Professional Knowledge And Abilities

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Professional Knowledge and Abilities GEN 200 March 24, 2011 Introduction Several professional organizations and associations that can help people achieve professional success. To be most effective, an individual should select an organization or association that relates to a personal interest or goal. Once one researches their organization of choice, one can use what the organization does or stands for to increase professional knowledge and abilities. By utilizing the knowledge and abilities contributed by a professional organization, one can have a successful career path. Professional Organization Since I am interested in human behavior, I selected the American Psychological Association (APA) to gain professional knowledge and abilities from. The APA was founded in 1892 at Clark University. The APA was created due to the emergence of new academic fields such as psychology, biochemistry, and physiology, to name a few. There were also many political advances taking place, which called for a more efficient social order. These two developments created the need for trained personnel to fill the new professional demands of society. There was a new growth of applied psychology, and the APA decided to merge with other psychological organizations. This broadened the APA’s scope of expertise to include professional practice and the promotion of human welfare as well. Today, the APA has 150, 000 members and 54 subfields in psychology. It is based in Washington D.C. and is considered to be one of the largest associations of psychologists worldwide. Professional Knowledge and Abilities Individuals can gain professional knowledge and abilities from the American Psychological Association (APA). According to the APA website, “The mission statement of the APA is to advance the creation, communication, and application of psychological knowledge to benefit
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