Instructions: To be eligible for full credit you must exceed the minimum word requirement, answer all of the questions, use your own words, and cite outside sources including your textbook. Additionally, remember there are two parts to each Discussion, a Response and a Reply. You must complete both portions to be eligible for full credit.
The two major organizations of psychologists in the United States are the American Psychological Association (APA), founded over 100 years ago, and the American Psychological Society (APS), founded in 1988. The link below includes a list of divisions of the APA, which reflect the enormous diversity of the field of psychology
For the Discussion #1 Response, read Chapter 1 of your textbook, then click on the “APA Divisions” link below and review the many areas of psychology. Select two divisions of particular interest to you and examine the information provided on its own site. Then, answer the following questions in your Response:
APA Divisions
(Links to an external site.)
(**click this hyperlink to access the APA website**)
PLEASE NOTE: If you have trouble with this hyperlink, can find the necessary information by going to the APA website at www.apa.org, then scroll down the navigation bar to find the icon that takes you to the “Divisions of the APA” page.
(1a) Based on material presented in chapter 1 of your textbook and on the APA website, give comprehensive definitions, in your own words, of the field of psychology and of a typical “psychologist.” Is it possible for a psychologist to be focused in an area other than clinical and counseling psychology? Provide evidence to support your answer.
(1b) After reviewing the information presented at the APA website, select two divisions of the APA that you found interesting. Give a detailed overview of each of the divisions you selected. Then, discuss the reasons why they were of interest to you.
(1c) After reviewing your textbook, describe which chapter/s cover information that relates to each of the two divisions of the APA you listed above. (You may have to make an educated guess after reviewing the table of contents.) In doing this, explain in what way/s the division may relate to specific content from the book.
(1d) Discuss at least two things that you learned &/or two things that surprised you about the field of psychology. Did you find this information in your textbook or from the APA website? What, specifically, about each of these items was of interest to you?
(1e) How diverse is the field of psychology? In your opinion, what are the advantages and disadvantages of this?
In formulating a Discussion #1 Reply to at least one of your classmates, constructively compare your definitions of psychology and psychologists, consider the ways in which other divisions selected relate to each other and to specific chapters of the textbook, and whether or not you believe the diversity is an advantage or disadvantage for the field of psychology. You can ask questions of each other as you explore the field of psychology and/or you may also share other resources related to the field that you may have found during your search.
LINK TO BOOK
https://cnx.org/contents/4abf04bf-93a0-45c3-9cbc-2cefd46e68cc
