Cultivating Collaborative Synergy to Promote Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Justice in the Psychology Curriculum

Transforming the psychology curriculum to incorporate equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) will necessitate department-wide and coordinated efforts; however, most EDI transformations emphasize changes to individual instructors and courses. Cultivating collaborative synergy to advance EDI transformations will foster and protect the relevance and trustworthiness of psychology and respond to the numerous calls for equity and justice. Collaborative synergy involves forming a community with a common goal, learning from one another, and sharing teaching-related resources. In this article, we present the EDI Collaborative Curricular Transformation in Psychology (EDI-CCTP) model and discuss the benefits of collaboration among psychology departments and programs on EDI transformations. We offer strategies for transitioning from individual to collaborative efforts, including: (a) individual preparation for collaboration, (b) establishing a community of practice, (c) EDI curriculum mapping, (d) course design and redesign, and (e) systematizing EDI through departmental values and practices. Through a department-wide coordinated approach using the EDI-CCTP model, departments and programs can expose students to EDI concepts and practices in psychology in a cohesive and scaffolded curriculum and strengthen equity and justice in our field.