SPSSI 2015 Summer Conference 

A Road Less Traveled: Forging Links between Psychological Science and Social Policy

The wealth of knowledge established through psychological science could potentially inform solutions to many of our most urgent social problems, from climate change to public health to education and foreign policy. Yet a great deal of the policy-relevant information our field produces never reaches policymakers. To help bridge this research-policy gap and improve our understanding of the relationship between psychology and public policy, SPSSI will gather concerned psychologists and interested policymakers in Washington, DC on June 20-21, 2015.

Under the broad umbrella of understanding how to build durable bridges between psychology and policy, we plan to discuss several related issues: What is the role of psychologists in the policy process? What obstacles limit psychologists’ ability to contribute to policy? Do psychologists’ biases limit the research they perform? What can we learn from other disciplines? What, if any, changes should take place in graduate education in psychology?

Media representatives interested in attending the conference should contact David Aronson for more information; Congressional or Administration staffers should contact Gabriel Twose.

This off-year Washington, DC meeting is a smaller version of our usual biennial conference, and will focus specifically on the linkages between research and policy.  In addition, as the first of its kind, this meeting will help SPSSI evaluate whether we should host annual rather than biennial conferences.

The deadline for all conference submissions has passed. 

Legislative Engagement Day

This year, we are delighted to partner with The Society for Personality and Social Psychology and the American Psychology-Law Society to offer a Legislative Engagement Day, in which 50 psychologists and graduate students will visit the offices of their Senators and Representatives to educate them about the value of psychological science in informing public policy. To find out more: click here.  Update: Registration for this even has been closed.

Conference Program Co-Chairs
Linda Silka at silka@maine.edu
Katya Migacheva at katyamig@rand.org

Quick Links:

• Conference Schedule

Hotel Information

Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill
400 New Jersey Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20001, US