VCU home page
VCU Psychology Department
Previous
Next
hiv

How can we reduce HIV risk?

African American young adults are at higher risk for HIV than any other racial/ethnic group. How can we most effectively reduce their HIV risk? read more...

doctor with couple

Does racial bias affect patient-physician interactions?

Approximately 75% of Black patients see non-Black physicians even though many prefer to see Black physicians. What do Black patients do during such racially discordant medical interactions? read more...

teasing

Is teasing a slippery path to bullying?

Where do kids learn to tease, how is teasing related to bullying, and how is children's emotion regulation involved? read more...

insomnia

How can we treat insomnia?

Will cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia improve outcomes in people with co-morbid psychiatric conditions? read more...

Psi Chi

What is Psi Chi?

psi chiPsi Chi is the International Honor Society in Psychology, founded in 1929 for the purposes of encouraging, stimulating, and maintaining excellence in scholarship, and advancing the science of psychology. Membership is open to graduate and undergraduate men and women who are making the study of psychology one of their major interests, and who meet the minimum qualifications. Psi Chi is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies and is an affiliate of the American Psychological Association (APA) and the Association for Psychological Science (APS). Psi Chi's sister honor society is Psi Beta, the national honor society in psychology for community and junior colleges.

Goals of Psi Chi

Psi Chi serves two major goals — one immediate and visibly rewarding to the individual member, the other slower and more difficult to accomplish, but offering greater rewards in the long run. The first of these is the society's obligation to provide academic recognition to its inductees by the mere fact of membership. The second goal is the obligation of each of the society's local chapters to nurture the spark of that accomplishment by offering a climate congenial to its creative development. For example, the chapters make active attempts to nourish and stimulate professional growth through programs designed to augment and enhance the regular curriculum and to provide practical experience and fellowship through affiliation with the chapter. In addition, the national organization provides programs to help achieve these goals, including society and regional conventions held annually in conjunction with the psychological associations, research award competitions and certificate recognition programs. Also, the society publishes a quarterly Psi Chi newsletter, which helps to unite and inform the members and recognize their contributions and accomplishments.