A Social Justice Approach to Undergraduate Psychology Education: Building Cultural Diversity, Inclusion, and Sensitivity Into Teaching, Research, and Service

Abstract

ABOUT PSI CHI Psi Chi is the International Honor So ci ety in Psychology, found ed in 1929. Its mission: "recognizing and promoting excellence in the science and application of psy chol ogy." (Note. Our new mission statement is available at http://www.psichi.org/?page=purpose) Mem ber ship is open to undergraduates, graduate students, faculty, and alumni mak ing the study of psy chol ogy one of their major interests and who meet Psi Chi's min i mum qual i fi ca tions. Psi Chi is a member of the As so cia tion of Col lege Honor So ci et ies (ACHS), and is an affiliate of the Ameri can Psy cho logi cal As so cia tion (APA) and the Association for Psy cho log i cal Science (APS). Psi Chi's sister honor society is Psi Beta, the na tion al honor society in psychology for com mu nity and junior colleges. Psi Chi functions as a federation of chap ters located at over 1,130 senior col leg es and universities around the world. The Psi Chi Central Office is lo cat ed in Chatta nooga, Ten nessee. A Board of Directors, com posed of psy chol o gy faculty who are Psi Chi members and who are elect ed by the chapters, guides the affairs of the Or ga ni za tion and sets pol i cy with the ap prov al of the chap ters. Psi Chi membership provides two major opportunities. The first of these is ac a dem ic rec og ni tion to all in duc tees by the mere fact of mem ber ship. The sec ond is the opportunity of each of the Society's local chapters to nourish and stim u late the pro fes sion al growth of all members through fellowship and activities de signed to augment and en hance the reg u lar cur ric u lum. In addition, the Or ga ni za tion provides programs to help achieve these goals including con ven tions, research awards and grants competitions, and publication opportunities. JOURNAL PURPOSE STATEMENT The twofold purpose of the Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research is to foster and reward the scholarly efforts of psychology students as well as to provide them with a valuable learning experience. The articles pub lished in the Journal represent the work of under graduates, graduate students, and faculty. To further support authors and enhance Journal visibility, articles are now available in the PsycINFO®, EBSCO®, and Crossref® databases. In 2016, the Journal also became open access (i.e., free online to all readers and authors) to broad en the dissemination of research across the psychological science community.

The Influence of Anxiety and Self-Efficacy on Statistics Performance: A Path Analysis

“…I teach Research Methods, and I can attest to the fact that most undergraduates do not fully understand the mission and function of the IRB. Additionally, we have articles that support writing a research paper (Fallon, 2018), as well as another that focused on how to use a social justice approach in teaching (Gallor, 2017). These editori als are another way that the Journal stays in line with the larger Psi Chi Society.…”

“I am a change agent”: A mixed methods analysis of students’ social justice value orientation in an undergraduate community psychology course.

“…When students begin to see how they can make a difference in the lives of others, it can potentially increase their efficacy toward achieving other related tasks and goals. Students who are able to develop a value orientation toward social justice increase their sense of agency and are likely to pursue career opportunities that places them in positions to combat inequalities (Gallor, 2017: Hardiman et al, 2007Simons et al, 2012). Moreover, increasing student involvement in reciprocal relationships with community members to solve problems can serve as a predictor of continued social justice advocacy (Mitchell, 2007(Mitchell, , 2014.…”

“…The adoption of social justice principles and education are perceived as a necessity in preparing students to meet the social needs of an increasingly diverse population (Adams, Bell, Goodman, & Joshi, 2016). Students learn about individual biases and global challenges and engage in reflection before working with historically marginalized and oppressed groups (Gallor, 2017). Such learning experiences include the critical examination of values and inequalities and immersing students in diverse communities as volunteers or service providers.…”

“…Working with diverse individuals across different communities to solve problems is a worthwhile learning experience for students in the undergraduate psychology major (Gallor, 2017). According to the American Psychological Association's (2013) guidelines for under-graduate education, students should be able to "adopt values that build community at local, national, and global levels" (p. 16).…”

School Safety Beyond School Shootings

“…I am going to argue that, yes, it is important, and many others would agree! Psi Chi Diversity Director Susanna Gallor (2017) wrote that "the field of psychology has a responsibility to ensure that human diversity is reflected in education, training, research, and valuable service that is often targeted to diverse communities across society" (p. 254). Our mission is recognizing and promoting excellence in the science and application of psychology, so how could Psi Chi begin to examine how well it is ensuring diversity among its own members without access to diversity data about them?…”