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Alpert (1985) Change Within a Profession Change Future

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Alpert (1985) Change Within a Profession Change Future Change Within a Profession Change, Future, Prevention, and School Psychology Judith L. Alpert New York University ABSTRACT." Many psychologists recognize that prob- require further study of social change within profes- lems and solutions in their field need redefinition, but sions. Social change, within a profession or elsewhere, change has been slow or nonexistent. Indeed, little is does not have to occur only in response to specific known about how to transform the practice of a profes- crises, new laws, or technological development. It can sion. This article's purpose is to stimulate discussion be a product of intentional planning. about what we want our fields to become andhow to I hope that this article will stimulate discussion go about realizing our visions. A professional fantasy, of the future of school psychology, but its intent is using school psychology as an example, is presented broader: to stimulate consideration of the futures of to demonstrate that utopian descriptions can put ideas our fields without basing our vision only on judgments into currency and perhaps help to reorient a field. about future realities or political constraints. I also Means to reorient fields need identification, and the hope to stimulate work on how to implement change author calls for a study of social change within the within the practice of a profession. practice of a profession. Professionals Contemplate the Future of Their Fields This article concerns change within a profession, both When psychologists contemplate improvements in the process and the content of change. The new di- their field, they are confronted with the complexities rections it proposes are for the specialty of school psy- and difficulties of effecting change. Levine and Levine chology, but many of the issues it raises should be (1970) and Sarason ( 1970, 1981, 1982), for example, relevant to other specialities within psychology. have considered how the development of a field and The manner in which the future is conceived to the definition of problems and solutions are influenced some extent determines what the status of a profession by the culture in which the field is embedded. Kuhn will be. When professionals contemplate the future (1970) also considered the issues of change and dis- of their fields, many feel obliged to limit their thinking tinguished between persuasion and conversion. He to predictions based on projected trends or on given indicated that sometimes a person intellectually political realities. There is a need for more discussion chooses to adopt a new view (persuasion) but is unable about what we want a field to become, discussion un- to internalize it (conversion). The terms culture, per- limited by judgments about the future world or its suasion, and conversion indicate the complexity of politics. To entertain a professional fantasy provides change. Professionals have many skills, but they do another way of contemplating the future of a field. not know how to change the practice of their profes- Indeed, utopian descriptions are needed because sion. they put new ideas into currency. Much that is taken Yet there is broad agreement that to serve its for granted today, for example, was first stated and constituency more adequately professional psychology described in the utopian literature. must change. For example, many clinical psychologists The fantasy presented in this article envisions an hold that clinical psychology should be reformulated enlarged role and function for the psychologist work- to better serve a larger constituency. For instance, Fox ing in the school. It proposes that schools could op- (I 982) questioned clinical psychology's preoccupation erate differently than they do now. For example, they with mental illness and emotional disorders, suggest- could serve and interact with the entire community. ing that the field reorient itself toward general practice School psychologists could greatly expand the primary that would offer services to the many and away from prevention work they already do. They could interact specialty practice that offers services to the few. Com- with the community as well as within the school and munity psychology is another example. Trickett the individual classroom. The fantasy captures a vi- (1984) indicated that community psychology is using sion, but its implementation is another matter. A dis- an obsolete paradigm that is inconsistent with the dis- crepancy between professional values and professional tinctive prevention-oriented premises of the field. actions already exists, and considerations of change School psychology is also recognized as needing re- 1112 October 1985 • American Psychologist Copyright 1985 by the American Psychological Association, Inc. 00034)66X/85/$00,75 Vol. 40, No. 10, 1112-1121 formulation. Thus, although many professionals rec- American Psychological Association and the National ognize that their specialties need to redefine problems Association of School Psychologists, political concerns and solutions, change is either not occurring or oc- partially shaped his thinking. Consequently, his pro- curring very slowly. posal provides insight into some of the advantages of Of the many ways of thinking about the future, the political approach. one is the calculated approach. To conceptualize the The political approach does not suffer from the future of a field based on the calculated approach, sometimes fallacious objectivity of the calculated ap- demographic, economic, political, social, and psy- proach. However, it can be limiting if the depiction chological trends are considered; a future world is de- of the future is derived solely from political forces. scribed; and then a prediction of the adaptation of a The future of a field may also be conceptualized field is made. The 1980 Olympia Conference on the through fantasy. The "fantastical futurist" simply de- Future of School Psychology (Alpert, 1982) and sev- scribes the field as she or he would like it to be. As a eral important articles concerned with the future of review of the literature indicates, few if any specialities school psychology (e.g., Oakland, in press) have used within professional psychology have fantastical fu- this approach. turists. This is regrettable, because fantastical thinking Although the calculated approach is valuable, it results in "professional utopias," and utopian de- has three major drawbacks. First, the method is de- scriptions introduce new and bold ideas. Much that pendent on our ability to predict the future of our is taken for granted today, for example, was first stated environment, and as futurists have indicated, (e.g., and described in the utopian literature. Because these Ogil,;% 1982) this is difficult to do. Second, the method are difficult times for school psychology, for profes- is limiting. In general, it focuses on what we think the sional psychology, for scientific psychology, and for field will become rather than on what we think it the people we serve, vision is needed. should become. It leads to a passive rather than to a To entertain professional fantasies has other ad- proactive stance. Third, it is frequently misinterpreted. vantages. As in the political approach, no pretense Because predictions are reasoned and data based, they toward objectivity is made. Thus, delusion and faulty are assumed to be objective, reliable, and valid. predictions are avoided. At the same time, it is less Clearly, research is not as trustworthy as is often be- limiting than the political approach because it is not lieved. Social scientists select theories consistent with solely determined by pragmatism. Of course, the fan- personal values and attitudes and then seek data that tastical approach is circumscribed by its own subjec- validate their beliefs, ignoring contradictory data (AI- tivity, as well as by the personal values and beliefs and bee, 1982). The calculated approach is similarly fal- the social and cultural circumstances of the futurist. lible: The futurist can attend to some trends and not Given the advantages to this approach as well as its to others. Although the predictions follow logically sparsity in the literature, a professional fantasy follows. and thus are credible, had other trends been consid- The values and beliefs implicit in the fantasy as well ered, other predictions would have followed. as a conceptual basis will first be presented. A second conceptualization of the future is po- litical It involves developing a proposal for the future based on a consideration of present political concerns. Foundation for Fantasy Characteristic of this approach is a concern for ex- pedience and practicality. Thus, a major difference Values and Beliefs between the two approaches is that the political ap- The following values and beliefs underlie the fantasy: proach focuses on what should be, given political 1. Schools exist to prepare children for a pro- realities, whereas the calculated approach focuses on ductive life within a community. Therefore, we should what will be, given predictions based on trends. A focus on the integration of school with out-of-school future for doctoral-level school psychologists as ap- experience with respect to socioemotional develop- plied educational psychologists has been proposed by ment as well as academic growth. Bardon (1982, 1983). Although Bardon's thoughtful 2. Schools exist to serve the total community. proposal was motivated by significantly more than an Schools should provide adults in the community as attempt to reconcile political concerns between the well as children with opportunities to learn, develop, and participate in school activities. Community This article is based on a presidential address to the Division of members should be able to gain self-esteem and to School Psychology, American Psychological Association, Los An- experience a sense of purpose through their interac- geles, August 1983. tions with the school; thus, they must have some con- I gratefully acknowledge Jack Bardon and Seymour Sarason trol over its functioning. for comments on a draft of this article. Requests for reprints should be sent to Judith L. Alpert, 926 3. Our society is composed of multiple com- Shimkin Hall, 50 W.
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