The Executive Officer recommends and participates in the formulation of new policies and makes decisions under existing policies as they have been approved by the Board of Trustees. Plans, organizes, directs and coordinates the staff, programs and activities authorized by the Board to assure that objectives are attained, plans fulfilled, and member needs are met. Maintains effective internal and external relationships. Through management and leadership, achieves economical, productive performance, forward looking programming and constructive growth of the organization.
David R. Cox, PhD, ABPP
Executive Officer Update
Year-end Board of Trustees Meeting, December 2023
Current Status of ABPP Specialties and Subspecialties
The monitoring phase of affiliation with ABPP for Addiction Psychology and Serious Mental Illness psychology, as well as the newly “reformed” Psychodynamic and Psychoanalytic Psychology boards are underway. The former two boards are well into the process and have demonstrated excellent examination processes, while the former is just beginning the process. Monitoring of exams continues for the first 30 examinations after the initial founding members have been examined, after which the board is eligible for consideration as a fully affiliated board. For the Psychoanalytic board, monitoring will include a minimum of 5 examinations; the difference being that this board has already been conducting examinations under its prior iteration.
SMI is recognized by the Commission for the Recognition of Specialties and Subspecialties in Professional Psychology (CRSSPP) as a specialty, as is Psychodynamic and Psychoanalytic Psychology, with the former also having a recognized subspecialty of Psychoanalysis. Addiction Psychology has been encouraged to seek specialty recognition as it is currently recognized by CRSSPP as a proficiency, a designation that has been phased out by CRSSPP.
Clinical Psychopharmacology is returning to ABPP with a full proposal for affiliation. The brief application was reviewed at our Board of Trustees meeting in June 2023 and the specialty has been invited to submit the full application for review.
Continuing Work From Specialty Summit 4.0
During the past year, the Interorganizational Summit on Specialty, Specialization, and Board Certification Outreach and Communication Committee has worked on infographics regarding the Taxonomy, and continues work with the Council of Specialties (COS) and CRSSPP to assist in the completion of specialty taxonomies and dissemination of information regarding the use of the taxonomy. This has included having articles in the APA Monitor on the 1) the taxonomy, 2) specialist practice, and 3) board certification.
You are encouraged to access and use the tool for programs to use that will assist in determination of the level (e.g., Major Area of Study, Emphasis, Experience, or Exposure) of training provided, using the taxonomy verbiage. Although designed to review doctoral, internship, and postdoctoral training programs, it may also be useful in reviewing the training of an individual psychologist. A video instructional is on the home page of that site. See www.psychologytaxonomy.org
The International Project on Competencies in Psychology (IPCP)
This project continues despite having had some slowing due to the pandemic and related cancellations of meetings. The meeting is being held, after a 3-year delay, in Brighton, United Kingdom on July 3, 2023. ABPP anticipates continuing its participation and will report more after the completion of the meeting.
Competence in the Doctoral and Master’s Realms
The profession continues to move forward with discussions about implementation of APA accrediting master’s degree programs, the impact of that on the profession, and licensing and certification issues. A recent meeting of the ABPP Masters Discussion group worked from the assumption that Master’s degree accreditation and licensing are going to happen. The charge for the group was to discuss what, if any, action ABPP should take based on that assumption. It was concluded that for the near-term ABPP needs to attend to the way this unfolds and revisit the topic later. Some discussion of implications for any certification was held, although the consensus was that it is too early to act other than to monitor the situation.
Information Technology
Thanks in no small part to the terrific new technology platform we are using (thank you, Rob Davis and Cerebral Consulting), the processing of applicants and candidates is going smoother than ever before. Although we do occasionally encounter an unanticipated “bump in the road” these are getting reported and fixed in rapid fashion. It is important to be cognizant that as new people start to use the system, they will need training from those who have been using it. Please attend to that as volunteer turnover in these positions occur. If you need assistance, please let us know. Many thanks to all of you who have helped us get the new platform up and running and customized as needed to each specialty board.
Thank You
Thanks go, as always, to our dedicated Central Office staff – Nancy McDonald, Lanette Melville, Diane Butcher, and Kathy Holland – who keep us all running smoothly along. For those who may be unaware, they have each been with ABPP for many years, a fact for which I am quite thankful as we have a solid team that works together and, as needed at times, works things out together. I can’t overstate the importance of staff retention in helping our organization run as smoothly as it does.
Finally, a supportive Executive Committee and Board of Trustees is appreciated by each of us!
Respectfully submitted,
David R. Cox, PhD, ABPP
Executive Officer