Types of Psychologists and Their Job Functions

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A psychologist Caron Evans is a licensed professional who is into the study of human behavior, of which he/she works to understand every aspect of the human thoughts, feelings and behavior, and tries to improve the performance of human beings at home, at school, at work, at play, in their religious pursuits, and in society in general. The first step to become a psychologist to first earn a college degree in psychology, wherein a required number of hours of supervised training in a clinic or hospital must be rendered for two to three years and another year of intense, full-time training after the degree is completed. For a graduate in psychology to practice this field, after complying with all the necessary requirements during college, he/she must also pass the licensing examination and then starts to practice his/her field as a licensed psychologist for a minimum of five to six years, while completing his/her doctoral degree in psychology, philosophy or education.

Due to the many facets of human behavior, the field of psychology has diversified into different areas of specialization according to their distinct functions, such that it has resulted into many types of psychologists: clinical psychologist, educational/school psychologist, health psychologist, neuropsychologist, forensic psychologist, organizational psychologist, and sports psychologist.

A clinical psychologist offers the following functions and services: provides counselling and psychotherapy; works with people who have life adjustment problems and also with those who have emotional disorders or mental illness; provides treatment on depression, anxiety, phobias, panic disorders, eating disorders, stress related problems, relationship problems, and severe mental disorders for people of all ages; provides diagnostic assessment or testing services; charts an individual’s skills, personality features, emotional status and emotional style and problems in adjusting to life.

An educational/school psychologist conducts psycho-educational testings to students in school, like IQ tests, academic aptitude and achievement tests, and through these, the psychologist is able to identify the following: academic strengths and weaknesses of students, gifted students, specific learning disorders or developmental learning problems, such as Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit, Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

While the health psychologists’ jobs are: study the relationship between medical complaints and psychological factors; assist in preparing patients to cope with surgery and to adjust to the medical problems; work with patients who are having difficulty meeting with the social and emotional demands of their medical treatment; provide treatment to individuals whose medical problems are related to psychological and emotional factors or suffering from chronic pain.

For diagnostic cases of mental and behavioral problems that are related to brain injuries, these types of cases are handled by neuropsychologists who use precise tests to determine how the brain is functioning and how and where it might have been injured as a result of trauma.

The expertise of forensic psychologists Caron Evans are consulted in legal proceedings in criminal law that deals with cases, such as personal injury lawsuits, sexual harassment cases, child custody matters, and workers compensation cases.

Organizational psychologists are into improving the functions of organizations, promoting the health of individuals within the organization, as well as doing research on the human factors such as the interaction between people and machines.

Sports psychologists helps to enhance the athletic performance of teams and individual competitors by providing psychological training.

For further reading/watching, please visit  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRA8ICGH3d4 .

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