The American “Reaches in” and “Reaches Out”

Our membership is our major asset. In a dues-dependent organization, this may seem obvious but the conjunction between Association and membership goes beyond dues. In fact, the American is its members. As a membership corporation, the American is not only composed of its members but belongs to them. Furthermore, the Association grows in potentialities only as we do as individuals.

The American has worked with increasing purpose to enhance psychoanalysis and empower its membership. Since people leave organizations that do not reflect their interests and values, if our efforts have been productive that productivity should be reflected in our membership. Recent membership figures are outlined in the table on page 27.

The American's vitality is reflected in a growth of 11 percent over six years (3,393 full members and affiliate members in 1999 vs. 3,052 in 1993) at a time when many professional organizations have declining rolls. In fact, at the May meeting in Washington, D.C., 172 members were welcomed to the American, in large measure thanks to the efforts of the Council's Membership Committee with chair Elise Snyder and Jill Berkowitz, Art Farley, Lana Fishkin, Ralph Fishkin, Daniel Jacobs, Salley Jesse, Henry Kaminer, Barrie Richmond, Joanne Seltzer, and Harriet Wolfe. The increase in affiliate membership is thanks to the Affiliate Council's Membership Committee, spearheaded by Jane Walvoord, with help from Nancy Brehm and Lee Jaffe.

Affiliate members are, of course, drawn from candidates in American institutes, but it is often not known that full members come from four categories: (1) recent graduates of APsaA institutes who become new members either automatically by virtue of affiliate membership or through the Council Membership Committee; (2) former members who have dropped away but rejoined through the Council Membership Committee; (3) former non-member graduates of APsaA institutes joining later through the Council Membership Committee; and (4) graduates of IPA institutes joining through the Board Membership Committee. The last five years' averages in these categories are interesting. An average of 69 recent graduate new members joined from APsaA institutes (out of an average 82 graduates); 11 former members rejoined; and 8 APsaA long-term post-graduates and seven IPA graduates joined. This year, 76 former members rejoined, along with 36 long-term post-graduates — remarkable divergences from the mean.

On the other side of the ledger, an average of 19 members resigned in each of the past five years, while 26 were suspended and /or terminated for nonpayment of dues. Because of an average of 11 reinstatements, there is an average net suspended of 15. In other words, an average of 34 members per year are lost for non-mortality causes. Since the average lost to mortality is 38, we face an average net loss of 72 members per year.

These data indicate several important facts:

• Without efforts to make membership valuable, accessible, and friendly, we will not replenish ourselves simply from our own graduates.

• Ongoing effort is required to find ways to hear members' grievances before resignation or dues-related termination.

• Regular methods of recontact must be found.

• It is important to be welcoming to graduates of other institutes with whom we have a commonality of spirit and interest.

A Personal Welcome

We cannot deal with all of these issues at once. However, one way to make membership more welcoming is to recognize that when the American is active and growing, membership is a richer but more difficult experience. For example, I remember the sense of being alone and lost at my first APsaA meetings after graduation; I wondered what it must be like with a larger and more exuberant Association, and it seemed plausible that the national scene could be unfamiliar and puzzling. As secretary of the American, I began to deal with these issues by calling new members personally, welcoming them, helping them with membership paperwork, and talking about the Association and how to make it work.

As it turned out, a personal welcome was important, especially when the new member was skeptical or angry about the assumed intentions, perceived positions, and history of the American. In fact, the calls provided opportunities for long conversations with disillusioned members. Unhappiness was often related to feelings that the American was an “old boys' network,” closed to new ideas, or that the American had done little to help with managed care, insurance companies, and behavioral, manualized, or “evidence-based” adynamic therapies assailing psychoanalytic practice.

To the first view, I could sincerely say that those characteristics may have described the past but — among many examples indicating change — there were openings to student associates and psychotherapy associates, work with the Psychoanalytic Consortium, efforts to support rather than simply judge new groups, and an active discussion of certification. With regard to the second, I agreed that more was needed even though we had an active public information effort, were working to protect privacy and confidentiality, and had successful models of community involvement enhancing practice in Michigan, Wisconsin, and elsewhere.

Of equal importance was helping new members use the American: for example, by suggesting committee activity as a way to pursue interests, get to know colleagues, and become part of a national referral network. I often reviewed committees' mandates in the light of the new members interests.

Talking with new members was one of the most substantial learning experiences in my job as secretary. It was interesting, for example, to see how many recent graduates were committed to certification, viewing the process as a step in analytic identity formation through reviewing cases and concepts as part of a national cohort. Others, of course, considered certification irrelevant or even antithetical to their feelings about the importance of graduation. Even among those opposed to certification, however, there was receptiveness to APsaA fellows or fellowships in clinical psychoanalysis, teaching, community service, and other areas.

These discussions strengthened a sense that new members, as the most likely “consumers” of certification or its equivalent, have a variety of well-considered views which need to be heard.

Based on eighteen months' experience with these calls, the Executive Committee authorized an ad hoc “New Members Group” to consider how to be maximally supportive and welcoming. Lee Jaffe, David Orbison, Joanne Seltzer, Robin Turner, and Debra Vilinsky stepped forward. In my initial communication to them, I observed:

One of the primary lessons from … [talking with new members] is that … once you become a new Member it is virtually as though you had stepped off into space. There is very little that the Association does in an organized way to ease the transition to Membership, to acclimate new Members, and to help them along the road to forming their psychoanalytic identity and careers. While it is true that such efforts are sometimes made at the Society and Institute level, often no such effort is made…. This is one of those instances in which the national organization needs to look to its own efforts to welcome and develop new Members and ways in which it may serve as a model.

Discussions in this group suggested a five-point program to value and encourage membership:

Secretary's calls. It seemed important that the secretary continue to call new members personally, welcoming them while eliciting their views and talking abut how to use the American.

Recognition and honor. Membership is a significant milestone, and recognition and honor are indicated.

Building affiliation. Since recognition and honor are simply beginnings, further efforts are needed to help build national friendships, referral networks, and opportunities to advance concepts and programs.

Mentorship. A mentorship program for new members could be as useful as that for Fellows, Fellowship applicants, and affiliate members.

Publication of the names of new members in TAP. As obvious as it sounds that the names of new colleagues should be published, this had not been policy until this fall.

As additional outgrowth of these recommendations, there will be a reception for all new members and recent graduates in the president's suite in the Waldorf Towers on December 16, during the fall meeting. APsaA president Bob Pyles will present membership certificates to those who attend, hopefully with family and friends. On Saturday morning, December 18, under the auspices of the Council and Board Membership Committees, there will be a follow-up meeting for all new members on how to make the best use of the American.

Throughout this process Remy Gonzalez, chair of the Board Membership Committee, gave invaluable support and Elise Snyder, chair of the Council Membership Committee, was a fount of good ideas. For the future, it is gratifying that Lee Jaffe and David Orbison have become co-chairs of the Council Membership Committee. As with any good program, opportunities grow from it. We hope such will be the case for many new members.