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Mandating the Licensing of I-O Psychologists Lacks Merit

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 June 2017

Gary P. Latham
Gary P. Latham*
Affiliation:
Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto; cross-appointment Department of Psychology
*
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Gary P. Latham, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, 105 St. George St., Toronto, Ontario M5S 3E6, Canada. E-mail: [email protected]
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Extract

There are at least four interrelated reasons why the practice of industrial and organizational (I-O) psychology should not require a license that is mandated by the state or province where the I-O psychologist resides. First, there is no subject matter domain unique to the practice of I-O psychology. Second, because there is no subject matter domain unique to I-O psychology, the subject matter is extensively practiced by other unregulated professions. Hence, a law mandating a license to practice I-O psychology, restricted to graduates from a doctoral program in a psychology department, is unlikely to be enforceable. It simply would not stand up to a legal challenge. Third, the espoused benefit of a mandated license, namely, to protect the public, is specious. Finally, a mandated license for the practice of I-O psychology by I-O psychologists could lead to the death of I-O psychology programs. Each of these four concerns is explained below.

Type
Commentaries
Information
Industrial and Organizational Psychology , Volume 10 , Issue 2 , June 2017 , pp. 182 - 186
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology 2017 

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References

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