Clinical Child Psychology is defined as a specialty in professional psychology that develops and applies scientific knowledge to the delivery of psychological services to infants, toddlers, children and adolescents within their social context (Clinical Child Psychology, 2015). They study how experimental and biological components can cause a child’s social, emotional, and cognitive roles to change as a child grows older. In order to become a clinical child psychologist, it can be quite difficult considering how intense and competitive it is to enroll into a clinical program. The typical amount of time it takes to become a clinical child psychologist is between six and nine years (Maurer, 2015). To begin, one must first go through the Undergraduate Program. This involve’s taking several courses in college to obtain a four-year bachelor’s degree in psychology (Maurer, 2015). There is a minimum of one-hundred and twenty credit hours along with usually a minimum of 2.0 GPA required to receive the bachelor’s degree (Bachelor 's Degree Requirements for Psychology Majors, 2015). However, even though the GPA requirement is 2.0, there is still a high level of competition to get into the program, so it usually requires a much higher GPA in order to reserve a spot or increase one’s chances of getting into the program. It’s obvious that several psychology classes would be required, however, one would also have to take classes such as biology, chemistry, social science, and child
Child psychology is the scientific study of the behavior of the human child. According to Goldenson (1970), child psychology is the study of the sequence of development from conception to maturity including the roles of maturation and learning, heredity and environment in motor, emotional, sexual, social, intellectual and character development.
According to the American Psychological Association (APA) website “Psychologists who provide clinical or counseling services assess and treat mental, emotional and behavioral disorders. They integrate the science of psychology and the treatment of complex human problems with the intention of promoting change.” ("Pursuing A Career In Clinical Or Counseling Psychology", 2014).) In the simplest terms, “the study of individuals, by observation or experimentation, with the intention of promoting change.” (Compas, Bruce, & Gotlib, 2002) Clinical psychologist careers vary in industries such as research, integrated health care, teaching, public policy and professional practice. Some clinical psychologists work exclusively on specific mental, emotional, and behavioral issues. Relationship conflict and conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder and addiction are a few examples of areas of specialization for a clinical psychologist. According to the APA website (2014), in order to become a clinical psychologist the journey begins with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Next the student must obtain a graduate degree. Each graduate program determines its own entrance requirements. Some doctoral programs require their applicants to have a master’s degree in psychology. Other people enter doctoral programs with only a bachelor’s degree. Most doctoral degrees take five to seven years to complete. You must also
Clinical psychology is of great interest to me because its intent is to promote change,
One of my goals for this interview was to learn how Dr. D’Costa became the child psychologist she is today. To learn more about this, I asked her what she majored in, what classes she took, where she went to graduate school, and why she chose to specifically become a child psychologist in India. Firstly, I learned that Dr. D’Costa originally planned to major in biology to become a family doctor. However, after taking a psychology class in her sophomore year of college, she decided to change her major to psychology because she decided she was more interested in helping people with their mental health rather than their physical health. Throughout her time in undergraduate studies, Dr. D’Costa took a variety of classes in all different areas of psychology. However, by the time she reached her senior year, she decided to apply for counseling psychology graduate programs. Although she spent her time in undergraduate school in the United States, Dr. D’Costa decided to attend Martin Luther Christian University in Shillong, India to complete her graduate degree. Dr. D’Costa
Think back to when you were younger, do you remember the different emotions you had? Did you know that you learned a lot of your emotions from your parents or caregivers? Infants and toddlers go through many different stages of emotional development. Starting at birth where they show little to no emotion, up through toddler-hood where their emotions become more defined is a critical stage in there development. Infants begin to develop basic emotions at birth such as happy, sad, fear and anger. As they get older to start to understand and respond to the emotions of others whether it is their parent’s or caregiver. Around toddler-hood children learn about self-conscious emotions and when it is appropriate to feel guilt, shame, pride and
The article outlines the impact of teachers, school social workers and paraprofessionals on an infant and toddler biological psychological, and social-emotional domain. According to Hutchison, an infant is a young child from birth to the first year of life. A toddler is a young child from about 12 to 36 months of age. When engaging with this target group it is important to include and educate the parents as the newborn enters a developmental niche. Hutchinson defines a developmental niche as “the cultural context into which a particular child is born; guides every aspect of the developmental process.” The developmental niches require a stream of resources, which is why child care and social services provided are
The first step to becoming a child psychologist is extensive schooling. The advanced degree required for success is a Doctorate, or a Ph.D. (meaning Doctor of Philosophy). When one receives this, they must have had been in graduate school for at least
Coursework along this path demands both education and psychology due to the nature of the work. There are mental health components and educational aspects. The masters degree in psychology requires at least two years of full-time graduate study and usually includes practical experience in an applied setting and a thesis based on personal research that is original. Getting accepted into graduate programs for psychology can be full of competition. School psychologists must meet credential and licensing requirements for individual states. These vary state by state. The licensing varies by type of position and is based on professional competence through training and experience. Some states require continuing education for renewal of licenses. According to Landrum and Davis (2009) “right now twenty-nine states recognize the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) designation on a national level” (p.73). Credentials transfer from state to state in this case and new credential exams do not have to be taken when moving from one of these states to another. Requirements for the NCSP include completion of sixty graduate semester hours in school psychology, a twelve hundred hour internship (six hundred hours in school setting), and a passing score on the National School Psychology exam.
