Co-Creating the Society of Counseling Psychology With Early Career Psychologists

Abstract

This reaction article values the Major Contribution as an opportunity to hear the voices of ECPs who do not feel included in the Society of Counseling Psychology (SCP) and to engage in dialogue about the SCP as an organization. This response employs Gestalt theories of field and dialogue to understand how all members and affiliates of the SCP co-create the field. The particular challenges for ECPs in practice are addressed, and four levels of relating are described as ways to engage in dialogue through transaction, behavior, assumptions, and identity. Reflections are offered about the experiences and assumptions of early career psychologists, SCP leaders, and the ECP Committee. The article recommends specific approaches for ECPs to become more involved in the Society and serves as a call for broader dialogue about the SCP as a field.