Mission Statement

The Society for Psychopharmacology and Substance Use promotes teaching, research, and dissemination of information regarding the effects of drugs as they impact health, brain, body, and behavior.

Bylaws

(last revised May 30, 2014)

Article I.  Name and Purpose

1.         The name of this organization shall be the Division of Psychopharmacology and Substance Abuse of the American Psychological Association (APA).

2.         The mission of this Division shall be to encourage the advancement of knowledge on the behavioral effect of psychotropic drugs and toxicants, which includes not only basic psychopharmacology research but also research into the determinants and treatment of substance abuse, the pharmacological treatment of mental illness, and other clinical uses of centrally active drugs.  Three primary concerns of the Division shall be (a) disseminating research-based information on psychopharmacology and substance abuse within APA, in educational settings, and to other scientists;  (b) encouraging the application of the results of psychopharmacology research to human affairs; and (c) consideration of education and policy issues pertaining to psychopharmacology, behavioral toxicology, and substance abuse. 

Article II. Membership

1.         There shall be three classes of members: Fellows, Members, and Associate Members.

2.         Fellows of the Division shall be Division members who (a) have met the requirements for Fellow status, as set forth in Article II of the Bylaws of the APA, (b) have been engaged in independent research in the area of drugs and behavior for five years subsequent to obtaining the doctoral degree, and (c) have made significant and sustained contributions to understanding drugs and behavior.

3.         Members shall be persons who (a) are Members of the American Psychological Association, (b) have a doctoral degree in psychology (or a substantially related field), and (c) have expressed an interest in the area of drugs and behavior.  Members have full voting privileges in the Division and may hold elected office.

4.         Associate Members shall be persons who (a) are Associate Members of the American Psychological Association, (b) have a doctoral degree in psychology (or a substantially related field), and (c) have expressed an interest in the area of drugs and behavior.  Associates shall hold the same voting status in the Division that they hold in the Association.  Associates may serve in an appointed office in the Division.

5.         The method of nomination of a Fellow for consideration by the APA Board of Directors shall be in accordance with Article II of the Bylaws of the APA.  Each nominee identified by the Fellows Officer will be nominated to the APA Board of Directors if, following review of his or her credentials by the Fellows of the Executive Committee, the nominee receives a unanimous affirmative vote from the elected Fellows of the Executive Committee who participated in the discussion and vote. 

6.         The method of election for Member and Associate Member shall be as follows: (a) When the prospective member applies for APA membership through the APA online membership portal, they may apply for membership in the division at the same time using the APA online membership portal.  Assuming the individual meets criterion for APA membership stated above, once the online application for membership in the division is completed, new members are immediately added to the membership roll and divisional membership fees are collected.  (b) Application for membership shall be reviewed by the Membership Officer periodically. The Membership Officer may request additional information from the newly enrolled member. If there is uncertainty regarding the acceptability of the new member by the membership officer, he/she will seek counsel from the voting members of the Executive Committee.  Annually, the roster of new Members and Associate Members will be provided at the annual business meeting.  

7.         In addition to the regular membership classes, there shall be three classes of Affiliates, who are not Members of APA:  Affiliate, Distinguished Affiliate, and Corporate Affiliate.  They shall have all rights and privileges of membership; they shall receive the Division Newsletter and be eligible to subscribe to the Division members-only electronic list.  The Executive Committee (EC) may from time to time review Corporate Affiliates (who could be both an individual member and corporate liaison).  If, during such review, a conflict of interest is believed to exist, the EC shall first discuss the conflict and then may vote whether to limit specific rights or privileges of a Corporate Affiliate.  A decision to limit any right or privilege of a Corporate Affiliate must pass with a majority of EC members present for the vote.  The Corporate Affiliate shall be notified.

8.         Affiliates shall be those individuals who are Student Affiliates of APA (undergraduate or graduate students, as defined in Article II of the Bylaws of the APA); other graduate students actively involved in research or clinical psychopharmacology; and persons who are not members of the APA, but who have equivalent qualifications in psychology or in neuroscience, pharmacology or physiology, and whose work is related to advancing a fuller understanding of drugs and behavior. 

