What Does a Psychologist Do?
In general, a psychologist is a person in charge of analyzing the psychological state of an individual to take preventive or curative measures as needed. He or she can study human behavior, interpersonal relationships, and individual personality. To ensure successful treatment, the psychologist must follow a few essential steps.
The basic roles of a psychologist
Depending on his or her specialization, the basic roles of a psychologist are to
– Assess the psychological state of a suspect;
– develop the individual’s mental autonomy
– promote social integration;
– preserving the individual’s well-being (for example, by helping him or her to avoid depression);
To succeed in their missions, this psychic functioning professional uses specific intervention and analysis methods. These methods are based on various theoretical and relational approaches depending on the individual’s case.
The Jobs of Psychologists, According to Their Classification
The functions of psychologists are classified into several branches, each with well-defined missions. Here are some examples:
– Clinical psychology
Clinical psychology consists
of providing patients with relief from their psychological suffering. At this stage, the clinical psychologist tries to understand the medical signs that the individual presents and to define the symptoms.
– Cognitive psychology
The missions of a cognitive psychologist consist of studying the main psychological functions of a human being (emotions, memory, language, intelligence, reasoning, perception, attention, and problem-solving).
– Developmental psychology
This branch of psychology is concerned with understanding a person’s psychological development and the reason for that development. In other words, developmental psychology focuses on problems related to a particular time and age. In effect, the developmental psychologist is concerned with the following:
– conducting research on behavioral changes, mental processes, performance and psychic abilities
– the application of corresponding treatments;
– Work and organizational psychology
It is a branch of psychology that deals with human behavior and attitudes related to the world of work. The aim of the occupational psychologist is to improve the working conditions and the respect of each individual in his professional situation. Thanks to the psychologist who acts as a real stress management coach, the worker will enjoy total well-being in his or her environment, which can also be supported by business coaching by the psychologist.
– Assistance in school or professional orientation
In this field, the psychologist acts as a professional coach. He suggests different paths based on the interests, personality, and previous career paths of the person concerned. He pushes the person to realize one or all of these paths. But to facilitate the intervention, he or she uses effective guidance systems.
The activities of a senior psychologist
Depending on the hospital, a psychologist may specialize in one or more functions. In addition, his or her work involves a wide range of people (individuals or legal entities, children or adolescents or adults, singles or couples). Therefore, his professional skills are spread over :
– individual or group psychotherapy ;
– cognition or personality evaluation of individuals in diagnosis;
– the elaboration and design of therapeutic interventions for preventive and curative purposes with patients and their families;
– the collection and analysis of requests and needs for interventions;
– clinical analysis and insight into a patient’s psychic development;
– the prevention of mental disorders or possible brain development delays;
They also advise on the choice of educational or professional paths.
To carry out all these tasks, the psychologist may ask for collaboration with professionals in social activities such as:
– psychiatrists
– social workers
– speech therapists
– psychomotricians;