Human dignity and humanistic values

The annual SHP conference will be held in Palo Alto, Calif. and hosted by Sofia University. The dates of the conference are March 13-16, 2014. We are grateful that Aaron Mishara and Carol Humphries are co-chairing the event, and that Brent Potter has agreed to coordinate this year. The keynote speakers for this event will be Ann Weiser Cornell, Shaun Gallagher, Nathaniel Granger, Jr., Rick Hanson and Ilene Serlin. I wish to give special thanks as well to committee members Connie Kellogg (Treasurer), Maria Taheny (Student Representative), David Cain (PR), and Trent Claypool (CE Chair).

I have established a Task Force on Human Dignity and Humanistic Values that I will co-chair with Nathaniel Granger, Jr. This Task Force will have three sub-committees, each respectfully charged with developing statements on human dignity, humanistic values, and humanistic communication. These statements will be integrated with a working statement on social justice and humanistic psychology. Our aim is to have drafts of these documents prepared for the mid-winter meeting in Washington, D.C. this January, or at the very latest, August 2014 at the APA Convention in Washington, DC.

The Society continues its critical response to the DSM-5. Peter Kinderman and I, Co-Chairs of the DSM-5 Response Committee, are merging with the Global Summit on Diagnostic Alternatives, Co-Chaired by Frank Farley and Jonathan Raskin. Our plan is to hold an in-person summit with major leaders in mental health by summer of 2014, in order to work toward consensus on taking collective action in the direction of a viable alternative to DSM diagnosis. The work of these committees has been instrumental to the ongoing success of the public critique of the DSM-5 and serious talk of future alternatives. Kudos to the hard working committee members, including Chloe Detrick, Sarah Kamens, Krishna Khumar, and Donna Rockwell.

Also, with the help of Paul Wong, we are in the early stages of planning a Consortium for Humanistic Research that we hope will help facilitate and encourage more research in the field.