President’s Column: The Quest for Truth amid the Perils and Pitfalls of Political Disinformation

Campaigning for the 2024 elections is in full swing. It has been projected that the 2023-2024 election cycle will be the most expensive in history, with political expenditures expected to reach $10.2 billion, spread across broadcast, cable, radio, satellite, digital, and connected television (AdImpact, n.d.). Throughout this year-long political season, many campaign messages will be…

President-Elect’s Column: Music and Technology—Looking Back and Looking Forward

Ethnomusicologists tell us music is ubiquitous across time and place; the archaeological record for instance shows a rich tradition across many continents, from ancient flutes to bullroarers (Blacking, 1974; Nettl, 2015). With the advent of modern music technologies, such as synthesizers, digital sampling, stutter editing, and pitch correction, issues of aesthetics, authenticity, and the intersection…

Past President’s Column: APA Convention Highlights

Our APA convention is one of my favorite weeks of the year-for me, it is like a holiday. The overflowing opportunities to reunite with dear friends, learn from exceptional scholars, participate in exciting events, and be so amazingly inspired by our student poster sessions, all wondrously amalgamate to create a synergy of enthusiasm for me…

President-Elect’s Column: Reflections on Book Banning

Recently, book banning has been front and center in the news. So much so, that the best-selling author of young adult fiction Judy Blume has noted that book banning “has become political… it’s worse than it was in the 80s” and expresses concern over intolerance in the USA, “about everything, gender, sexuality, racism” (McIntosh, 2023).…

Past President’s Column: Detach to Reattach

Our use of devices-and especially the potential influence of screentime on adolescent mental and physical health-is a current topic of robust discussion (Williams, 2022), investigation (Ferguson, et al., 2022), controversy (Armitage, et al., 2023), and even legislation (Frechtling, 2023). Experts including the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry have offered their screen behavior recommendations…

Past President Column: Program, Awards, Social Hour

My second year as Past President was different from the past year as we had the benefit of an in-person APA conference in Minneapolis. This year again, I had the pleasure of serving as Program chair and working with Frank Farley serving as co-chair. If you were unable to attend the conference, here’s what you…

President’s Column

Happiest of Holidays, My Most Esteemed 46 Divisionaries! As we engage in the common end-of-year “tradition” of personally reflecting upon the past 12 months, I want to first thank you all for the tremendous privilege of serving as your President throughout this re-emerging “hybrid” learning year. It has honestly been both an honor and a…