Meet Division 51 Member: Dr. Fred Rabinowitz
When did you join Division 51? What made you interested in joining?
I co-led one the first therapeutic men's groups at the University of Missouri with Sam Cochran when we were graduate students in 1983. With very little written at the time about men's issues, Sam and I began our exploration of the ideas that men and boys needed a different kind of therapeutic approach because of their socialization and how it had impacted how they perceived themselves and their interactions with others. Sam and I wrote and presented at various psychology and counseling conferences discussing these ideas and were drawn into a group of psychologists from the American Psychological Association led by Ron Levant and Gary Brooks who created the Society for the Psychological Study of Men and Masculinities in the 1990's. Sam and I presented our ideas and findings at our division meetings at APA on a regular basis. I enjoyed the comradery of the 51 group, including the midwinter conferences that were run in an interpersonal group retreat format. Division 51 became the "go to" place to discuss ideas about masculinity and have a platform at APA and the greater society to highlight men's issues and concerns.
What do you find most valuable about being a member of the division?
Honestly, I really enjoy the individuals (men and women) who are a part of the division. It has been a wonderful place to talk about gender and get a more nuanced and scientific understanding of relationships, the impact of men's and women's social roles, and how society could be changed by incorporating the scholarship this division was generating. I have looked forward to attending Division 51 sessions at the annual live APA conference and loved the midwinter retreats that allowed us to know each other on a more intimate level. Our division journal has been an excellent source of scientific and theoretical articles about masculinities. From the beginning of my involvement, I have felt encouraged and empowered to take on leadership positions, having served as the 51 President in 2006 and the "team captain" of a group of psychologists who created the recently published Guidelines for Psychological Practice with Men and Boys for APA, a 13-year project.
What are your clinical, teaching, research, or other applied interests relating to the psychology of men and masculinity?
I have been a professor of Psychology at the University of Redlands since 1984 and been actively involved in both scholarship and practice aspects of men's issues. I have written and co-written five books on masculinity related themes: Man Alive: A Primer of Men's Issues (1994) with past 51 President Sam Cochran; Men and Depression (2000) with Sam Cochran; Deepening Psychotherapy with Men (2002) with Sam Cochran; Breaking Barriers in Counseling Men (2014) with past 51 President Aaron Rochlen; and Deepening Group Psychotherapy with Men (2019). I have led a weekly therapeutically oriented men's group and maintained a private practice specializing in men's issues in Redlands, CA since 1986. I am currently working with recent 51 President Daniel Ellenberg on a practical book about increasing male self-awareness, expanding male flexibility, and encouraging optimal psychological functioning we are calling "Strength with Heart."