BAHAR BAŞTUĞ
Assist. Prof. Dr.
What Is Contemporary Clinical
Psychology?
Lecture Preview
 Definition
 Perspective and Philosophy
 Education and Training
 Activities
 Employment settings
 Subspecialties
 Organizations
 How does clinical psychology differ from related
fields?
Clinical psychology is a complex field that
parallels the complexity of human
behavior and emotion.
We are defined by more than blood and
tissue, emotions and ideas, or our
relationships to others.
The case example: Carlos
Therefore clinical psychology is an integrative effort
to understand the interaction of biological,
psychological, and social factors.
Modern clinical psychology must respond
to contemporary questions that impact our
lives. It is related to economics,
technology, ethics, and popular culture.
Like medicine and other fields, the roots of
clinical psychology are viewed as basic and
narrowly considered. However, with scientific
advancements and collaboration between
various fields, contemporary clinical
psychology supports an integration the
models for treatment, assessment,
consultation, and research.
Definition of clinical psychology
Psychology is one of the most popular
independent discipline.
Clinical psychology is the most popular
specialty area within psychology.
Definition of clinical psychology
It can be defined as the assessment,
treatment, and study of human
behavior in the context of biological,
psychological, and social factors.
Definition of clinical psychology
Clinical psychology focuses on the
assessment, treatment, and
understanding of psychological and
behavioral problems and disorders.
It focuses the ways that the human
psyche interacts with physical,
emotional, and social aspects of health
and dysfunction.
Definition of clinical psychology
According to the APA, clinical psychology
uses the principles of psychology to better
understand, predict, and improve
“intellectual, emotional, biological,
psychological, social, and behavioral aspects
of human functioning”.
Definition of clinical psychology
Clinical psychology is “the aspect of
psychological science and practice concerned
with the analysis, treatment, and prevention
of human psychological disabilities and with
the enhancing personal adjustment and
effectiveness”.
Clinical psychologists
“have a doctoral degree from an university
providing a clinical psychology program in a
department of psychology”, according to the
APA.
Perspective and Philosophy
Clinical psychology uses the scientific
method to approach and understand
human problems in behavior, emotions,
thinking, relationships, and health.
Perspective and Philosophy
Exact scientific inquiry is used to select and
evaluate assessment and treatment.
Treatment outcome research helps to
determine which treatments might be most
effective with particular clinical problems.
Clinical psychology is an art at the same time.
Findings from scientific
investigations must be applied
to the unique and special needs
of an individual.
What might be helpful to one
person may not be to another
even if they are with the same
diagnosis or problems.
The photograph was taken in Rodin Museum, Paris by Bahar Baştuğ.
Biopsychosocial perspective
Clinical psychology uses integrative
approaches to understand problems in
human behavior.
Biopsychosocial factors are important.
Problems in human behavior are
multidimensional.
Biopsychosocial perspective
The biopsychosocial perspective emphasizes
the interaction of biological, psychological,
and social influences on behavior and
psychological functioning.
Biopsychosocial perspective
The biopsychosocial approach is a systemic
perspective. According to systemic
perspective, changes in one area of
functioning will impact functioning in other
areas.
Education and Training
Long and intensive training process
The doctorate is the minimal educational requirement.
Post-doctoral fellowship, advanced sertification
 PhD (doctor of philosophy)
 PsyD (doctor of psychology)
 Week 14
Professional Activities
 Research
 Assessment
 Treatment
 Teaching
 Consultation
 Administration
Research
Research is at the foundation of all clinical
psychology activities.
Clinical psychologists often conduct and
publish a wide variety of research studies.
Research
Research programs determine which
assessment or treatment approach might be
most effective for a particular disorder.
Research identify the risks for the
development of certain psychological
problems or methods to better determine
clinical diagnoses.
Research
The clinical psychologists who are faculty
members at universities or medical schools or
work at their hospitals, clinics, and industry
may conduct research on a wide range of
subject areas, publish their findings in
professional journals, and present their
research at national and international
conferences.
Research
Clinical psychologists consume of research in order
to inform new developments so that they improve
their clinical activities.
Assessment
Clinical psychologists use psychological tests
to assess or diagnose various psychiatric (e.g.,
depression, psychosis, personality disorders,
& dementia) and nonpsychiatric issues (e.g.,
relationship conflicts, learning differences,
educational potential, career interests, &
skills).
Assessment
Clinical psychologists not only conduct
psychological evaluations with individuals to
assess intellectual, educational, personality,
and neuropsychological functioning, but also
assess groups of people (e.g., families) and
organizations.
Assessment
The components to psychological assessment
are
 cognitive,
 personality,
 behavioral,
 neuropsychological, and
 observational measures.