This group of students is quite diverse. This group of fourth grade students also exhibit diversity from their home life, culture, and socioeconomic areas. This school has over an eighty percent ration of students on free or reduced lunches. Religious diversity also plays a part in this group of children. These children break up into social groups based along these lines of diversity.
To be a psychologist in most schools a master’s degree is required which takes approximately 6-8 years after High School and majoring in psychology. Volunteer work while in school is not required but definitely beneficially for a resume. It will also require obtaining a state license for most states, especially working with children. Although for school based settings a master’s degree is typically accepted, some schools do require a PhD which would require further
Over the years I have been introduced to the field of psychology in many different ways, from going to therapy as a child, seeing friends in high school struggle with mental illness, taking a class before college, eventually choosing it as my major, and to eventually working at a therapeutic summer camp. It is an amazingly diverse field of study and having personal experience in so many aspects of the field has only made me more interested in learning more and working towards my goal of one day becoming a therapist. To be successful in this endeavor I know that having a doctoral degree is what will help me be able to have my own practice one day and who specialized in children’s therapy. This dream of mine has only been encouraged by the
Before postgraduate work can be started, the student must receive a bachelor’s in psychology and fulfill the requirements listed for the psychology program they wish to enter. Once a bachelor’s degree is achieved, a psychology major has the choice of either obtaining their master's or their doctorate. When earning a master’s a student is accepted into the college of his or her choice, and usually completes the program within 2 years, or longer. If a master's is earned, the student may go on to become an assistant in a clinical setting underneath someone who has a doctorate in psychology, but they will not be able to do any high level of work. If a student chooses to obtain a doctorate they are again, accepted into the program of their choice, although admission is very competitive. Once accepted into the doctorate program the student serves about 2-4 years where they receive training and guidance in a hospital setting, but it all depends on the program they enter. Having a doctorate in psychology will open the doors for soon-to-be clinical psychologists, and offers a higher job title, certification, and higher pay. Whether a student chooses a master's or a doctorate, a large amount of psychology classes must be taken. More than likely when a student is an a doctorate program, they are required to fulfill a 1-2 year internal ship of professional experience, as cited from
Clinical child psychology is a specialty that focuses on providing psychological services to children ("American Psychological Association," n.d.). Child psychologists must understand the psychological needs of children and how external influences can affect them. They evaluate and treat a varied range of problems in children from emotional issues to trauma to mental disorders. Children’s mental health is extremely important to their development, as it contributes to how they think, act, and feel, and yet it is often neglected. Child psychologists focus on the mental well-being of their patients and help children cope and overcome difficulties they may face. This occupation impacts the lives of numerous children and their parents. Child psychologists
Psychology involves studying the mental functioning and general behaviors of both humans and animals. Social behavior and mental functioning of an individual are explained by exploring the neurological and physiological processes. These include emotions, cognition, perception, motivation, attention, brain functioning and personality. Child psychology is as well stated to be the application of psychological techniques to children where it involves carrying out research on mental states and development of children. The development of the child both physically, mentally and emotionally, with the help of a parent allows the identification of helpful information to any evolving challenges in child’s behavior and
Child Psychology, study of children’s behavior-including physical, cognitive, motor, linguistic, perceptual, social, and emotional characteristics-from birth through adolescence. Child psychologists attempt to explain the similarities and differences among children and to describe normal as well as abnormal behavior and development. They also develop methods of treating social, emotional, and learning problems and provide therapy privately and in schools, hospitals, and other institutions.