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Division 9 of the American Psychological Association (APA)
at the 121st APA Annual Convention

July 31-August 4, 2013 in Honolulu, Hawaii 

SPSSI Convention Theme:
Diversity, Disparity, and Disadvantage: 
Implications for Research,
Public Policy,
 and Social Justice


Although the presence of social diversity in the world is a global community asset, this benefit is overshadowed by the reality that disparities and disadvantages persist in many individuals’ lives across the globe. Ethnic-racial segregation, unequal education and career opportunities, poor access to quality health care and affordable nutritious foods, physical and mental health disparities, and unfair civil rights are among the social injustice themes that persist in many contemporary societies. In light of these issues, the SPSSI theme at the 2013 APA Annual Convention in Honolulu will be: Diversity, Disparity, and Disadvantage: Implications for Research, Public Policy, and Social Justice. Consistent with this theme, invited speakers, special symposia and posters will focus on: (a) basic and applied research on the development and maintenance of disparities and disadvantage; (b) interventions that effectively reduce disparities and disadvantage; and (c) how research and interventions have been, and can be, transformed into effective public policy that benefits individuals and groups. It is vital to understand and communicate the phenomenon of disparities and disadvantages because it is a social justice issue—that is, disparities and disadvantages are unnecessary, avoidable, and unfair. This notion is based on the principles that all individuals should be valued and treated equally, that equal opportunities have particular significance for individuals, and that individuals should have the right to a standard of living adequate for physical and psychological well-being.

Call for Proposals

We are accepting proposals for symposia, single-speaker papers, and posters in ALL areas of psychology relevant to social issues; however, we extend a special call for proposals that are consistent with our conference theme (see above). In recent years, we have had excellent programs at APA, and we hope to have even more representation from our division at APA 2013 in Honolulu. Early career faculty and graduate students are especially encouraged to organize a symposium in their area of study relevant to social justice or to submit a poster proposal of their work. Additional information on the SPSSI Division 9 Conference theme can be found at SPSSI’s website.

Submissions should be made online by midnight EST onFriday, November 16, 2012at http://www.apa.org/convention/proposals.aspx. If you are submitting a proposal to be considered as part of the conference theme, be sure to select “Disparities and Disadvantage” as your primary index term. APA non-members may submit proposals if an APA-member is a co-author or sponsors the proposal. Full details about the procedures for submitting proposals can be found at APA’s website.

Please feel free to contact us with questions or ideas for programming that you would like to see at the next APA convention.

—Bettina J. Casad & Luis M. Rivera
APA Div 9 Program Co-Chairs
bjcasad@csupomona.edu & luis@psychology.rutgers.edu



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