9.         Application and election of Affiliates shall be the same as for Members.

10.       Distinguished Affiliates shall be those who are not Members of APA, but who are outstanding scientists in psychology, pharmacology, neuroscience, or physiology, whose work is related to advancing a fuller understanding of drugs and behavior.  Distinguished Affiliates are elected by a majority vote of the voting members of the Executive Committee pending the majority approval of the Members voting in a regular business meeting.  Distinguished Affiliates will have all rights and privileges granted other Affiliates in the Division.

11.       Any firm, association, corporation or institution, or one or more subdivisions thereof that supports the Division by financial contribution will be designated a Corporate Affiliate.  As such, one or more liaisons from the Corporate Affiliate shall be included in all correspondence publicizing the activities of the Division.  Corporate Affiliate liaisons who are not also Division 28 Members shall be non-voting members of the Division. 

12.       The Membership Officer shall notify new Members, Associate Members, and Affiliates of their membership status on an ongoing basis, preferably within 30 days after receipt of the membership application.

13.       Any category of member, including Affiliates, may be expelled from the Division for cause by a two-thirds vote, taken by secret ballot, of the Fellows, Members, and Associate Members present and voting at a regular business meeting. Such a vote shall be taken only after both of the following procedures have been completed: (a) Recommendation by a special committee of three Fellows to be appointed by the Executive Committee to investigate the particular case, with the committee's recommendation to be submitted in writing, after it has accumulated the relevant facts and has given the member an opportunity to answer the charges against him or her in writing, and after the committee's recommendations have been received and approved by a majority vote, taken by secret ballot, of the Division Executive Committee. (b) Notification to all Members of such a vote at least four months preceding the meeting.

14.       On all matters calling for action by the membership of the Division, each Fellow, Member and voting Associate Member shall have one vote, and no voting by proxy shall be allowed. 

Article III.  Officers

1.         The elected officers of the Division, elected by electronic or mail ballot through APA, shall include the President-Elect (who subsequently will be President and then Past-President), three Members-at-Large, and such Divisional Representation to the Council of Representatives as is provided for in Article IV of the Bylaws of the APA.  Candidates for President-Elect and Divisional Representation to the Council of Representatives shall be 5 years past the Ph.D. degree and shall be Fellows of the Division.  Members-at-Large must have a Ph.D. degree.

2.         The term of office of the Past-President shall be one year, preceded by one year as President. The term of the President shall be one year, preceded by one year as President-Elect. The terms shall be three years for each Member-at-Large (one elected each year) and for Divisional Representative(s).  Two years must intervene before a Past-President can be nominated for President-Elect.

3.         No officer shall hold more than one elected office in the Division at a time. 

4.         It shall be the duty of the Division President to preside at all Division Meetings, to act as Chairperson of the Executive Committee of the Division, to exercise supervision over the affairs of the Division with the approval of the Executive Committee, to supervise all required nominations and elections, to appoint officers, liaisons, and monitors to represent Division interests on the Boards and Committees of APA, to appoint other officers as needed to carry out the mission of the Division, to prepare the annual report (in consultation with the secretary and treasurer), to carry out fund-raising activities consistent with the financial needs of the division, to keep the Division members informed of the activities of the Division and the Executive Committee, and to perform such other duties as are incident to the office. In the absence or incapacity of the Divisional President, the duties shall be assumed by the Past-President.

5.         The President-Elect shall appoint the Program Chair who is to arrange the program for his or her presidential year. 

6.         Each Divisional Representative to the APA Council shall attend Council Meetings, represent the interests of the Division at those meetings, discharge the responsibilities specified in Article III of the Bylaws of the APA, make biannual reports to the Division on Council activities, and carry out such other assignments as may be properly imposed by the President or Executive Committee.  An Alternate Representative to Council, chosen from among the Executive Committee officers elected by APA electronic or mail ballot may be designated by the Divisional Representative if the elected Representative is unable to attend for any reason.  The opportunity for Divisional Representatives to succeed themselves shall be in accord with Article V of the APA Bylaws.

7.         The Members-at-Large shall represent the general membership at the Executive Committee Meetings and carry out duties as assigned by the President.  Those Members-at-Large that are Fellows shall also review nominations of Fellow candidates and serve on panels to review candidates for Division awards.  A Member-at-Large shall not be eligible to stand again for election to Member-at-Large for a period of one year following the completion of his/her term.

