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Petition Tag - psychology
1. Increase the legal drinking age to 21! 
For my social psychology assignment we've been told to start a petition to raise the legal drinking age to 21!
2. 'Better Access' to Psychological Services
A few months ago, the Australian Government cut public access to psychological services, but now there is a chance to reverse this decision. We need YOU to sign the petition below so that our politicians can see the public objections to this move.
Since the beginning of November last year, people with a diagnosed mental disorder who are referred by their GP for psychological treatment have had their access to services cut short to just 10 appointments, regardless of their need for further therapy. Research has shown that 16 to 20 sessions of cognitive behaviour therapy and interpersonal therapy are often required for lasting improvement. A review of the research funded by the Australian government also confirms that up to 20 sessions are needed to treat common psychological conditions. A large-scale review of the scheme recently found that the Better Access program delivered cost-effective treatment options for a majority of people who had never accessed services before. These cuts down to just 6 sessions with a further 4 pending re-approval from a GP, contradicts the controlled research replicated world-wide regarding the recommended minimum treatment for mental health care.
On 1 February 2012, the Government announced that from March until December this year, people with a diagnosed mental health disorder will temporarily be able to receive 6 more appointments of psychological treatment if they can demonstrate that their case is “exceptional”. Unfortunately, this news also confirms the information we received that the Government made a deal with The Greens to stop them from disallowing the cuts. Subsequently, the Greens have now withdrawn their motion to disallow these cuts to mental health services. Join us in raising your concerns about this latest compromise. This temporary offer of 16 sessions is still a reduction to psychological services and by the end of the year the Government plans to once again cut services down to just 10 sessions again. The Government claims that the ATAPS program will replace services that are being lost in these cuts, however, we know that this claim is simply not true.
The limit of 10 sessions stops people from accessing psychological treatment at the half-way mark. Therapists are expected to select evidence-based treatments, but will only be able to do half of the job. Addressing the gaps in our health system must not come at the cost of programs in mental health care that have been shown to be effective.
3. To progressively change public communications into educational information on meta-cognition
Simplified a world without meta-cognition, & true psychology would be us teaching our public what to think, not how to think. So we never learn how to think. We must change this!
4. Mandatory Handwriting / Penmanship Classes for Elementary Schools
For over 25 years she has been featured on many radio and television talk shows as well as in the written media. In fact she helped write episodes for the popular CBS show Criminal Minds. She has completed casework for many public and private agencies (see references below).
Her most memorable cases include warning a woman that her husband could brutally murder her – a year later, he did. Another when she stated a sheriff deputy was dangerous – he later killed his girlfriend. Another when she stated a Homicide Investigator should not be trusted with children – he was later convicted of six counts of Child Battery. She also has enjoyed assisting in famous cases such as Michael Jackson, Darlie Routier, and missing Baby Gabriel.
Treyce is the President of both the National Association of Handwriting & Document Experts (NAHDE), and the International Association of Handwriting Formation Therapists (IAHFT). She is the CEO of the non-profit agency Written Escape, a proud member of Find Me, the National Scholar’s Honor Society, CHAI, SSCA, and others.
Her 15 published books include “Written Violence – the Personality Behind the Pen”, “Case Files of a Forensic Handwriting Analyst”, “Answers”, “The Only Handwriting Analysis Book You Will Ever Need”, “Dangerous Ink”, “Finding Mr. & Mrs. Write”, “What’s Going on Upstairs”, "You Abused Me: Handwriting of Victims", "I Abused You: Handwriting of Perpetrators", and more.
Services include custody evaluations, employment & tenant screening, jury selection, pre-parole evaluations, detecting lies & drugs, pre-termination violence assessments, compatibility, progression of suicide, sexual abuse, forgeries, anonymous notes, and much more. She nor her staff are affected by geographical boundaries.
QUICK REFERENCE LIST
Texas Department of Education, various Juvenile Probation agencies, KnowGangs, Council of Governments, Southern States Correctional Association, Great Lakes International Gang Investigators Coalition, International Association of Law Enforcement Intelligence Analysts (in USA & Mexico), Regional Organized Crime Information Center (ROCIC), West Virginia Department of Corrections, Arizona Public Defenders Association, Texas Gang Investigators Association, Colorado Law Enforcement Officers Association, Green Dental Lab Human Resources, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department, Durango Police Department, Dalhart Police Department, Trimmier Elementary School, TruVision Management, Texas Parks & Wildlife, Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Village of Glendale Heights Police Department, Refugio County Juvenile Justice Center, Bell County Precinct 1, Lamar County Juvenile Probation, Arkansas Probation & Parole
Association, Harlingen Consolidated ISD, Society of Human Resource Management, Hopkins High School, Geico Auto Crime Investigations, 4theKids, Lost Child Network, Missing & Exploited Children, Louisiana State Police, and many more.
5. Endorse community and health psychology in Australia
PETITION IN RELATION TO ENDORSEMENT OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY AND OF HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY AS SPECIALIST PRACTICES UNDER THE HEALTH PRACTITIONER REGULATION (CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS) BILL 2010.
The Australian Health Force Ministerial Council has recently decided to exclude the areas of Community Psychology and of Health Psychology from specialist practice endorsement for psychologists under the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme.
This decision will result in only seven of the nine well established specialist Colleges of the Australian Psychological Society to be endorsed.
Both specialities of Community Psychology, and of Health Psychology are recognised world-wide in advancing positive health and well-being as well as in ameliorating mental health problems, and will be an important asset in reducing the increasing acute costs of health care as indicated in the Healthy Future for All Australians report (2009).
