Personal reflections on a career in correctional psychology.

Kathleen M. Hawk's training as a psychologist provided excellent preparation for each of her assignments as a career employee of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, from staff psychologist, to warden, to her current position as director. The mission of the prison-based psychologist—to assist in the rehabilitation of offenders and in their reintegration into society—is central to the mission of corrections. Moreover, by helping to promote a healthy prison environment, psychologists can enhance safety for staff and inmates alike. Prison-based psychologists also may be involved in numerous consultative and research activities. There is high demand for psychologists in the nation's prison systems, and they can exercise considerable influence over corrections policies. More psychologists should consider corrections as a career. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ethical and legal issues in professional psychology: Selected works, 1970–1981.

Presents a 171-item bibliography of the psychological and psychiatric literature dealing with legal and ethical issues. References are classified under the following topics: general issues, malpractice, patient rights, licensure and other legal issues, therapist sexuality, sexism and bias, and ethics in teaching and training. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Administrative problems and patterns of correctional psychology departments in Canada.

Surveyed administrative problems and patterns of correctional psychology departments in Canada and compared the 2 major employers of correctional psychologists in Canada. These results were also compared with existing data on psychology departments in mental health settings. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ethical dilemmas in police psychology.

A body of police psychologists was surveyed with regard to the ethical dilemmas that they experienced in providing psychological services to law enforcement organizations. A majority (55%) of the respondents reported that they had encountered an ethical conflict. The most common ethical dilemmas were related to issues of confidentiality, conflicts between the ethical standards of the psychologist and the needs of the agency, and dual relationships. In this article these areas of concern are explored, and suggestions to help resolve these issues are offered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Minority candidacy in professional psychology.

Describes the program at the Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies of Adelphi University that is designed to increase the number of minority students in postgraduate degree programs in applied psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward professional clinical psychology.

"The immediate task confronting clinical psychology is to obtain recognition for its competence. The important thing for clinical psychologists to keep in mind is that we must determine now whether we shall serve a prime or an ancillary role… . If we vigorously and realistically pursue recognition for our competence, our role will be a prime one. Competence, therefore, is our concern, and it is associated with professional status. Many tests of professionalism confront us. The past 2 decades have produced a fantastic increase in the numbers of clinical psychologists who provide psychotherapy and psychodiagnosis in both institutional and private settings." Postdoctoral training institutes, preventive procedures, and brief treatment techniques are needed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Historical understanding and teaching in professional psychology.

The teaching of the history of psychology in professional psychology training programs presents to students and teachers any number of opportunities and challenges. The increasing number of professional psychologists teaching the history of psychology coupled with advances in historical scholarship point to an ongoing evolution in the teaching of the history of psychology. In this introduction to the articles that follow, issues of content and context in teaching the history of psychology in professional psychology are discussed and affirmations offered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Professional psychology in state correctional institutions: Present status and alternate futures.

Current (1978) and projected (1985) patterns for the employment of psychologists and other mental health personnel in state correctional institutions are compared to professional and judicial standards for mental health manpower. Professional standards posited by the American Correctional Association see the psychologist and social worker as the principal agents of mental health care in the nation's prisons. Against these standards, severe shortages of psychologists are observed in the prisons, and an increase in the psychological work force of 245% will be required for prisons by 1985. Judicial standards set forth in the Pugh v. Locke decision of 1976 place emphasis in mental health care delivery on subprofessionals and paraprofessionals. Against these standards, a current shortage in the psychological work force is of negligible magnitude, and an increase of only 36% is required against 1985 projections. Speculations are offered about future mental health staffing needs under varying sets of judicial and legislative decisions. (14 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychotherapy and assessment in hospital settings. Ideological and professional conflicts.

The hospital system and the medical setting present a variety of clinical and nonclinical task and role demands that necessarily influence the mental health practitioner's ability to function with patients. The strong potential in the hospital milieu for professional role conflicts is considered, and the paradigmatic clashes between existing medical and psychological approaches are seen as an intrinsic aspect of such professional conflicts. The controversy over the use of the DSM-III is noted, and the potential for the misuse of psychological diagnoses in treatments incongruent with the orientation of the profession is described. The particular complicating effects of the hospital organization on psychotherapy and assessment are discussed, and suggestions for professional boundary definition and maintenance are made. (36 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ethical and professional considerations in psychological assessment.

Explored professional activities and ethical practices of psychologists who administer psychodiagnostic assessment and testing devices. A return rate of 72% on a survey of 100 members of the Society for Personality Assessment indicated considerable interest in the subject matter. A majority of the Ss' ethical practices were apparently in keeping with established ethical principles; however, a diversity of professional styles was evident. Most Ss gave feedback to the clients, with a large percentage willing to give feedback on projective as well as objective tests. Although most Ss kept old cases safely under lock, few appeared to have followed American Psychological Association guidelines to detach names from raw data on obsolete materials. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Need for the doctor of psychology degree in professional psychology.

