I woke up this morning to find my PM box flooded with people letting me know about Scott Wylie's continued attempts to cause harm to me and this community. I want to clarify, for the record, since Scott Wylie never saw fit to ask me himself (and never seemed to have any issues with my credentials while working here, which I think speaks volumes -- it's only become an issue for him when it suited his needs).

I've been running Psych Central for over 12 years now. My bio has always been on the site in the "About Us" section. We have had a disclaimer on the site since nearly day one about who I am and what I do here.

The term "psychologist" is a protected word regulated by individual U.S. states (and outside of the U.S., it may or may not be regulated, depending upon the specific country), which means there are 50 different laws and 50 different ways of interpreting those laws. When I lived in a previous state, I discussed this issue with the then president of state's licensing board and had an attorney review the statutes to ensure I was in compliance. That state was more liberal in one's use of the word "psychologist," as long as one didn't hold one out to be practicing psychological services for a fee.

We have the disclaimer and the bio here because this is a fairly frequently asked question. If someone hasn't read them, I usually refer a person to them to explain what my background and training is.

So in Massachusetts, where I live, I am not a psychologist. If you ever thought I was a psychologist while I lived in Massachusetts, I apologize. Please, read the disclaimer. I do have a doctorate in clinical psychology from Nova Southeastern University, as well as a master's degree from the same institution.

DocJohn