38 - The Role of Scientific Societies in Promoting and Protecting Human Rights and the Example of the American Psychological Association

Summary

Scientific societies have a unique role to play in the promotion and protection of human rights. Indeed, their activities in support of human rights have increased in the past four decades. Yet, such activities remain rare. Recognizing the connections between human rights and the knowledge and practice of psychology, the American Psychological Association (APA) is one of the few scientific membership organizations to integrate human rights language into its governance instruments and to pursue activities with a human rights focus. At the same time, the organization in recent years struggled to reconcile a perceived tension between human rights and national security interests. Adopting the APA as a case study, the chapter applies the Risse, Ropp, and Sikkin Spiral Model to explore how competing pressures from governments and other groups may lead scientific societies generally to take actions that undermine human rights norms and suggests a path forward for effective implementation by scientific societies of human rights.