6. Keep Dr. Robert Epstein teaching Psychology at UCSD
The Psychology Department at UCSD has come to the decision of declining Dr. Robert Epstein his position teaching infamously beloved classes, not for any budget reasons, but because the Department has expressed a manner of discomfort at the amount of press coverage and popularity of his courses.
The UCSD Psychology Homepage boasts, "The Department of Psychology at UCSD consistently ranks among the top experimental psychology programs in the country. From its founding in 1965 by George Mandler, the department now names among its faculty many of the world's leading experts in cognition, learning, memory, perception, attention, language, autism, emotion, and social relationships." To anyone that knows even the slightest bit about Dr. Epstein, whether they've noted how he effortlessly pulls off wearing a Beatles Abbey Road shirt underneath a casual suit or they've known about his 14 books or numerous television appearances, it's evident that they're talking about him when they post such a statement. Losing such a valuable asset would be devastating for not only the school, but it's students as well.
Just a few of the accomplishments of Dr. Epstein include; editor-in-chief of Psychology Today, contributing editor for Scientific American Mind, columnist ("The Skeptical Psychologist") for Skeptical Inquirer magazine, founder and Director Emeritus of the Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies in Massachusetts, host of a number of psychology-related radio programs(particularly Psyched!®), author, father of four, and longtime psychology researcher and professor.
Dr. Robert Epstein has brought life to learning and creativity into classrooms. His impressive accomplishments and flawless feedback from students only solidifies the reasons why UCSD needs Dr. Epstein. The University would gain no benefit from denying him his position here at UCSD.
"During my tenure as Department Chair,
our staff in charge of undergraduate
affairs were virtually inundated with
students coming to them raving about
Epstein's class, and asking that he be
hired to teach future classes."
Ben A. Williams, Professor of Psychology,
University of California San Diego
7. Keep Mrs. Linda Dysart Teaching
On May 11, 2009 Mrs. Linda Dysart's class was informed that she would not be returning as she was being let go. Holding back tears she explained to the class how all of her classes had been redistributed to other teachers or completely taken off the available classes. Classes like drama, speech, and psychology were all given to other teachers to instruct. Classes like creative writing were gotten rid of.
She also coached both flags and show choir; she herself has not been informed of what is to come of those and is not even sure if she will be allowed to continue coaching them. Linda Dysart is an exceptional teacher and lady. If she is let go so many people will be let down. All the students taking, or planning to take, her prior mentioned classes will not be able to experience what an amazing teacher she is. If let go students in drama, psychology, speech, flags, and show choir will all be let down as they will not have the teaching of Mrs. Linda Dysart behind them.
She is an exceptional role model for Delta High School students and is one of the best we've seen in communicating, sympathizing, and directing students.
8. Support the Child Protection Act of 2009
Creating a Special Commission to Review Legislation Impacting the Health and Welfare of Young People in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Preamble:
Whereas, laws affecting children and adolescents in the name of child protection have been passed episodically through the legislature over the past two hundred years¬¬—many of which are still in force, and in many respects too costly.
Since some of these statutes impacting the conditions in which our young people live and develop have been studied extensively by many experts, and found to be ambiguous, contradictory, antiquated, counterproductive, unconstitutional, or otherwise harmful to the health and welfare of young people in the Commonwealth, we believe it is necessary to carefully improve upon all laws impacting child development and maturation.
Considering that many of our statutes, in some measure, no longer serve the function of protecting the health and welfare of young people, nor promote their well being, it is the consensus of the vast majority of experts in child development and education that although statutes which attempt to create laws that better protect our young people’s health and welfare is indeed an important and compelling subject of thoughtful legislative action, it is crucial that the issues be carefully examined by specialized experts to implement consistency throughout our laws, regulations and policies.
Moreover, since we now have amassed over a century of experience with existing statutes and policies gathered by hospitals, psychologists, university professors, social workers, teachers, activists, psychiatrists, doctors, sociologists, child development specialists, politicians, parents, churches and many other individuals and institutions which act to serve the interests of young people, we now have access to more salient, complete and relevant data through expert studies and empirically determined observations as to what conditions are detrimental to our young people and which are helpful. We therefore find it prudent to reform the entire set of interlocking laws, regulations, rules, institutions, entitlements and policies which impact upon our young people, retire those statutes that do not work or cause harm to our youth, revise those statutes which can be transformed into positive contributions to the well being of our society in general, and frame new legislation to address problems not currently addressed by existing statutes or institutions to make the Commonwealth a place that does all in its power to promote the well being of our young.
We also believe that a more comprehensive approach to reviewing the existing context of laws influencing child development and maturation requires specialized consideration of all related areas, which therefore requires a large enough body of experts to competently examine which laws are harmful and to suggest the necessary reforms.
Be it proposed that the House of Representatives, Senate, and Governor review this legislation and deliberate in all due haste its implementation in order to reduce unnecessary harm being done to young people by laws which, while well intentioned themselves, are causing a economic burden to the Commonwealth and harm to the public safety, and to young people in particular, who are negatively impacted by their unintended consequences as a result of their misdirection—having been passed during times we were less familiar with the facts about child development and maturation.
9. Petition For Moratorium on Psychologist Involvement in U.S. Detention Centers for Foreign Detainees
Psychologist Neil Altman, a member of APA's Council, along with 16 co-sponsors, is bringing to Council a Resolution tentatively entitled "A moratorium on psychologist involvement in interrogations at US detention centers for foreign detainees" calling for a moratorium on all psychologist involvement, either direct or indirect, in any interrogations at U.S. detention centers for foreign detainees or citizens detained outside normal legal channels.
The resolution has the support of the Divisions of Social Justice, representing 12 divisions of the APA.