8.         The President shall appoint the following officers:  Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Officer, New Fellows Officer, Divisional Awards Chair, and Newsletter Editor.  The New Fellows Officer is the only one of these who must be a Fellow of the Division. These officers may succeed themselves.  The President may also appoint such additional officers, including liaisons and/or monitors to APA Standing or Ad-hoc boards and committees, that he or she may deem necessary for the effective accomplishment of the missions of the Division. 

9.         The Secretary, who serves a three-year term, shall keep records of all meetings of the Division, serve as Nominations liaison to APA, act as Secretary of the Executive Committee, send out copies of minutes to members of the Executive Committee, send copies of the Bylaws to newly elected and appointed officers, and serve as the parliamentarian to the Division.

10.       The Treasurer, who serves a three-year term, shall have custody of all funds and properties of the Division, collect special dues that may be voted in accordance with Article VIII of these Bylaws, and make disbursements as authorized by the Executive Committee.  The Treasurer shall also maintain up-to-date financial records and prepare financial reports and summaries for the group APA tax return, for Division 28 annual meetings, and for Executive Committee meetings.  With the President, the Treasurer shall prepare and send letters of invitation to potential Corporate Affiliates, and shall acknowledge contributions from corporate sources.  The Treasurer shall supply the Membership Officer up-to-date information on the names and addresses of the Corporate Affiliate liaisons, and shall advise the Newsletter Editor and Program Chair of information needed to ensure timely public acknowledgment of contributions received. 

11.       The Membership Officer, who serves a three-year term, shall process applications for all classes of membership in the Division, see that the Division brochure is prepared, provide requested membership information to APA, respond to requests for information about the Division, and maintain up-to-date lists of Affiliates. 

12.       The Fellows Officer, who serves a three-year term, shall (a) identify each prospective Fellow by soliciting nominations (including self-nominations) at least once annually.  (b) The Fellows Officer shall obtain required documents to determine the eligibility of nominees for Fellow status in APA and the Division.  (c) The Fellows Officer shall circulate the documents to those elected members of the Executive Committee who are Fellows in APA.  (d) For each person who receives a unanimous affirmative vote from the elected Fellows of the Executive Committee, the Fellows Officer will insure that the materials needed to complete the nomination process are submitted to the APA Board of Directors by the next deadline for such nominations.

13.       The Divisional Awards Chair, who serves a three-year term, shall solicit nominations for awards administered by the Division, assemble materials required for appropriate review, obtain review in a timely manner by the mechanism specified for the particular award, notify all the nominees of the outcome of the review, and arrange the presentation of those awards.  The Awards Chair shall obtain, in consultation with the President (or his/her designee) timely publicity for the awards and awardees. 

14.       The Newsletter Editor, who serves a three-year term, shall publish the Division Newsletter and distribute it to Members, Associate Members, and all categories of Affiliates at least three times annually unless a lower or higher number is agreed upon by three-fourths of the executive committee for a given calendar year. 

15.       Each Program Chair, who serves a one-year term, shall arrange and supervise the Division 28 Program for a designated Annual APA convention in accordance with the requirements of the APA Board of Convention Affairs and in consultation with the President-Elect, the Treasurer, the New Fellows Officer, and the Awards Chair.  The official term of a Program Chair for a designated program begins at the time of official appointment by the President-Elect and ends when the program has ended and duties related to the designated program have been completed.  The term of the Program Chair for a particular year thus will overlap the term of the Program Chair for the preceding year. 

16.       The terms of appointed officers other than the Program Chair should not exceed three years.  Dates on which terms of appointed officers begin shall be those that are consistent with the duties required. 

Article IV.  Executive Committee

1.         The governance of the Division and its representation within APA shall be through the Executive Committee.  The Executive Committee shall consist of the President, Past President, President-Elect, Council Representative(s), Members-at-Large, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Officer, New Fellows Officer, Awards Chair, and Newsletter Editor.  Other appointed officers, committee members, and appointed liaisons and monitors may participate in Executive Committee meetings. 

