Why EDI matters to me

Chased by the devil

While a PhD student, I heard this story from a clinical psychologist who had been working with a patient in a medium secure setting: The patient believed they were being followed by the devil. The psychologist had assessed the case and was treating their delusions. During therapy sessions, a goat had sometimes appeared and at least once, had looked directly at the clinician through a window, situated behind the patient. The story’s conclusion was to the effect of: ‘who am I to judge? Maybe he is being followed by the devil’. Everyone laughed and the conversation moved on. So, why am I writing about it, three decades later?

Devilish goats

That particular therapeutic unit had a farm attached, with several rescue goats so please don’t ponder too long on the likelihood of goats in a treatment space. On the association with the devil, goats appear in various religious traditions. The word panic comes from the Greek God Pan – part human, part goat. On the Jewish Day of Atonement, the service includes the story of two goats, one sent “to the Lord” and one “to Azazel”, from where we get the idea of a scapegoat. Baphomet and many mediaeval images of the devil involve goat features. It’s fair to say that caprine characteristics appear across cultures and are seldom seen positively.

Psychologically, the devil may be “a charming alluring and dangerous character”. Or, a belief in the supernatural has been suggested to be a “byproduct” of being able to consider another person’s perspective. Psychologists have explored the potential role of the temporal lobe in ‘hyper- religious’ delusions, or mystical experiences and considered whether a belief in ‘pure evil’ influences people’s judgements of others. Returning to the question of who is suitable to judge another person’s belief, also requires consideration of potential roles of culture in how we understand hallucinations and delusions, who might seek help for such experiences and how we explain them.

On judging others

Psychologists increasingly value cultural humility - processes that require “self-awareness of personal and cultural biases as well as awareness and sensitivity to significant cultural issues of others”. The idea of being chased by a devil may not necessarily be pathological, but rather, something to explore further. It is increasingly routine for us to consider the intersections between culture, demographics, cognitive capacity, gender, race and/or disability, within professional standards. The Australian Psychological Society issued an apology and is working towards reconciliation, having acknowledged harmful biases in treatment. Inclusive principles are embedded within the “respect” elements of the British Psychological Society code of conduct and similar requirements are clearly stated under the American Psychological Association’s (APA) policies on equity, diversity and inclusion.

With recent changes to federal policy, the APA is monitoring and updating impacts on practice, seeing this as vital to “protecting the integrity of psychological science and knowledge”. Yet, in a memo sent to APA Accredited Programs, the Chair of the APA Commission on Accreditation said:

the APA Commission on Accreditation (CoA) voted on March 13, 2025, to immediately and temporarily suspend evaluation of programs for compliance with several specific accreditation standards. The suspended standards are those related to faculty and student program actions in the areas of diversity in recruitment, admission/selection, and/or retention efforts.

Although they won’t be reviewed as part of accreditation:

Programs will continue to adhere to accreditation standards specific to professional competency and curriculum in psychology where the educational benefit of diversity is a core tenet. These accreditation standards include the obligation for accredited programs to engage in offering teaching that indicates respect for and understanding of cultural and individual differences to promote the provision of quality psychological services to all individuals.

Such contortions are increasingly common in organisations reliant on USA federal funding and there has been an unsurprising level of debate about the accreditation committee’s decision. As a British psychologist, not subject to the APA, why should this concern me? I use mixed methods and apply psychology to the real world. My training tells me to listen to people’s intentions, to what they say they will do. There are theories relevant to understanding the ramifications of populist policies that appeal not just to the historically disenfranchised, but to anybody who feels let down by those who are meant to lead them. So, when the leader of a fast-growing political party says that they will cut all funding to equality, diversity and inclusion, claiming that they are costing “taxpayers up to £7b”, there will be many who don’t see a “mad experiment”, but who will vote for what they see as the best hope for their families’ futures.

Author

Professor of Forensic Psychology, Joanna R Adler

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