Prepared by Elaine Rogers, Chair of the PSI Special Interest Group in Human Rights and Psychology. Elaine is a Senior Clinical Psychologist in Psychology Department, University of Limerick. 

Introduction

The Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI) is the learned and professional body for psychology and psychologists in the Republic of Ireland. Established in 1970, with 17 members, the Society now represents over 5,000 members. The members of PSI have helped shape and advance psychology as a science in Ireland, and have contributed to the development of psychological practice with a human rights focus. This brief report highlights some of the Society’s work in the area of human rights and psychology.

Strategic Plan

The PSI’s commitment to human rights and equity, diversity and inclusion, is expressed in its values statement and in the strategic themes of the current strategic plan.

Organisation

Organisationally, the PSI comprises a Council, sub-committees, divisions, and special interest groups (SIGs) and, where necessary, specific working groups. The SIG in Human Rights and Psychology has an explicit focus on human rights. However, the Council and other divisions and SIGs also adopt a human rights and social justice orientation in their work.
The PSI Science and Public Policy Committee, established in 2018, aims to inform public policy with evidence-based psychological knowledge. The International Affairs Committee provides a forum and support for the Society’s international work.

The Society employs 11 staff, including a Policy and Research Officer to support its policy, advocacy and politically focused work. Members of the PSI represent the Society on a range of external committees. The PSI works with a range of groups internationally, including the European Federation of Psychologists’ Associations (EFPA) and the International Union of Psychological Science (IUPsyS).

Guidelines, Policies & Papers

The PSI contributes to public debates with high social value in Ireland, for example, the Referendum on the 8th Amendment to the Irish Constitution (access to abortion). The PSI publishes guidelines, policies and papers that promote good practice, some with explicit reference to human rights, equality, diversity and inclusion. These include:

  • The PSI Good Practice Guidelines for Working with Transgender and Gender Non-Binary People(2024), which built on the PSI Guidelines for Good Practice with Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Clients(2015).
  • The PSI Professional Practice Guidelines for the Assessment, Formulation, and Diagnosis of Autism in Children and Adolescents (2022), which have an explicit human rights orientation.

Advocacy

The PSI has a long history of advocacy. Since its early days, the Society has made submissions to a range of groups and organisations, including Oireachtas committees and international groups, as well as statements on a number of important and topical issues, centring equity, social justice, and rights-based approaches, calling for reform across mental health and disability services, and for a psychologically healthier Ireland.

The PSI submits annual pre-Budget submissions to the Department of Finance and the Department of Health urging the Irish Government to resource a robust and equitable mental health system. In 2024, the PSI President called for mental health services to be person-centred and human-rights-based.

Climate and Planetary Health

The PSI has a vibrant SIG promoting climate and planetary health. This SIG has recently published the PSI Position Paper on Addressing the Climate and Environmental Emergency.  The PSI is a signatory to the Joint Declaration of Action on Planetary and Human Health. The Society recognises the profound impact that climate change has on mental health and wellbeing, strives to promote psychological resilience in communities, and pledges to integrate climate related considerations into its work.

LGBTQ

On 12 July 2024, along with the College of Psychiatrists of Ireland and the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, the PSI signed a memorandum of understanding renouncing conversion therapy on the island of Ireland.

Mental Health Reform

The PSI is vocal on the need for mental health reform and has welcomed the Mental Health Bill 2024, while also advocating for parity between mental health and general health.

Following the Children’s Rights Alliance Report Card 2024, wherein the lowest grades were in mental health, the PSI reiterated the need to mobilise a mental health movement that puts human rights at its heart.

In signing the Global Psychology Alliance Democratic Systems and Psychological Science: A Collective Statement and Call to Action in December 2024, the Society recognises the profound impact of social and political determinants on mental health and the important role of democracy.

Standards

The PSI maintains high standards for the training, education, and practice of psychologists in Ireland. The work of the PSI and its members is governed by a Code of Ethics. The PSI also advocates for its members, calling for equity for trainee psychologists from different disciplines, for good working conditions for assistant psychologists, and seeks to promote diversity within the community of psychologists in Ireland.

Summary

The PSI explicitly articulates that human rights are central to the work of the Society. This brief report provides some insights into the ways in which the PSI advances human rights and psychology in particular domains. There are of course many other examples and readers are welcomed to the PSI website. Human rights and psychology are deeply interconnected, placing an obligation on professional associations to recognise, foster, and leverage these connections to ensure that psychological science and practice serve the betterment of the global community. The PSI and its members endeavour to fulfil that obligation.

Please contact Dr Elaine Rogers, Chair of the PSI Special Interest Group in Human Rights and Psychology, with any questions at humanrights@psychologicalsociety.ie .