538 Professional Organizations
century included community/social psychology, psychology
applied to education, and AIDS prevention (Ferdman, 2000).
As of the beginning of the twenty-first century, the SIP re-
mained the preeminent regional psychological organization
for the Western Hemisphere. Through its journal, its Internet-
based listserv, and its congress, the SIP was able to effec-
tively promote the development of psychology in its member
nations.
The European Federation of Professional
Psychology Associations
Like the IUPsyS, the European Federation of Professional
Psychology Associations (EFPPA) restricts its membership
to national psychological associations, with only one associ-
ation per country permitted to hold membership. The EFPPA
was founded in 1981 and reflects the changes in Europe as its
countries move toward political and economic unity.
Twelve national psychology associations held charter
membership in the EFPPA. In 2000, that number had grown
to 30 member nations, whose associations represented over
100,000 individual psychologists. Professional issues such as
training, curricula, ethics, and professional regulation have
historically been the principal focus of the EFPPA, but the as-
sociation considers the integration of practice and research to
be an indispensable goal for European psychology.
A central focus of the EFPPA has been the development of
Europe-wide training standards for psychologists. This focus
reflected the political directives of the European Community
that encouraged professions in member states to develop
common standards. In psychology, this move eventuated in
the adoption in 1990 of formal guidelines under the rubric
“Optimal Standards for Training.” The goal of the EFPPA at
the end of the twentieth century was to develop a formal
framework that would lead to a European Diploma for Psy-
chologists (Lunt, 1996, 2000).
The EFPPA has held biennial assemblies since 1982. In
1996, the association began sponsoring publication of the
European Psychologist,which was a primary means of com-
munication among its members.
Other Regional Meetings
Since 1995, regional congresses of psychology have been
held, primarily in developing areas of the world, under the
cosponsorship of the IUPsyS and the IAAP. These con-
gresses usually do not involve permanent regional organi-
zations; rather, the host country organizes them, and most
participants come from the surrounding region, although psy-
chologists from other regions are welcome to register and
attend. These regional meetings are especially important for
younger psychologists and colleagues from less developed
countries who may not be able to afford the travel costs and
registration fees for world congresses. Regional congresses
have been held in Guangzhou, China (1995), Mexico City,
Mexico (1997), Durban, South Africa (1999) and Mumbai,
India (2001).International Associations: SpecializedThere are many international organizations that represent psy-
chologists who are interested in specific areas of research or
practice. Fourteen international organizations are affiliated
with the IUPsyS. In addition, there are at least 65 others,
and probably more. Also, at least 30 specialized organizations
focus primarily on members in a particular region, such as
Europe, Asia–South Pacific, and the Nordic countries. Almost
all of these organizations were established in the last half of the
twentieth century.
Among the more prominent specialized international or-
ganizations are the International Neuropsychological Society
(est. 1967), the International Society for the Study of Behav-
ioural Development (est. 1969), the Jean Piaget Society (est.
1970), the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psy-
chology (est. 1972), and the International Test Commission
(est. 1974). Examples of specialized regional associations in-
clude the European Association of Psychological Assessment
(est. 1990), the European Health Psychology Society (est.
1986), and the International Society of Political Psychology
(est. 1978).NATIONAL PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATIONSThe first national psychological organization was the
American Psychological Association (1892). Its history will
be given in greater detail below. By 1925, eight national asso-
ciations had been established; by 2000, 66 national associa-
tions had been recognized by the IUPsyS, and there were
national associations in at least 15 other countries.
The development of national organizations outside the
United States occurred first in Europe, followed by South
America and Asia; African nations have only recently begun
to organize such associations.EuropeIn the first decade of the twentieth century, psychologists
in four European nations formed national associations:
Great Britain and France (1901), Germany (1904), and Italy
(1910). The Psychological Society, changed to the British
Psychological Society in 1906, was formed in October 1901