AEA members' opinions concerning evaluator certification

Professional certification is sometimes advocated as a means of assuring co nsumers that they an getting someone who is skilled and knowledgeable withi n their trade. Certification is also sometimes viewed as advantageous for e nhancing professions' prestige, promoting professionalism, improving academ ic programs, and helping to define a profession. Without the acceptance by an organization's members, however, any efforts to implement a certificatio n process are likely instead to be divisive and dysfunctional. This article presents the results of a survey carried out by a recent AEA Task Force on certification.