You’re Invited: Share Your Thoughts About the State of Our Science
The year 1988 marked some momentous beginnings:
- The first edition of Stephen Hawking’s landmark “A Brief History of Time” was published.
- The Phantom of the Opera opened to become one of the longest running Broadway plays ever.
- Adele was born.
And in the field of psychological science, the most important event was the establishment of APS in August of that year.
APS was started by a group of 400 or so scientists who wanted a strong separate voice for scientific psychology in all its facets. Today APS is over 30,000 members strong and is recognized as an influential leader serving the common interests of all areas of our scientifically diverse field.
With APS’s 30th anniversary coming up in 2018, we thought this would be a good time for reflection. We invite you to share your thoughts about the state of psychological science. You can look forward, back, inward, or at the outside environment in which our science operates.
To inspire you, here are some possible topics. But please don’t feel limited by these. All comments, recollections, and predictions are welcome.
- What are the most significant findings in psychological science over the past 30 years?
- Whose work has influenced you the most?
- What questions will we be exploring over the next 5–10 years?
- What are the most significant methodological advances of the past three decades?
- Which scientific or social problems did you think we would have solved by now?
- What changes have you seen in the way we collaborate in our research?
- Which are the most promising avenues of research in your area?
- What new applications of psychological science have emerged in the past 30 years?
- What is your prediction for the future of our research enterprise in terms of training, methodology, publishing, and applications?
Send your comments, recollections, and predictions to
apsobserver@psychologicalscience.org. Please try to keep your submission to 500 words or fewer.
