While many of my colleagues are attending and presenting at other conferences in PR and Communications, I decided to go to one of my favorite conferences. Was this another PR conference?
No. It was a Psychology conference. And it is one of the best I have been to since I started going to conferences.
APS is a conference I have been going to on a regular basis for the last six years. This conference is always on my calendar for the end of May and I am always looking forward to presenting my work.
There are many reasons why PR professionals (and professors and students) need to consider attending the APS conference.
Going back to where it all began
PR has their own theories, but many of them are based on psychology theories. Why not go and meet the researchers who created and established these theories? I’ve had a chance to meet several in psychology who have been prominent in establishing theories used in PR all of the time, like John Cacioppo and the ELM.
A change of pace and community
I do love my PR conferences, especially AEJMC. However, I feel like you need to branch out and go to conferences to meet new people and establish new contacts. If you stay with the same group or conference, you may be reiterating the same ideas over and over again without any progress. By going to a conference outside of your field, you are entering new territory and embracing a new community.
You get to showcase your personality as a professor MUCH more
This was something I thought was very interesting looking back at all of the APS conferences I have attended. I never once wore a suit for my presentation. I always had a personalized shirt with my colleagues (Mom and Kristin) that was related to our work. This made things fun. This year? We had personalized Twitter shirts and M&Ms.
Sharing PR’s perspective on research
There are a TON of opportunities for collaboration between psychology and PR. We are looking at a lot of the same questions and we can learn from each other. Plus, if you are a PR professional, there are some opportunities and contributions you can provide to psychologists and vice versa. I have been sharing my research with my psychology colleagues for years and it’s amazing what amount of brainstorming happens when you go to APS.
Expanding our perspectives to bring back to the field
Many times in PR, we seem to stay in our own circles and communities without going outside these boundaries. We can’t afford to continue doing this – we have to branch out and explore how others are approaching their research and work.
Great atmosphere, location, and facilities
This is important to consider as well. There are some conferences that really go out of their way to really bring forth a great atmosphere and experience while you are at a conference. APS always is in a great city and has amazing hotel and convention facilities.
Overall, I had another amazing experience at APS this year. Mom and I were able to present our updated research on SMIs and we got a lot of great comments and questions during our talk. I also had a chance to live broadcast this on Persicope (first time I have done this at a conference) so that was fun. Thanks APS for a great time and looking forward to attending next year in Chicago!
Hope you all are having a great day!
Best Wishes,
