VandenBos, G.R. (Ed.). (2007). APA Dictionary of Psychology.  Washngton DC: American Psychological Association.

Scope: APA Dictionary of Psychology is a comprehensive source of psychological terms.  In the preface, VandenBos states, “For the American Psychological Association, the publication of its first dictionary is a signal—one among many—that a certain organizational maturity has been attained.” (2007, vii).  The2007 publication of the dictionary was ten years in the making and is a result of diligent research by the American Psychological Association (APA) in scanning the PsycInfo database, the Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms, and other dictionaries of psychology (viii).  It is an extensive collection of lexicon but by no means is it complete, nor does it profess to be. 

Audience:  The intended user is the undergraduate and graduate psychology student, practitioners in the field of psychology and medicine, other professionals, such as those in education, law, human resources, etc. It is also of great value to the general public as many psychological terms have found their way into our general vocabulary.

Timeliness:  Published in 2007, it is relatively recent and this publication is the most recent publication of the dictionary.  It is not likely that the terminology has changed significantly in the past 6 years, though it is possible that there has been some change in the field. 

Authority:  According to the APA website, Gary VandeBos holds a doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Detroit. He has been in practice since 1974.  According to his LinkedIn profile, he has worked for the APA since July 1984 (LinkedIn).  The list of editors on the Editorial board and as contributors indicate that many, if not all involved have a PhD. (2007, xi)

Documentation: There is not an extensive list of resources but the preface indicates how the entries were gleaned from searching the PsychInfo database, the Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms, and other psychological dictionaries.

Relevance: This dictionary is highly relevant to all studying or those who have an interest in psychology.  It is a dictionary that should be part of every collection for use by students of psychology, those with a professional tie to psychology, those with a vested interest in psychology and the general public for various reasons.  Psychology is a discipline that crosses cultures and disciplines.  This is a valuable resource for any collection.

References:

American Psychological Association.  (n.d.).  Gary R. VandenBos, PhD: Publisher, and executive director of APA’s office of publications and databases. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/about/apa/senior-staff/vandenbos-bio.aspx.

VandenBos, G. R. (n.d.). In LinkedIn Profile.  Retrieved November 3, 2013 from http://www.linkedin.com/pub/gary-r-vandenbos/7/587/51b.