Contact: Gayle S. Morse. Email: morseg@sage.edu, Telephone: 518-292-1819
Governing Board
Art Blume, President
Gayle Skawen:nio Morse, President Elect
Carolyn Morris, Past President
Joanna Shadlow, Secretary
Chris Morris, Treasurer
Society of Indian Psychologists
Response and Recommendations Upon Review of the
Report to the Special Committee of the Board of Directors of the American
Psychological Association: Independent Review Relating to APA Ethics
Guidelines, National Security Interrogations, and Torture
Respectfully Submitted on behalf of the Society of Indian Psychologists
on July 20, 2015 by
Gayle Skawen:nio Morse, Melinda Garcia, Joseph Trimble, Gyda Swaney,
It is with deep consternation and sadness that we read the report of the independent
investigator (hereafter referred to as the Hoffman Report), which was released on July 10, 2015.
We have also reviewed the related materials posted by the Board of Directors (BOD) on the
American Psychological Association (APA) website (http://www.apa.org/independent-
review/index.aspx) and the comments and recommendations made by Drs. Steven Reisner and
Stephen Soldz to the APA BOD.
The Society of Indian Psychologists (SIP) has four general and specific concerns
regarding the findings of the Hoffman Report and our relationship to APA. Our thinking is
underscored by the principle of Kasastensera kariwiio skennen (Mohawk). This means that when
we work with a good mind towards peace, justice and unity to prevent the abuse of human
beings, then we gain our strength. This is our understanding of the “Do no harm” principle in the
APA Code of Ethics.
1. We do not support torture for any reason and believe that the manipulation of the APA
ethical guidelines to allow torture to occur is without question unacceptable. There are no
circumstances under which torture and loss of the basic rights of a human being are
appropriate or tolerable. The disregard of the Geneva Convention and the U.N. Convention
Against Torture and the acceptance of the Nuremberg Defense is completely antithetical to
the practice of psychology and the espoused core value of “do no harm”.
This point is highly personal to us as psychologists and as Native peoples. Our ancestors
were considered enemies by the US Government and experienced “enhanced
interrogations” during the “Indian Wars”.
Brian McNeill, David Lincourt, Chadd Eaglin
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Contact: Gayle S. Morse. Email: morseg@sage.edu, Telephone: 518-292-1819
2. The Hoffman Report provides evidence of multiple violations of ethical responsibilities
committed by individuals who had knowledge of these activities which reflect poorly on
APA as an organization. The long-term deception and abuses of power were allowed and
grew in an organizational culture that we have experienced to be characterized by a lack of
transparency, accountability, and inclusiveness on many levels in many areas. When we
work for the good of all human beings there is no need to hide our activities or the process
by which we make decisions.
3. We support the recommendations of Drs. Reisner and Soldz with respect to the firing of
those APA staff who knew or should have known about the efforts to allow DoD
psychologists to participate in torture practices, those who ignored the available
information regarding collusion with torture practices and those who actively avoided
seeking information regarding that collusion. It does not seem plausible that only one
person (Dr. Stephen Behnke, the only person fired to date) was able to do all this without
the explicit cooperation of others in APA leadership positions.
We also support their recommendations that APA employees who participated in this
dissembling and prevaricating be banned from governance, that ethics charges be brought
where appropriate and that APA publicly recommend state ethics charges where
appropriate.
4. We caution against a rush towards hasty and potentially short-sighted resolution, as this
may impede thorough healing and restoration of integrity. In general we support the initial
recommendations of the APA Board of Directors published on 07/10/15, but believe that
repair of the broken organizational and ethical practices need to go much further. We also
endorse the recommendations suggested by Drs. Reisner and Soldz:
Accountability: In addition to the above mentioned staff dismissals and
governance participant bans, we believe that a full accounting of the organizational
processes that may have allowed the secrecy, deception and wrongdoing to occur
should be outlined and clarified in a public venue and an APA publication.
Contrition: We would like to see a thorough public acknowledgement of
wrongdoing. This includes apologies to those hurt by the collusion of DoD
psychologists with torture practices, by the lack of transparency and inclusiveness
in APA, and by the systematic dismissal and ridicule of dissident voices within and
outside of APA.
Transparency: The APA’s Board of Directors should make available any
documentation, meaning meeting minutes, emails, rationales for BOD decisions or
other information that Council, membership, or the public request. This includes
publishing the salaries and perks of all staff, reporting lobbying activities, and
indicating who represents APA to the government and to the public. We agree with
the recommendation that APA publish the Independent Review and all supporting
documents.
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Contact: Gayle S. Morse. Email: morseg@sage.edu, Telephone: 518-292-1819
Inclusiveness: We believe that all groups should be seated at the APA table during
this critical time of repair and reorganization as well as afterwards, to provide new
eyes and the wisdom of different perspectives. We believe that APA’s long
standing disregard for reflecting the diverse composition of the U.S. contributed
directly to the lack of cultural humility and the disregard for “do no harm” that fed
this horrific event.
Genuine Change: Establish procedures as well as an institutional culture that
ensures that APA is an organization that respects the dignity, coherence, diversity
and integrity of the field of psychology.
We ask that APA will make the amends and organizational changes that would prevent
this type of inexcusable series of decisions to occur. Moving forward, we will be carefully
considering any changes made and will support efforts that APA makes to use this time to learn
new ways of working as an organization. We also reserve the right to continue to issue position
statements during this process. It is our position that the goal of the APA changes is to develop
the good mind for the benefit of all people. SIP may consider rescinding the Memorandum of
Understanding created with the APA in December, 2012 as new information becomes available.
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