''Psychology Today'' is an American media organization with a focus on

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

and human behavior. The publication began as a bimonthly magazine, which first appeared in 1967. The print magazine's reported circulation is 275,000 as of 2023. The ''Psychology Today'' website features therapist and

health professional A health professional, healthcare professional (HCP), or healthcare worker (sometimes abbreviated as HCW) is a provider of health care treatment and advice based on formal training and experience. The field includes those who work as a Nursing, nur ...

directories and hundreds of blogs written by a wide variety of

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry. Psychiatrists are physicians who evaluate patients to determine whether their symptoms are the result of a physical illness, a combination of physical and mental ailments or strictly ...

s, counselors, social workers, medical doctors, marriage and family therapists, anthropologists, sociologists, and science journalists. ''Psychology Today'' is among the oldest media outlets with a focus on

behavioral science Behavioural science is the branch of science concerned with Human behavior, human behaviour.Hallsworth, M. (2023). A manifesto for applying behavioural science. ''Nature Human Behaviour'', ''7''(3), 310-322. While the term can technically be ap ...

. Its mission is to cover all aspects of human behavior so as to help people better manage their own health and wellness, adjust their mindset, and manage a range of mental health and relationship concerns. ''Psychology Today'' content and its therapist directory are found in 20 countries worldwide. ''Psychology Today'''s therapist directory is the most widely used and allows users to sort therapists by location, insurance, types of therapy, price, and other characteristics. It also has a Spanish-language website.

History

20th century

''Psychology Today'' was founded in 1967 by Nicolas Charney. The goal of the publication is to make psychology literature accessible to the general public. ''Psychology Today'' features reportage and information that looks inward at the workings of the brain and bonds between people. It draws on research reports and interviews with experts on topics, including human

motivation Motivation is an mental state, internal state that propels individuals to engage in goal-directed behavior. It is often understood as a force that explains why people or animals initiate, continue, or terminate a certain behavior at a particul ...

personality Personality is any person's collection of interrelated behavioral, cognitive, and emotional patterns that comprise a person’s unique adjustment to life. These interrelated patterns are relatively stable, but can change over long time per ...

development, intelligence,

child development Child development involves the Human development (biology), biological, psychological and emotional changes that occur in human beings between birth and the conclusion of adolescence. It is—particularly from birth to five years— a foundation ...

, parenting practices,

schizophrenia Schizophrenia () is a mental disorder characterized variously by hallucinations (typically, Auditory hallucination#Schizophrenia, hearing voices), delusions, thought disorder, disorganized thinking and behavior, and Reduced affect display, f ...

, sexuality,

leadership Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...

, addiction, anxiety,

politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

, and human and animal behavior. Contributors have included Irving Janis, Martin Seligman, Peter Drucker, Abraham Maslow, and others. In 1976, ''Psychology Today'' sold 1,026,872 copies. In 1981, its circulation increased to 1,171,362 copies in 1981. In 1986, it decreased to 862,193. From 1983 to 1987, ''Psychology Today'' was owned and managed by the

American Psychological Association The American Psychological Association (APA) is the main professional organization of psychologists in the United States, and the largest psychological association in the world. It has over 170,000 members, including scientists, educators, clin ...

. The magazine has won several awards from the Society of Publication Designers.

21st century

From June 2010 to June 2011, ''Psychology Today'' ranked among the top 10 selling consumer magazines at newsstands. The ''Psychology Today'' website, which includes archived articles since 1992, features a continuous stream of blogs by laboratory researchers, clinical practitioners, and writers with a broad range of expertise. Daily reports of the findings of new research on human behavior accompany accounts of common concerns and explorations of the impact of current events on mental health. The website includes a directory of psychologists, psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals in the U.S. and globally. In June 2021, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' recommended the website as a source for finding therapists. ''Psychology Today'' is currently owned by Sussex Publishers.

Content and standards

The magazine is not peer-reviewed, but all expert author content is reviewed, edited, and fact-checked for accuracy and objectivity by the publication's editorial staff. ''Psychology Today'' features contributors with various academic expertise in

-related fields.

Editors in chief

* Anastasia Toufexis, 1998–1999 * Robert Epstein, 1999–2003 * Kaja Perina, 2003–present

References

External links

*{{Official website, https://www.psychologytoday.com/magazine 1967 establishments in California Bimonthly magazines published in the United States Health magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1967 Magazines published in California Magazines published in New York City Popular psychology magazines Science and technology magazines published in the United States