2.         Only the votes of Executive Committee members that have been elected through electronic or mail ballot may bind the Division for actions of a continuing nature.  At least four of the elected members of the Executive Committee must be present for votes of the Executive Committee to be binding. 

3.         All actions of the Executive Committee of a continuing nature shall be provisional until approved by three-quarters of the members present and voting at the next regular meeting of the Division or by electronic or mail ballot.

4.         The Divisional President shall be Chairperson of the Executive Committee, and the Divisional Secretary shall be Secretary of the Executive Committee.

5.         In case of allegations that an officer of the Division is improperly fulfilling the duties of the office, the Executive Committee may appoint an Ad-hoc Committee of Fellows of the Division to investigate the allegations or may vote to expel the officer from office.  A unanimous affirmative vote by all members of the Executive Committee (except the member against whom a complaint has been raised) shall be required in order to dismiss an officer from office.

Article V.  Nominations and Elections

1.         Officers elected by electronic or mail ballot through APA shall be selected as follows: (a) At its meeting during the APA Convention, the Executive Committee shall nominate two candidates for each office to be filled by electronic or mail ballot through APA. (b) At the business meeting of the Division, the attending members shall be advised of the Executive Committee nominees and asked to nominate and endorse up to two additional candidates for each office, if they wish.  If more than two new persons are nominated for an office, a vote shall be taken, and the slate shall be rank-ordered according to number of votes received.  (c) The final nominees for each office shall be the two who received the highest numbers of votes and who agree to serve.  If between the business meeting and the time the nominees must be submitted to APA, any nominee declines to serve, then the President shall obtain a second nominee in consultation with the Executive Committee.  (d) The final nominees shall be sent by the secretary to the Elections Committee of the APA for inclusion in the election ballot (in accordance with Article IX of the Bylaws of the APA). (e) The President shall advise these candidates of the outcome of the elections within seven days of notification by APA.

2.         Newly elected officers and appointed officers who are members of the Executive Committee shall assume office on January 1 after the close of the Annual Meeting of the APA. 

3.         During the period between the Annual Convention and January, newly elected officers and officers who have been appointed to fill offices that will be vacated as of January 1 will serve in "elect" status.  The outgoing officer will proceed with an orderly transition of responsibilities by keeping them informed of the status of all activities of a continuing nature; delegating, as agreed, incoming action items; and transferring originals or copies of paperwork related to the office, including archival material for the position. 

4.         All officers shall hold office until their successors take office.

5.         If the President becomes unable to perform the functions of this office, the Past-President shall act in his or her stead.  If any other office of the Division becomes vacant as the result of circumstances not anticipated in these Bylaws, the President of the Division shall appoint a temporary officer to fill the office until the earliest time when an officer can be selected for the position by the prescribed procedures.

Article VI  Meetings

1.         Divisional Business Meetings will be held (a) annually at the general time and place of the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, and (b) when the Executive Committee, by majority vote, considers a meeting to be necessary or beneficial to the Members of the Division.

2.         The Executive Committee shall meet in conjunction with the Annual Convention and one or more additional times a year at the discretion of the President at a place and time designated by the President.

3.         The purposes of Divisional business meetings shall be the transaction of business and the discussion of such other matters as may come before the Division.

4.         A quorum at business meetings shall consist of not less than ten (10) Fellows, Members, or Voting Associates of the Division present.

5.         All Division Members shall be notified in writing, at least one month in advance, of the time, place, and purpose of any business meeting of the membership other than the annual meeting.

6.         The Executive Committee shall decide the times and places of all Division business meetings other than the meeting during the APA convention.

7.         The rules contained in O. Garfield Jones, Parliamentary Procedure at a Glance, Appleton-Century-Crofts, New York, 1971 (rev. ed.), shall, except when abrogated by special rules of order adopted by the Division, govern the conduct of all meetings of the Division.

Article VII.  Committees

1.         The committees of the Division shall consist of the Executive Committee provided by these bylaws and any other ad-hoc committees created or approved by the Executive Committee.  Elected and appointed officers may request approval of ad-hoc committees as required to carry out their duties.  Ad-hoc committees shall be automatically dissolved two years after their creation unless their term is explicitly extended by majority vote of three-fourths of the Executive Committee.