Counseling psychology

Counseling Psychology is a specialty within professional psychology that maintains a focus on facilitating personal and interpersonal functioning across the life span. This includes emotional, social, vocational, educational, health-related, developmental, and organizational concerns.

Overview

Counseling psychologists help people with physical, emotional and mental health issues improve their sense of well‐being, alleviate feelings of distress and resolve crises. They also provide assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of more severe psychological symptoms.

History

The specialty of counseling psychology traces its roots back to the early 20th century and the advent of the vocational guidance movement. Vocational guidance was a response to social problems that developed during the industrial revolution, and counseling psychology, as a field, emerged from this vocational guidance movement.

Practice

Counseling psychologists are employed in a variety of settings depending on the services they provide and the client populations they serve. Some are employed in colleges and universities as teachers, supervisors, researchers, and service providers. Others are employed in independent practice providing counseling, psychotherapy, assessment, and consultation services to individuals, families, groups, and organizations. Additional settings in which counseling psychologists practice include community mental health centers, Veterans Administration Medical Centers and other hospitals, family services, health maintenance organizations, rehabilitation agencies, business and industrial organizations and consulting within firms.

Training and Education

Counseling psychologists are trained in graduate programs. Most are doctoral degree programs but master’s degree options are available. Coursework includes classes on the science and practice of counseling psychology, ethics, cultural diversity, research methods and statistics, and supervision and consultation. Students also complete an internship as part of their training.

See Also

• Clinical Psychology
• Psychotherapy
• Mental Health
• Vocational Guidance

References

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