A Place of Value for Applied and Policy Studies

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Abstract
After more than 6 decades of advancing science as a means to expand our understanding of human development, the Society for Research in Child Development has welcomed into its major journal research that uses this knowledge on children's behalf. The acceptance of applied and social policy work within the field of psychology has been gradual, urged along by trends that are discussed in context: the reconciliation of basic and applied research, the call for social responsibility by prominent developmentalists, and efforts by individual and groups of psychologists to serve the public good. SRCD's decision to open these journal pages more widely to the practical and policy implications of research bolsters the legitimacy and status of such efforts. The society's leadership, coupled with changes in professional training and expectations, will expedite the discipline's maturation into a positive social force.