Applying Psychological Science, Benefiting Society
By Gregory M. Herek, PhD (Professor of Psychology, UC Davis) Not so long ago, homosexuality was triply stigmatized. In addition to being condemned as a sin and prosecuted as a crime, it was assumed to be an illness by the mental health professions throughout much of the 20th century. Although that assumption was never based […]
By Paola M. Contreras, PsyD (Member, APA Task Force on Trafficking of Women and Girls) January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month – an important time to shed light on a crime that affects hundreds of thousands of people globally. While some groups, such as women and young girls, are certainly more vulnerable to this crime, overall […]
By Sabrina Cox, MA, LMSW Zahara Green is a 25-year-old transgender woman who was placed in an all-male prison in May 2012. According to Green, she was targeted by another inmate, Darryl Ricard, immediately upon entering general population at Rogers State Prison in Georgia. Ricard was serving a life sentence for aggravated child molestation, rape, […]
By Melba J. T. Vasquez, PhD, ABPP (2011 Past-President of the American Psychological Association) “You must speak up, you must speak out, you must get in the way.” These were the impassioned words spoken by Congressman John Lewis (D-GA) after receiving a Presidential Citation from APA President Nadine Kaslow, PhD, urging psychologists to become involved in […]
This post continues our new blog series on poverty. As our nation reflects on its progress in fighting poverty over the last 50 years, this blog series will highlight how psychology can contribute further to this discussion. By Eric Greene, PhD (Clinical Psychologist) I would like to address the inherent racism, classism and oppressive dynamics which fill […]
This is part of our ongoing series of blog posts about race, racism and law enforcement in communities of color. By Tom Tyler, PhD (Professor of Law and Psychology, Yale Law School) Ferguson represents another step in the escalating failure of the “broken windows” view of crime that has gained ascendancy during the past generation. Under this approach, the […]
By Gwendolyn P. Keita, PhD (Executive Director, APA Public Interest Directorate) The shooting death of Michael Brown, an unarmed African American teenager, at the hands of a police officer has led to outrage and continuing civil unrest in Ferguson, MO. These events are emblematic of the fraught and often problematic interactions that communities of color have […]
By Efua Andoh (PI Communications Staff) and Ron Schlittler, MIPP (Program Coordinator, APA Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Concerns Office) Forty five years ago on June 28, 1969, the gay community in Greenwich Village in New York City spontaneously protested against routine police harassment and intimidation in what became known as the Stonewall Uprising. Their […]
Psychology Benefits Society 