

Six questions reflecting important issues to APA’s overall mission and strategic plan

1. APA’s 2024 Strategic Plan mentions utilizing psychological science to positively impact critical societal issues. What is your vision for APA achieving this strategic goal?
   APA’s mission promotes the advancement, communication, and application of psychological science/knowledge to benefit society/improve lives. I’m committed to advancing these goals. Psychology must provide more than arm-chair reflection; solid research should be disseminated/implemented for public good, not languish unread in archives. To positively impact critical societal issues, APA must work to elevate public understanding/use of psychology. APA’s Science Directorate, Division Leadership, and Members all play essential roles. As Society of Media Psychology president, I’m experienced in navigating the balance between science, society, and media. I was lead co-editor of the 2024 Handbook of Media Psychology focused on this critical topic.
2. Knowing that early career psychologists are the largest and most diverse group of psychologists, how do you recommend that APA focus on engaging ECPs in both APA leadership and as APA members? How would you envision APA supporting the visibility of early career psychologists within APA and facilitate collaboration between mid and late career APA members and early career members?

   For psychology to remain a vital force in society, engagement with early career psychologists and graduate students is absolutely essential. Mid and later career psychologists have a responsibility to work towards positive social change by ensuring the next generation of psychologists represents a diverse, adaptable, ethical workforce that is both educated in best evidence-based practices and well-positioned to transform a society that is itself in transition. Opportunities for participation by ECPs and graduate students must be well-advertised and substantive, including meaningful awards, grants, and CV building opportunities such as cutting-edge research, publication, and internship collaborations.

3. Applied psychology can be defined as the use, application, and advancement of psychological science in contexts beyond the laboratory or the delivery of individual healthcare services. What would you recommend that APA do to advance applied psychology inside and outside of APA as a tool to address local, national and global social issues?
   Academic and private practice settings are familiar to many psychologists, yet there are many other untapped and under-tapped opportunities for psychologists beyond the laboratory and individual service delivery. For instance, many students- and PhDs/PsyDs- are less aware of employment opportunities in such applied settings as local, state, and federal government agencies, as well as businesses/consulting opportunities such as for forensic psychology, school psychology, market research, conflict resolution, human resource management, and organizational psychology. As a psychologist who himself has worked extensively with state and federal organizations (e.g., SAMHSA/HRSA/CMS), I am a knowledgeable advocate about the challenges/opportunities for psychologists here.
4. What steps will you support APA taking to cultivate leadership in women and people of color throughout the discipline and profession?
   Diverse leadership is essential to a thriving psychology. We must work together to ensure diversity in academe, in publications, in practices, in state and federal organizations, and throughout the discipline. Journals must ensure that editors, editorial boards, and reviewers sufficiently reflect diversity. Universities must examine tenure/promotion practices to ensure diversity is valued and demonstrated quantitatively, as in representation as department chairs, in administration positions, and with fair compensation. Practices should ensure diversity in hiring and retaining therapists. Within APA, mentoring programs, scholarships, special programs, institutional research, and authentic organizational and personal self-reflection are all essentials on the path to diversity.
5. How will you lead APA in engaging the public and the profession across many societal challenges for which we have expertise to contribute to the dialogue (e.g., systemic racism, COVID-19 mental health issues, school safety, etc.)? What steps would you recommend for making a measurable impact?
   Society currently faces a number of challenges for which psychology can and should contribute to the national dialogue. Psychologists must utilize their understanding of methods and human behavior to make a positive impact on such critical social issues as systemic racism, health disparities, gun violence, school, family, and community violence, climate change, youth mental health, global peace, and media disinformation. To succeed, psychologists must resist academic and disciplinary silos, instead building bridges to other professions, to policy makers, and to the general public. It is imperative to elevate the public’s understanding of, and regard for, the use of psychology.
6. According to our Strategic Plan, APA aims to “embrace a global perspective, advancing psychology globally through global engagement, association programs, and meaningful collaborations” and to “respect and promote human rights, focusing on human rights, equity and nondiscrimination for all peoples.” In what ways have you promoted global psychology and human rights and how would you lead APA in doing so as APA president?
   I’ve devoted much of my career to international psychology collaboration. I have published three co-edited books on internationalizing psychology teaching, serve on ICOPE’s board (International Council of Psychology Educators), and have lived/taught in India/Cambodia, and conducted research in Latin America/Caribbean. I am a Fellow of APA’s International Division and 2023 Mullen Award winner from ICP (International Council of Psychologists). I will strongly advocate for funding, employment, research, practice, and teaching opportunities for international students/faculty, and for diversifying psychology within APA/USA and promoting talent exchange. I will utilize my extensive international experience to support psychology and human rights around the globe.