Special Issue on the History of Psychology in Canada
Luke Turner
Dr. Z Glass
PSY-100
2/9/14

This article begins by pointing out that history and theory of psychology is much stronger in Canada than it is elsewhere. However, the history of psychology in Canada itself tends to be neglected. This situation is linked to the dominance of American psychology and the movement to establish a distinctively Canadian psychology that differs from psychology in the United States. It is argued that this movement can help to encourage more interest in the history of psychology in Canada and vice versa. According to (e.g., Jordan, 2011) It is also suggested that addressing the neglect of the history of psychology in Canada will lead to more internationalization. This article was an editorial article because it points out that textbooks on the history of psychology are rarely mention in Canada and that, CPA (Canadian Psychological Association) has an active branch devoted to history and philosophy of psychology. For examples this article has a timeline in changes in psychology. First Psychology has traditionally been based on naturalistic assumptions and has consequently neglected the influence of culture. In1984, {Smedslund} called it “the invisible obvious” in psychology (Smedslund, 1984). This situation began to change in the 1980s and 1990s as culture became an important area of research, the most likely explanation being the worldwide trend toward globalization and the increasing amount of intercultural contact. That it brought (Kashima & Gelfand, 2012). The authors divide the Canadian research on culture and psychology into three different areas: first, culture– comparative psychology, which involves comparing the different cultural groups in Canada; Next, intercultural psychology, which involves examining the relationships between them; finally, indigenous psychology, which involves the creation of a distinctively Canadian psychology. This expands a timeline from 1984-2012 explaining the difference studies in Canada compared to the United States. From this article I have learned a lot on why there are issues dealing with psychology not only in the United States but also Canada the inescapable conclusion is that history and theory of psychology in North America would not have anything like the profile it has without the involvement of psychologists based in Canada. I have also learned that what the United States and Canada have in common is that they are smaller than their immediate neighbors and subject to a variety of influences. The Problem is that I think Canada has to cope with the influence of the United States and the lingering influence of its British and French heritage. It seems to me that larger countries can develop a distinct tradition of psychology without being too concerned about what is happening elsewhere, whereas smaller countries at the crossroads between them are subject to a variety of influences. This article fits into the field of Psychology perfectly because it specifically explains detail from detail on why issues are greater in Canada than the United States dealing with Psychology it gives examples from a timeline 1980-2012 and explains how the population increase in Canada has risen and became more effective in Psychology than all of north America in the textbook Human Adjustment (2006). The McGraw-Hill Companies.4-5 it states that adjustment is one of the most important keys to coping with stress, adjustment is the psychological process of adapting to, coping with, and managing the challenges of everyday life. As in this article it compares Canada to the United States on why Psychology is more important in other areas of the world and the special issues relating in Canada. Ultimately I believe that this article is very different from other books, articles and magazines because it goes deeply into describing the different issues related in Canada and United States it also give some relevant outside sources as well. The history of psychology can make an important contribution to the movement of psychology In Canada. The neglect of the history of psychology in Canada goes hand in hand with the American domination of the field. Conversely, a greater interest in this topic I think can help to encourage a greater interest in the current situation in Canada,

Cited Sources

Adair, J. G. (2006). Creating indigenous psychologies: Insights from empirical social studies of the science of psychology
Brock, A. C. (2011). Why history of psychology is going global. The Psychologist, 24,
150 –151.
Brock, A. C. (2006). Introduction. In A. C. Brock (Ed.), internationalizing the history of psychology (pp. 1–15). New York, NY: New York University Press.
Connors, B. C. (2013). A Chronicle of the Work of the CPA 1938-2010, by J. B. Conway. Canadian Psychology, 54,133–134.