Assessment
A neuropsychologist may evaluate an adolescent boy
for temporal lobe epilepsy with impulsive behavior
and aggression. In addition to neuroimaging
techniques, investigation of developmental history,
or environmental factors explain the behavioral
manifestations of the temporal lobe epilepsy .
Treatment
Psychotherapy may involve
individuals,
couples,
families, and
groups.
Treatment
Anxiety, phobias, depression, shyness,
physical illness, loss, trauma, drug addiction,
eating difficulties, sexuality concerns,
hallucinations, relationship problems, and
work difficulties may activate individuals to
seek psychological treatment.
Treatment
Various treatment approaches and theoretical
models are utilized to treat psychological and
behavioral problems.
Treatment
Most psychologists use an eclectic strategy.
Eclectic strategy integrates a variety of
perspectives and clinical approaches in their
treatment.
Others tend to specialize in one treatment
approach, such as psychoanalysis, family
therapy, humanistic/existential or CBT.
Treatment
Empirically supported treatment approaches
are manualized treatments. Cognitive and
interpersonal psychotherapy have been
determined to be empirically supported
treatments for both depression and bulimia,
while exposure and response prevention have
been found to be an empirically supported
treatment for OCD.
Teaching
Clinical psychologists teach in different
settings. Some are full-time instructor
undergraduate, graduate, and/ or
postgraduate students in universities.
They might teach by one-on-one clinical
supervision of graduate students, interns, or
postdoctoral fellows. During supervision,
psychologists discuss the trainees’ clinical
cases deeply.
Teaching
Teaching may also occur in hospitals, clinics,
or business.
A clinical psychologist might offer a stress
management or anger management course for
nurses, clergy, and police officers.
Teaching
Intimate relationship course to young couples
about to be married, to better maintain
professional boundaries or understand
psychopathology to doctors and nurses might
be given.
Consultation
Clinical psychologists provide consultation to health
care professionals, business persons, schools and
organizations.
Consultation might be an informal discussion,
formal arrangement or a brief report.
Consultation
In companies, consultation might be about to
help reduce coworker conflicts.
In medical practice, consultation might be
about the physician to better manage patient
noncompliance with unpleasant medical
treatments.
Consultation
Clinical psychologists provide consultation in
a wide variety of settings using a range of
techniques.
Consultation might also include assessment,
teaching, research, and brief psychotherapy
activities.
Administration
Clinical psychologists find
themselves in administrative
positions such as chairperson of a
psychology department, dean or even
president of a university, in hospitals,
mental health clinics.
Administration
In administration, they generally manage a
budget, lead a multidisciplinary professional
staff, make hiring and firing decisions, and
develop policies.
Employment settings
Clinical psychologists work in many different
employment setting:
 Private or Group Practices: about 35 %
 Colleges and Universities: about 20 %
 Hospitals
 Medical Schools
Employment settings
 Outpatient Clinics
 Business and Industry
 Military
 Other settings: police departments, low court, prisons,
juvenile hall, rehabilitation centers, centers for substance
abuse, battered women’s shelters and schools.
Inpatient Clinics
Outpatient Clinics
Subspecialties
After the standard training in general clinical
psychology, further training may be offered in
many subspecialty areas. Many clinical
psychologists finally specialize in one or more
areas.
Just as doctors specialize such as pediatrics,
oncology, psychiatry, internal medicine, and
cardiology, there are many clinical psychology
subspecialties:
Subspecialties
 Child Clinical Psychology
 Clinical Health Psychology
 Clinical Neuropsychology
 Forensic Psychology
 Geropsychology
Child Clinical Psychology
Child clinical psychologists specialize in
working with both children and families. In
addition to standard training in general
clinical psychology, these psychologists
obtain deeply training in developmental
psychology and child assessment (e.g.,
behavioral disorders, motor developmental
delays) and treatment (e.g., family therapy &
play therapy).
Child Clinical Psychology
Child clinical psychologists work with children who
have experienced physical and/or sexual abuse or
who experience ADHD, conduct disorders, autism,
enuresis, learning disabilities, school phobia.
Psychologists provide consultation to teachers,
school counselors, pediatricians, & parents. They
may assist teachers in classroom behavior
management or parents in developing better
parenting skills.
Child Clinical Psychology
Pediatric psychologists work with children
and families in hospitals where the child has a
significant medical illness such as cancer,
epilepsy, and diabetes.
Clinical Health Psychology
It began around 1980, it’s a new subspecialty.
Health psychology is the fastest growing area and the
most popular area.
50% of all deaths are caused by lifestyle factors such
as smoking, drinking too much alcohol, eating high
fat food, not exercising, and refusing to wear seat
belts.
Clinical Health Psychology
Health psychologists work to help healthy people
stay healthy and assist people with various illnesses
or risk factors to cope more effectively with their
symptoms.
They help in order to maximize health enhancing
behaviors (e.g., exercise, low fat food consumption,
smoking cessation) and minimize health damaging
behaviors (e.g., smoking, stress, drinking alcohol).
