Call for Programs & Papers

2024 SPA Convention and Workshops (March 13 - 17, 2024)

SPA is seeking workshops, paper, and program offerings featuring fresh perspectives on the field of personality assessment, as well as connections to overall psychological assessment, to be held at the 2025 SPA Convention and Workshops in Denver, Colorado from March 26 - 30, 2025. Workshops will occur on Wednesday, March 26, Thursday, March 27, and Sunday, March 30. Note this year, the poster process has a later, separate deadline.

If you have any questions, please see our 2025 Presenter FAQ Document or reach out to SPA at info@personality.org.

Begin a submission to the following:

WORKSHOP

Workshops are an opportunity to deep dive into topics featuring fresh perspectives on the field of personality assessment, as well as connections to overall psychological assessment. We welcome proposals that are responsive to emerging trends and the evolving challenges of psychologists and clinicians utilizing and researching assessments. Workshops occur on Wednesday, Thursday, or Sunday of the convention and may be half day (4 hours) or full day (8 hours). 

New Submissions Closed

CASE DISCUSSION

Case discussions offer the opportunity to share specific details with attendees around uses and experiences with assessment, whether it is in individual, couple, family, group, or organizational contexts. Although we are interested in learning about the case context, method, and description, we encourage case discussions to include substantive clinical and/or theoretical contributions to the literature. Session time slots will be 1.5 hours.

New Submissions Closed

INDIVIDUAL PAPER

If you have a compelling individual paper topic focusing either on research or clinical material but do not or cannot submit it as a symposia, please submit it as an individual paper. If accepted, the Convention Program Chair will group individual papers into a topic area and assign a session title. Presenters may range from students to seasoned professionals. Papers are allowed 15 minutes for presentation and questions. Individual papers will be group with other related papers to form an integrated paper session. More information will be shared once papers are selected. 

New Submissions Closed

INDIVIDUAL POSTERS

Poster presenters will prepare a visual depiction of a research study, case analysis, or other type of material relevant to personality assessment, typically including descriptive text along with tables and/or figures. Poster sessions may be for a completed study or a proposed study, so no need to have your research complete to present. Posters are either presented on Thursday evening or Saturday evening.

New Submissions Closed

ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSIONS

Roundtables are an opportunity for attendees to gather around a specific topic or issue. They are traditionally a forum for debate, often including discussion of diverse opinions or intellectual positions.  We encourage the traditional roundtable format for emerging topics and controversies.  At the same time, we also would like to use this format to offer opportunities for attendees to evolve professionally and occupationally. Session time slots will be 1.5 hours. Topics welcomed include for example:

  • Emerging or controversial topics in personality assessment
  • Bringing science and clinical practice together
  • Building strategies to advance public knowledge of the utility of personality assessment
  • Career Strategy
  • Organization and Financial Considerations for Private Practice
  • Preventing Burnout and Career-Family Balance
  • Trainings or Diplomate Degrees
  • Advice to Progress into Leadership Positions
  • Advertising or the Use of Media to Enhance Private Practice
  • How to Access Open-Source Data for Research
  • How to Obtain Government Contracts or Grants
New Submissions Closed

SYMPOSIUM

Symposia are a group of professional talks on theory, research, or practice. These sessions entail the presentation of a series of papers in which presenters make an effort to integrate the content of the papers with one another. Integration can be achieved in a number of ways (for example, presenters may comment on one another’s papers, or a discussant may provide a commentary integrating the material in the papers). Presenters may range from students to seasoned professionals. Symposia require joint submission of papers, typically by the session organizer, who chairs the session. Generally, papers are allowed 15 minutes for presentation and questions, but the session organizer may prepare a program with fewer, but longer, presentations at their discretion. Session time slots will be 1.5 hours. 

If you need help identifying an expert in the field to talk about the important implications of your symposium for the next generation of psychologists and the future of assessment, the Education & Training Interest Group has several leading personality assessment experts who would love to serve as a discussant for your symposium. Please email the co-chairs, Dr. Scott L. Schwartz and Dr. Adam P. Natoli to be connected with an expert in the field willing to be a discussant for your symposium. 

New Submissions Closed