The New Zealand Psychological Society (NZPsS) is one of the professional associations for psychologists in New Zealand. It is the largest professional body for psychologists in New Zealand,^[2] providing for both research psychologists and practicing psychologists.^[3]

The society began as a branch of the British Psychological Society in 1947, becoming an independent body in 1967.^[4][5] The society's first annual conference was held in 1968, when the society had approximately 150 members.^[6] Originally the society was dominated by academic psychologists, but by the 1960s and 1970s, practicing psychologists, primarily clinical psychologists, became a growing voice within the society.^[7] Between 1968 and 1978, the society grew to over 600 members.^[8]

In the 1970s, the society spoke out against unsafe driving practices,^[9] and submitted in support of changes to the Crimes Amendment Bill in 1974, the first parliamentary attempt at homosexual law reform in New Zealand.^[10] In 1978, Ann Ballin became the first woman president of the society.^[11]

The society was an integral lobbying force in passing the Psychologists Act 1981, which established psychology as a registered profession in New Zealand.^[7][12][8]

The society is a constituent organisation of Royal Society Te Apārangi.^[13]

The society has a two-tier approach to membership and professional regulation: a general-scope registration, followed by a specialist scope registration, in a field such as clinical psychology or educational psychology.^[5]

Members of the society are signatories to the Code of Ethics for Psychologists Working in Aotearoa/New Zealand, which was established in 2002 due to the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003.^[16][17] Prior to the establishment of the code, each individual professional association for psychologists in New Zealand had their own code of ethics.^[18]

The following have been Presidents of the Society.^[11][19][20]

• New Zealand Journal of Psychology
• Psychology Aotearoa