2023-Summer-Editorial

Welcome to our last issue before we transition to a new web-based version!

If you haven’t already read the recently published “Mental health care equity and access: A group therapy solution” by several Division 49 members, we highly recommend it. The citation:

Whittingham, M., Marmarosh, C. L., Mallow, P., & Scherer, M. (2023). Mental health care equity and access: A group therapy solution. American Psychologist, 78(2), 119–133. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0001078

Kudos to the authors for bringing this timely and necessary discussion to a larger audience.

Our Division 49 President, Dr. Noelle Lefforge, calls attention to the ways in which we, as psychologists, can use our voices. She highlights the role of public statements, and limitations as such, as one method for doing this.

Several articles from this edition of The Group Psychologist touch on the ways our identities as a person influence our perspectives by others (peers and group member alike). Take a look at John Stitt’s reflective piece on the influence of queerness and age on group member’s perceptions and subsequent actions. Dr. Tevya Zukor also muses on the influence of age on role transitions and other decisions about what opportunities are afforded to “young professionals”.

Finally, we are pleased to share the third in a series of essays on Navigating Academic Departments. Dr. Nina Brown focuses on the need for changing in the perceptions of a department chair once they assume the position.  Please share it widely, especially with department chairs and Deans who are in positions of power to make a difference.

There is a richness of articles across a range of topics (keep reading for several on psychodrama) in this issue. Please let us know what you enjoyed and what you’d like to see in future issues.

Tom & Leann

Tom Treadwell, Ed.D. T.E.P C.G.P.

Editor

Leann Terry Diederich, Ph.D.