PLAT 23(2) 2024: Centering Psychological Literacy in Undergraduate Psychology Education Internationally

Abstract

Psychological literacy is increasingly a model for undergraduate psychology education. Cranney et al. (2022a, p. 3) define psychological literacy as the 'intentional values-driven application of psychology to achieve personal, professional, and community goals'. Psychology education, particularly with an emphasis on psychological literacy and the empowerment of students to collaboratively apply psychological science to solve societal issues, might be seen as the new 'liberal arts and sciences ' program (McGovern et al., 2010) that future-proofs not only psychology graduate jobs, but our local, national, and global societies. Indeed, the pandemic has highlighted both the importance of connectedness and the existence of social inequities.In 2016, a global collaboration resulted in the successful outcome of international consensus regarding graduate professional psychology competencies (International Project on Competence in Psychology, 2016). There is currently a similar process regarding foundational psychology competences at the undergraduate level, the International Collaboration on Undergraduate Psychology Outcomes (ICUPO), a project in which all of the guest editors are involved (see osf.io/6y38x; 2024a). Readers of this special issue may be interested in Nolan and colleagues' (2024b) recent definition of psychological literacy as 'the intentional application of psychology knowledge, skills and values to achieve personal, work and community (local to global) goals; the integration and application of foundational psychology competences within an [undergraduate] program should lead to psychologically literate graduates ' (p. 19).Psychological literacy has also been conceptualised as a pedagogical philosophy (Cranney & Morris, 2021; Nolan & Cranney, 2023), particularly in the undergraduate domain. An undergraduate educator who takes this teaching approach: (a) considers that psychological literacy should be the primary outcome of undergraduate psychology education; (b) takes an evidence-based teaching approach; and (c) models psychological literacy in the classroom (Cranney et al., 2022b;Morris et al., 2021). The authors of the articles in this special issue clearly meet at least the first two criteria, and in some cases all three. Hulme and Winstone (2017, p. 272) elaborate:"…we believe that a psychologically literate teacher is one who is well equipped to deliver innovative teaching that is creative and moves the discipline forwards, and can practice within the bounds of their competence within a given educational context. This may, of course, require professional development and scholarship on the part of the educator, to stretch the bounds of their competence, and this too, draws upon the psychological literacy skills of the teacher. Thus, psychological literacy might effectively act as a safety net to reassure the teacher during times of uncertainty … Perhaps the best strategy … to foster innovation, is to prioritize the development of psychological literacy and its delivery within our academic community".