Psychoanalytic And Psychodynamic Psychology
The Specialty of Psychoanalytic and Psychodynamic Psychology denotes a level of training beyond doctoral and internship requirements. While Psychoanalytic and Psychodynamic Psychology involves a wide range of modalities and settings (e.g., group, couples and families, school, assessment, organizational), supervised experience in individual psychotherapy is a foundational component of the educational and training requirements for board certification in PA/PD.
The ABAPPP will review each applicant’s materials to determine the extent to which doctoral and post-doctoral education, training, supervision, and post-licensure professional experiences reflect sufficient breadth and depth in the Specialty. APA first recognized PA/PD as an official post-doctoral Specialty in 2022, so many ABPP applicants may not have acquired training in a formal Psychoanalytic or Psychodynamic postdoctoral training program. The ABAPPP Board recognizes that training often occurs through multiple pathways and at varying levels of intensity through the course of a career. For example, some applicants may have received extensive PA/PD Psychology supervision during a doctoral level practicum or internship, whereas another applicant may have begun PA/PD training only at the postdoctoral or post-licensure stage of training. The ABAPPP welcomes applications with any of these training backgrounds.
Stages and levels of training in the PA/PD Specialty and the Psychoanalysis Subspecialty are organized within the framework of a Taxonomy of Education and Training (Education and training guidelines: A taxonomy for education and training in professional psychology health service specialties and subspecialties (APA, 2020). The Taxonomy clarifies the logic and structure of the distinction between Specialty and Subspecialty and is used to characterize levels of opportunity for specialization in at each of the stages of training (doctoral, internship, postdoctoral, and post licensure). The terms defined in the Taxonomy describe the types of program requirements that will be used to establish a pathway to training in PA/PD Psychology.
Candidates will be asked to complete a Specialty Eligibility Endorsement Form (Form B) that documents their identification with the Specialty and their educational and training experiences in PA/PD Psychology, creating a portfolio that traces their pathway to specialization.
The Specialty Eligibility Endorsement Form documents eligibility in five broad categories. Pathways for satisfying the PA/PD Psychology Specialty training requirements are described using terms as defined and illustrated in the Taxonomy.