psychology as a career:

psychology as an area of human activity

I. The overall focus of psychology is on the scientific study of both human and animal behavior and related mental and physiological processes.

II. Psychology has three major facets as an area of human activity:

A. Science. Psychology is a focus of research through which investigators collect, quantify, and interpret data describing human and animal behavior, thus hopefully shedding light on the causes and dynamics of behavior patterns.

B. Scholarly discipline. Psychology represents a major field of study in academic settings, with emphasis on communication and explanation of principles and theories of behavior.

C. Profession. Psychology involves the practical application of knowledge, skills, and techniques for the solution or prevention of individual or social problems; professional activity may also further the psychologist's understanding of human behavior and thus contribute to psychological science as well.

III. Subareas of psychology.

A. Clinical psychology.

1. Have Ph.D. from a graduate or professional school of psychology; it typically takes 4-5 years of graduate work plus a one-year internship.

2. Typically well trained in research techniques.

3. Typically broadly trained.

4. Cannot legally prescribe drugs.

5. Not the same as psychiatrists who possess the M.D. degree, are often more narrowly trained, who are often less research oriented and who can legally prescribe medication.

6. Not the same as psychoanalysts, either. Psychoanalysts must complete a course of training at a psychoanalytic institute, specializing in Freudian techniques and theory. Many psychiatrists are also qualified psychoanalysts but not all are. On the other hand, a few laypersons have become qualified psychoanalysts, too.

B. Personality psychology. Typically employed as university professors; do research on effectiveness of psychotherapeutic techniques and the characteristics of the more "normal" personality.

C. Counseling psychology. Work in college counseling centers, private practice as marriage counselors, etc.; deal with persons whose personal problems are not so severe as those more typically seen by psychiatrists and clinical psychologists.

D. School psychology. Work with elementary and secondary students with behavior difficulties of one sort or another; they do psychological assessments and in consultation with teacher and parents recommend interventions that might help the student achieve greater personal and intellectual growth; better trained than school counselors who often have a master's degree in counseling and guidance and who are primarily concerned with academic and vocational counseling of students.

E. Educational psychology. Though their job often overlaps with that of school psychologists, educational psychologists are more often employed as university professors and are more likely to spend their time doing research, research to improve the efficiency of classroom teaching and learning, typically.

F. Industrial psychology. 35% of them work in industry, 26% in universities, 28% in consulting firms, firms that sell their expertise to business and industry, and 11% in government service; they develop and administer programs of employee selection and training, study communication procedures in the organization, counsel employees, examine consumer attitudes about products, and so forth.

G. Engineering psychology (Human factors engineering or ergonomics). Work at universities or in government; they apply knowledge of how we perceive and how we learn and remember to the better design and use of complex equipment and appliances.

H. Social psychology. Employed by consulting firms or universities; they do basic and applied research on the question of how the groups we belong to affect our behavior as individuals; sociologists tend to study groups in and of themselves.

I. Developmental psychology. Chiefly employed by colleges and universities; they do basic and applied research on changes in behavior with age; they are not the same as clinical child psychologists (clinical psychologists who deal with childhood behavior disorders) and child psychiatrists.

J. Psychometric psychology. Employed by companies that market psychological assessment materials and by universities; they develop and refine tests for measurement of various human aptitudes, achievements, interests, etc.

K. Experimental psychology. Employed by government research labs and universities; they study perception, learning, memory, motivation, and the physiological basis of behavior of both human and animal subjects; this field is the most basic research oriented of the various subareas of psychology.

IV. Places of employment for psychologists.

A. Colleges and universities - 40%

B. Schools - 12%

C. Clinics, hospitals, and medical schools - 11%

D. State and local governments - 8%

E. Federal civil service - 6%

F. Private industry and business - 6%

G. Self-employed - 6%

H. U.S. Public Health Service and the military - 1%

I. Other and no reply - 10%

V. Preparation to become a psychologist.

A. Definition of the title "psychologist". In most states "psychologist" is applied only to those persons in private practice with adequate training as defined by law. Nebraska now requires a doctoral degree in psychology (or a closely allied discipline) from an accredited university and a passing score on a state board exam. Some states also require two years of post-Ph.D. supervised experience.

B. Educational requirements in psychology.

1. B.A. or B.S.: About 30 semester hours of psychology courses, almost always including a course in statistics and an experimental psychology lab of some sort; certain state, local, and federal government positions as well as personnel jobs in private industry are among those jobs available to holders of these degrees.

2. M.A. or M.S.: About 30 semester hours of psychology coursework beyond the bachelor's degree and usually a comprehensive exam and/or a thesis based on a research project; the same sort of jobs are available to these persons as above but at a higher level of pay and responsibility; community college teaching and technical positions in school and clinical psychology are also available.

3. Ph.D.: 3-5 years beyond the bachelor's level; a high level of academic ability is required to complete the comprehensive exam and dissertation that make an original contribution to psychological knowledge; private practice, academics, government research, consultant jobs in private industry are all available to persons with this degree and the appropriate coursework.