The Center for Psychology Workforce Analysis and Research (CPWAR) collects, analyzes, and disseminates information relevant to psychology's work force and education system. To do this, the Center conducts periodic surveys examining the early labor market experiences of new doctorates in psychology, salaries of psychologists, and the characteristics of graduate departments (e.g., faculty salaries and student characteristics). Staff are responsible for providing technical assistance on data collection strategies and research methodology for governance groups and Central Office units and for conducting other studies deemed important by the Association.

The CPWAR has data on:

1. salaries (academic and nonacademic)
2. students (enrollees, applicants, levels of support, subfields, demographics)
3. faculty (rank, tenure status, salary, field, race/ethnicity, etc.)
4. APA members (employment, sex, race/ethnicity, fields, division memberships, licensure, etc.)
5. psychologists in the U.S. (employment settings and activities, sex, race/ethnicity, fields, etc.)
6. new doctorates (employment, fields, postdoctoral experiences, debt, salaries, etc.)
7. levels of education (undergraduate, master's, doctoral, postdoctoral)

The Center does not maintain data on actual job listings or employment opportunties. For these, please use the usual sources (e.g., newspapers, The APA Monitor, Chronicle of Higher Education, networks).

Products

- Biennial "Salary Survey" - sent to a random sample of members to collect current salary information for psychologists across a myriad of positions and settings. The data from the survey conducted in 1999 are currently available through the Center, as are previous editions from 1985, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, and 1997. Data from 1995 and later years are available at this site and in hardcopy from the CPWAR.

- Graduate Department Survey - conducted separately since 1990 and resulting in two reports: Faculty Salaries in Psychology, mailed annually to chairs of doctoral and master's departments that award a graduate degree in psychology or related fields, and Characteristics of Graduate Departments of Psychology, mailed biennially. The 1999-00 Faculty Salaries in Graduate Departments of Psychology report is available, and the 1993-1994 report on Characteristics of Graduate Departments of Psychology, summarizing information on graduate enrollments, student stipends, and faculty characteristics also is complete. The faculty salary section is conducted annually, and is available from 1989 through 2000. The departmental survey was conducted annually until 1992, at which time the decision was made to shift to a biennial or periodic effort, supplementing APA's Graduate Study publication.

- Doctorate Employment Survey - mailed every two years to new doctorates in order to monitor their employment situations. The report on 1997 graduates is available from the Center. Reports can be obtained from the Center and are available at this site.

- Other Activities

• APA Directory Data - the CPWAR codes and analyzes demographic information which proves useful for describing the membership more thoroughly - since 1985.
• construction of division profiles, based upon information from the most recent APA Directory update. Many variations have been requested since 1985, profiling the characteristics of a variety of subsets of the membership. The major efforts have been 1985, 1989, 1993, 1995, and 1997.
• consultation on design and construction of research projects/methodology.
• selection of special samples of the APA membership for research projects outside APA and special mailings to targeted groups of members.
• responses to verbal/written information requests.
• Staff liaison to the Council of Graduate Departments of Psychology and the National Council of Schools and Programs of Professional Psychology. Attendance at other regional and national conferences as relevant. Staff support, assist with survey efforts, provide special analyses of data, special sections on surveys, presentations and more.

Last Updated: May 2007