Clinical Psych

• Clinical Psychology


  A field of practice that deals with human functioning: either human problems and their solution as well with the promotion of physical, mental and social well-being
• Evidence based practice


  When considering health care options clinicians must synthesize info drawn from: research, data from assessment measures, clinicians professional experience and client's preferences
• evidence based practice


  emphasizes importance of informing patients about options based on research evidence
• Critics of Evidence-Based Practice

  argue group-based data is not always sufficient in working with individuals, research is not always available for all problems, cannot wait on research, each person is unique
• History of Clinical Psychology- Ancient Greece

  Hippocrates; father of medicine

  Origins of biopsychosocial views over the spiritual views

  Prior to Hippocrates people were applying supernatural views
• History of Clinical Psychology- Middle Ages

  Asylum model- bloodletting, squalid conditions, chaining to walls

  St Vincent De Paul: natural environment, advocated for improving conditions in the asylum
• Wilhelm Wundt


  experimental psychologist who founded the first psychology lab in germany in late 1800s

  • studied psychological processes like sensation and perception, which laid the ground work for more applied clinical interventions
• Lighner Witmer


  student of Wundt, founded first psychology clinic

  • emphasized the application of psychological principles from treatment purposes
• Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon:


  revolutionized the assessment of mental abilities and disorders through their development of the first standardized intelligence testing scales
• Catalyst for Treatment in Clinical Psychology


  World Wars, pressing need to treat veterans with trauma from wars
• World War 1 and 2

  Led to increased consideration of diagnostic methods and therapeutic approaches

  The U.S. army's use of psychological testing to screen recruits highlighted the practical relevance of clinical assessments
• Psychoanalysis


  Sigmund Freud- subconscious drives
• Behaviorism


  Watson, Skinner (and his rats)- mind as a black box
• Humanistic Psychology


  Carl Rogers- founded humanism- being there for a person, centered around therapeutic relationships

  Maslow- relationships
• Modern clinical psychology


  Empirical approaches
• Rise of CBT in late 20th century


  • Emotional experiences can be altered by addressing unhelpful thoughts and behaviors
• Previous approachesof clinical psych


  • Unstandardized and theoretical/philosophical in nature
• Modern Clinical Psychology

  Addressed criticisms of previous approaches
• Can feel invalidating and challenged thoughts and feelings that people were going through
• Previous Clinical Psych: Didn't address systemic issues very well
• Combination of changing the way we think

  And changing the way we behave
• Previous approaches to clinical psychology

  Challenges with respect to cultural sensitivity, treatment accessibility, and balance of empirical rigor and clinical flexibility

• Eugenics movement


  Theories promoting "genetic superiority" or some
• Galton


  • Early 20th century psychologist who created eugenic theories
• Intelligence testing


  Used to determine who was "superior" based on European Standards
• Eugenics movement:

  Forced sterilization and discriminatory policies
• Cultural and racial bias


  • Foundational practices often based on western norms
  • Resulting in biased assessments and treatments that overlook or misinterpret the cultural practices of racial and ethnic minorities
• Questions on iq tests were shown to be more catered toward white european standards
• Pathologizing of LBTQ+ Identites

  
  

  Non-heterosexual orientations were once recently considered disorders, leading to harmful conversion therapies until such classifications were removed in 1973
• Reform


  Acknowledging and learning about harm done in the field
• Ways to reform:

  • Improving ethical standards and adding cultural competence as a core element of training
  • In canada, this includes having a better understanding and integration of indigenous healing practices and perspectives
  • Focus on inclusivity of diverse populations in training, research and practice
  • Re-standardization of assessment tools for diverse population, removal of gendered norms
  • Mandating continuous education on ethics and cultural competence for all practicing psychologists to keep pace with social change 
• Activities of Clinical Psychologists

  1. Assessment/diagnosis
  2. intervention
  3. Consultation
  4. Research
  5. Teaching and Supervision
• Intervention is the activity that takes up the most time in a Clinical Psychologists job
• Assessment


  Evaluating areas of strength and difficulty, evaluating the psychological relationship of an individual or relationship
• Diagnosis


  concise statement about the nature of a person's dysfunction/disorder
• Intervention


  Many approaches, psychodynamic, CBT, experiential, most interventions evaluate thoughts and validate emotions
• Cognitive Behavior Therapy


  Most common intervention (80%)
• Humanistic/Experiential Intervention


  Next most common (31%)
• Consultation


  Extremely common when working in a hospital, school, or community mental health organization
• Clinical Consultation


  offering advice and information for other treatment professionals