The Vail Conference on professional training in psychology recommended development of explicitly professional programs and use of the PsyD degree to certify competence in professional psychology. Policies governing use of the degree, however, as well as the concepts of professional function which degree titles should symbolize, continue to be controversial. Opponents of the Vail Conference recommendations have argued that professional psychologists are most appropriately regarded as scholar-professionals, and have urged award of the PhD degree upon completion of graduate training in such fields as clinical psychology. As counterargument, a multiple definition of the term scholar-professional is stated, and the surplus meanings implied by scholarship are shown to be either false, misleading, or redundant. The difficulties that arise from using the PhD degree as a credential of professional competence are then discussed, and the advantages of employing the PsyD degree both affirmatively, as a certificate of professional competence in psychology, and restrictively, to exclude inadequately trained people from the practice of professional psychology, are asserted. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The foundations of professional psychology.

Three problems that constitute significant impediments to the growth and development of professional psychology are outlined: the lack of (1) a single definition of the profession and its scope, (2) a uniform general education process for new professionals, and (3) a single, unambiguous professional credential. Possible solutions are proposed for each of these problems. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Distance education in professional training in psychology.

Distance learning methods have had a dramatic effect on undergraduate education and are being incorporated by graduate and professional programs in a variety of areas, including psychology. To address the implications of these developments, an APA task force was organized in 2001 and presented its findings in 2002. This article summarizes key findings of the task force regarding (a) developments in distance education applications to training in professional psychology, (b) significant issues regarding best practices and quality assurance, (c) implications of accreditation standards for programs based on distance methods, (d) licensure and recognition of graduates from online programs, and (e) implications of distance education methods for campus-based programs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinical health psychology: A health care specialty in professional psychology.

Clinical health psychology is a specialty recognized by both the American Board of Professional Psychology and the American Psychological Association. Clinical health psychology focuses on psychological and behavioral components of illness and health and promotes the understanding of psychology as a health profession. In this article the author reviews its definition, provides a brief overview of practice in the specialty, addresses its relevance for practitioners, and notes sample resources for further study. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dimensions of perceived competence in professional psychology.

Appraised levels of general professional competence for 126 trainees in professional psychology by supervisors who had worked closely with the students. After rating the students, supervisors were asked to describe the dominant characteristics of "outstanding" and "incompetent" trainees. The most commonly mentioned quality of outstanding practitioner-trainees was high intelligence. The most commonly mentioned characteristic of incompetent trainees was lack of knowledge. A rating schedule composed of the 28 most commonly used terms was then employed by supervisors in rating students the following year. Four factors—Professional Responsibility, Interpersonal Warmth, Intelligence, and Experience—emerged from analysis of intercorrelations among variables. Intercorrelations of factor scores with ratings of overall competence showed that behaviorally oriented supervisors gave less weight to warmth in evaluating general competence than did supervisors with psychodynamic or eclectic viewpoints. (14 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The dynamics of specialization in professional psychology.

Practicing psychologists face numerous questions regarding specialization, reflecting the dramatic changes occurring in the last half of the 20th century. Is the specialization trend in professional psychology practice and training out of step with marketplace realities? Should specialty training and practice be guided and controlled, and if so, by whom? In response to the interplay of various forces and in a spontaneous and unguarded fashion, specialization has evolved in the form of a two-tiered model, consisting of general practice specialties and delimited specialties. The model better reflects existing distinctions in roles, methods, and settings for education and training than does the systematic differentiation of specialist functions or practice competencies. Were the discipline to implement an orderly sequence of steps to develop a coherent system for specialization in psychology, it would facilitate its future growth and development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prescribing and primary care psychology: Complementary paths for professional psychology.

Two paths have been suggested for the future evolution of professional psychology. Prescribing psychology has already been legally authorized in two states, the military, and the Indian Health Service. Primary care psychology does not require legal recognition and has been slowly growing as a career option for psychologists across the nation. Both paths have their obstacles and limitations, but both are also associated with great potential. This article provides a brief summary of the strengths and weaknesses of each path and suggests an integrated perspective for planning the future of the profession. Each is seen as complementary to the other and providing a basis for pursuing the other. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Empirically supported treatments in psychology: Implications for Canadian professional psychology.

Examines several interconnected efforts to develop evidence-based practice in professional psychology. We first review the American Psychological Association (APA) Division 12 (Clinical Psychology) Task Force on the Promotion and Dissemination of Psychological Procedures' development of criteria and listings for empirically supported psychological treatments. Next, we present related efforts to develop procedures to identify treatments that have established efficacy and to develop practice guidelines. The possible impact of these initiatives on Canadian professional psychology in the domains of training, credentialing, practice, and research are then examined. Finally, we present recommendations for steps that should be taken by Canadian psychology organizations to respond to these initiatives in order to ensure that psychological practice in Canada is optimally supported by scientific evidence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Passages of an internship in professional psychology.

Presents a model for understanding the various stages of an internship in professional psychology as it affects both the interns and the training agency. Five distinct passages are identified: (a) preentry preparation, which includes application, acceptance, and prearrival apprehension; (b) early intern syndrome, which is characterized by gathering information and finding a place in the agency; (c) intern identity, which focuses on the realization of strengths and limitations, a period of self-doubt, and a period of greater role differentiation; (d) the emerging professional, which is characterized by increased sense of competence and independence; and (e) resolution, which incorporates various ways of separating from the agency. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)