A Call to Expand Global Collaboration

In the invited article to follow, and in the spirit of SDG17 – Partnerships for development, we hear from one professional group operating within the UN landscape. For the reader who does not already know the UN landscape, it is a wide landscape, with multiple potential homes and roles for psychologists interested in UN work of any kind. As noted below, the SIOP UN team is operating within a much larger ecosystem that has existed for a long time. Over many years, in practice and across its publications, IAAP has played a major role in building psychology's UN presence through its representatives in New York, Geneva, and Vienna, its consultative status, and years of relationship-building. There has also been a great deal of collaboration across IAAP, APA, SIOP, and others. As the article points out, this is a broad tent, with strong foundations.

Our world exists in a state of "polycrisis" in which multiple crises happen simultaneously and interact to create uncertainty. Humanitarian and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) struggle to meet urgent human needs while navigating severe financial constraints, including critical cuts to international aid and the withdrawal of financial support from key United Nations (UN) initiatives. In such moments, applied psychologists have a vital role to play by sharing their skills and expertise to support organizations that serve struggling communities. However, the scale of these global shifts and crises, combined with the withdrawal of funding, makes new levels of coordination and the development of even more expansive professional infrastructure critical. In order for our field to meet this moment, we must build a true “big tent” and expand existing collaborative relationships.

The foundations for achieving this “big tent” already exist. The International Association of Applied Psychology (IAAP) serves as a platform for the exchange of ideas around the application of psychological principles. Its members are psychologists who see the value of bridging science and practice. IAAP, as an NGO accredited to the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), supports the kinds of collaborations we hope to expand. The Alliance for Organizational Psychology (AOP) exists to connect leadership of associations and societies of Industrial, Work, and Organizational Psychology (IWOP) around the globe. It began in 2009 with three federated members: IAAP, the European Association for Work and Organizational Psychology (EAWOP), and the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP). Since then it has grown to include Canadian-SIOP (CSIOP), the APS College of Organisational Psychologists (COP), and the Brazilian Society of Organizational and Work Psychology (SBPOT), as members. In addition to these federated members, the AOP connects leadership of several other associations from around the world.

We call to further expand these partnerships and encourage more active engagement across applied psychology organizations. As members of SIOP’s UN Committee, we encourage further engagement of SIOP’s membership in working with our colleagues at IAAP, EAWOP, and other organizations in supporting the UN. To that end, we will share an overview of how SIOP (primarily, but not solely, through its UN Committee) has supported the UN in pursuit of service.

SIOP is a global association of workplace scientists, whose 7,000+ members span 59 countries (though mostly concentrated in the United States). Like many other organizations in the Psychology Coalition at the United Nations (PCUN), SIOP has spent over a decade building a bridge between the science of work and the UN’s mission. Since 2011, SIOP has held Special Consultative Status with ECOSOC, in addition to being a signatory of the UN Global Compact. This relationship has allowed I-O Psychology professionals to bring evidence-based psychological insights directly to global policy discussions and support UN initiatives.

Since its inception, SIOP’s UN Committee has focused primarily on relationship-building with the UN itself. The current geopolitical context makes it clear that this focus may be too narrow, and that we need to more intentionally prioritize coalition-building with global colleagues.

Over the years, our committee’s work has centered on three primary themes of impact: consulting, education, and furthering the mission of the UN by promoting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). For example, one of our initiatives involved offering pro-bono consultative services where SIOP members with relevant expertise provided direct advice to UN organizations and agencies. We also worked with the UN #NewWork initiative to help their leadership identify meaningful ways to measure the impact of organizational change.

Additionally, as the world of work changed, so have the needs of the United Nations’ human resources and management teams. To meet their needs, the SIOP UN Committee has hosted educational workshops for United Nations staff on high-priority, modern challenges. Some of these workshops have included the ethical use of artificial intelligence in talent selection, the nuances of organizational culture change, and the implementation of values-based assessments.

Our work is intentionally mapped to the UN SDGs. Although our science touches many areas, we made the strategic decision this year to focus on three most aligned with I-O research and work in organizations:

To continue the advancement of this work for decades to come, we have created both a dedicated internship program and our Alumni & Allies Network. This allows us to both train the next generation of SIOP members to operate within the UN ecosystem and remain connected to members with substantial institutional knowledge. Networks including everyone from students to seasoned professionals can de-silo our profession and create a more inclusive global community of practitioners.

The most effective solutions are those co-created by a diverse range of voices. The SIOP UN Committee would welcome the opportunity to collaborate with psychologists and other professionals around the globe who do work supporting the UN and its goals. Although we have seen some success in connecting SIOP’s members (both domestic and international) with the UN, we would like to be able to do more.

To that end, we invite APAW readers who are active in supporting the UN SDGs, and humanitarian causes writ large, to connect with the SIOP UN Committee as we continue building partnerships across the broader psychology community. Together, we can build a strong and lasting alliance that allows all of us to contribute to the global good. By bringing expertise in the science and practice of work psychology, the SIOP UN Committee seeks to complement the strengths of colleagues across psychology and contribute to our shared efforts to address the polycrisis affecting so many.

We look forward to further strengthening the relationships across global psychology organizations, and finding ways for our committee, and other SIOP members, to contribute to our shared mission. We can be reached at siopun@siop.org.