OFFICE OF THE UNDER SECRETARY OF DEFENSE
PERSONNEL AND READINESS
4000 Defense Pentagon
Washington, D.C. 20301-4000
8 January 2016
Barry S. Anton, Ph.D., ABPP, President
Norman B. Anderson, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer
American Psychological Association
750 First Street, NE
Washington, DC 20002-4242
Dear Dr. Anton and Dr. Anderson:
Thank you for your letter of October 28, 2015, advising the Department of Defense (DoD) of the policy recently adopted by the American Psychological Association (AP A) Council of Representatives prohibiting psychologists from participating in national security interrogations or working at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility unless the psychologist only treats military personnel or works directly for the persons being detained or for an independent third party to protect human rights.
The United States Armed Forces strive to uphold the highest standards of medical professional ethics while protecting the Nation's security. Accordingly, the DoD in general, and the Military Health System (MHS) in particular, have a high regard for the professional associations that carry out vital leadership roles for the Nation's health care system. Specific to the psychology profession, the MHS relies heavily on approximately 2,000 military and civilian psychologists for many priority programs vital to the health and wellbeing of the members of the Armed Forces and their families, such as behavioral health care, post-traumatic stress, suicide prevention, substance abuse treatment, resiliency, domestic violence prevention, and special needs children. These programs cannot be successful without the strong support of the civilian psychology community, particularly with respect to training, professional standards, and licensure, all of which are essential to the recruitment and retention of highly qualified psychologists needed by the United States Armed Forces.
Licensing uncertainty as a result of the policy adopted by the AP A, however, could adversely affect the recruitment and retention of highly qualified psychologists needed by the MHS and United States Armed Forces. To relieve the anxiety of current military psychologists and those considering military service that has been generated by the policy adopted by AP A's Council of Representatives, DoD is reviewing its procedures to determine if there are ways to clarify the separation of psychological care of detainees, which care is required by law and ethical duty, and any activities relating to national security intelligence interrogations. For the same reason, we request confirmation that the AP A's views regarding the presence of psychologists at Guantanamo, other than those providing care to U.S. military personnel, are a matter of policy, not an ethical mandate, and are not intended to put psychologists providing patient care to detainees at professional risk.
We value the historical relationship between the Armed Forces and the American psychology community. We see the timeless ethical values of the psychology profession to "do no harm" and to do public service as mutually reinforcing. In this spirit, we hope for a meaningful opportunity to engage with the AP A in its further work on this subject. Attached are comments we hope you will find constructive as this work proceeds.
Sincerely,
Brad Carson
Acting Principal Deputy
------------------
Download Original Signed Document from DOD
Download APA Letter to DOD
APA Alerts Federal Officials to New Policy Banning Psychologists From National Security Interrogations
PERSONNEL AND READINESS
4000 Defense Pentagon
Washington, D.C. 20301-4000
8 January 2016
Barry S. Anton, Ph.D., ABPP, President
Norman B. Anderson, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer
American Psychological Association
750 First Street, NE
Washington, DC 20002-4242
Dear Dr. Anton and Dr. Anderson:
Thank you for your letter of October 28, 2015, advising the Department of Defense (DoD) of the policy recently adopted by the American Psychological Association (AP A) Council of Representatives prohibiting psychologists from participating in national security interrogations or working at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility unless the psychologist only treats military personnel or works directly for the persons being detained or for an independent third party to protect human rights.
The United States Armed Forces strive to uphold the highest standards of medical professional ethics while protecting the Nation's security. Accordingly, the DoD in general, and the Military Health System (MHS) in particular, have a high regard for the professional associations that carry out vital leadership roles for the Nation's health care system. Specific to the psychology profession, the MHS relies heavily on approximately 2,000 military and civilian psychologists for many priority programs vital to the health and wellbeing of the members of the Armed Forces and their families, such as behavioral health care, post-traumatic stress, suicide prevention, substance abuse treatment, resiliency, domestic violence prevention, and special needs children. These programs cannot be successful without the strong support of the civilian psychology community, particularly with respect to training, professional standards, and licensure, all of which are essential to the recruitment and retention of highly qualified psychologists needed by the United States Armed Forces.
Licensing uncertainty as a result of the policy adopted by the AP A, however, could adversely affect the recruitment and retention of highly qualified psychologists needed by the MHS and United States Armed Forces. To relieve the anxiety of current military psychologists and those considering military service that has been generated by the policy adopted by AP A's Council of Representatives, DoD is reviewing its procedures to determine if there are ways to clarify the separation of psychological care of detainees, which care is required by law and ethical duty, and any activities relating to national security intelligence interrogations. For the same reason, we request confirmation that the AP A's views regarding the presence of psychologists at Guantanamo, other than those providing care to U.S. military personnel, are a matter of policy, not an ethical mandate, and are not intended to put psychologists providing patient care to detainees at professional risk.
We value the historical relationship between the Armed Forces and the American psychology community. We see the timeless ethical values of the psychology profession to "do no harm" and to do public service as mutually reinforcing. In this spirit, we hope for a meaningful opportunity to engage with the AP A in its further work on this subject. Attached are comments we hope you will find constructive as this work proceeds.
Sincerely,
Brad Carson
Acting Principal Deputy
------------------
Download Original Signed Document from DOD
Download APA Letter to DOD
APA Alerts Federal Officials to New Policy Banning Psychologists From National Security Interrogations