Clinical Health Psychology
They help in the treatment of chronic pain, panic
disorders, and migraine headaches, and other
physical conditions with important biopsychosocial
features.
Health psychologists work in hospitals. They often
use techniques such as biofeedback & relaxation
training.
Clinical Neuropsychology
It focuses on brain-behavior relationships. How does brain
functioning impact behavior and behavioral problems?
Neuropsychologists assess brain and cognitive and
neurological dysfunctioning due to a large range of
problems such as dementia, head injuries, tumors, autism,
stroke, AIDS, epilepsy and Alzheimer’s disease.
Clinical Neuropsychology
Neuropsychologists are well trained in
assessing a range of cognitive abilities such as
executive cognitive functioning (i.e.,
planning, judgment, problem solving),
sensory and motor functioning, memory
skills and abstract reasoning.
Clinical Neuropsychology
They use many specialized tests to assess
these brain-behavior relationships.
Most of them work in hospital, rehabilitation,
or clinic settings.
Forensic Psychology
is the “application of psychology to legal
issues”.
Forensic psychologists specialize in using
principles of human behavior in the judicial
and legal systems.
Forensic Psychology
Forensic psychologists may conduct
psychological evaluations with defendants
and present their findings as an expert
witness in court.
Geropsychology
Psychologists who specialize in geropsychology
provide a range of psychological services to elderly
people.
Today’s society needs of professional
psychological services in this area.
Geropsychology
Geropsychologists might consult with nursing
homes, and hospital medical units.
These psychologists might provide
psychological or neuropsychological testing,
brief individual or family psychotherapy.
Depression and reduction of self-care are
common among elderly patients.
Organizations
Professional organizations provide an opportunity
for the members to meet and collaborate, learn
about new advances in the field, and participate in
a number of activities.
American Psychological Association (APA)
American Psychological Society
State and County Psychological Associations
American Board of Professional Psychology
Turkish Psychological Association (TPD)
The APA was founded in 1892 and is the largest
organization of psychologists in the world.
The APA publishes numerous journals:
American Psychologist,
Professional Psychology: Research and Practice,
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology,
Journal of Abnormal Psychology
as well as many books (eg, DSM-V).
There are 56 divisions of the APA. Division 12
is Clinical Psychology.
The APA also provides standards for the
education, certification, and ethical
behaviour of psychologists.
In 1988, the American Psychological Society (APS)
was founded against to the APA by many of the
academic or science-minded psychologists in the
APA who felt that the APA no longer adequately
represented their interests.
State and County Psychological
Associations
Each state and most countries maintain
psychological associations. Many clinical
psychologists join their state psychological
association.
The American Board of Professional Psychology
was founded in 1947 as an agency that would certify
psychologists in several specialty areas. The ABPP
diploma is considered an advanced level beyond a
state license to practice as a psychologist.
Turkish Psychological Association
(TPD)
It was founded in 1976 in Ankara. The TPD
publishes two journals and many books. It holds a
national convention each two years.
How does clinical psychology differ
from related fields?
A few people aware of the similarities and differences
between the mental health disciplines.
“What is the difference between a psychologist and a
psychiatrist?”
Related Fields
Psychiatrists are physicians and complete training in
psychiatry. They can prescribe medication, treat
physical illnesses, and may utilize other biological
interventions (e.g., electroconvulsive therapy). Training
in general human behavior and research is usually
minimal. They also are not trained in psychological
testing and assessment.
Related Fields
Counseling Psychologists work in outpatient, college,
and vocational settings with people who do not experience
major psychiatric difficulties. Educational and
occupational counseling. Testing involve career and
vocational interests and skills.
School Psychologists work in elementary, secondary, or
special education schools providing cognitive testing, brief
counseling, and consultation to school teachers,
administrators, parents, and students.
Related Fields
Social workers receive training in psychotherapy, they
do not obtain extensive training in conducting research
or using psychological testing instruments.
They have focused on social theories and interventions.
Today, they can conduct psychotherapy with individuals,
families or groups. They may act as patient case
managers and advocates, and social services following
hospital discharge.
Related Fields
Psychiatric Nurses obtain both an undergraduate and
master’s degree in nursing.They learn about psychiatric
diagnosis, treatment, and psychopharmacology.
Marriage and Family Therapists complete a bachelor’s
degree in any social science discipline such as
psychology, sociology, & political science. Despite the
title, MFTs are not experts solely in marriage and family
counseling. They treat adults in individual therapy.
Related Fields
Other Counselors: occupational therapists, activity
therapists, alcohol counselors, art therapists, psychiatric
technicians.
Other Psychologists: There are many different types of
psychologists such as cognitive, developmental,
experimental, social, personality, industrialorganizational, physiological of psychologists. They
might be interested in human behavior but not in
abnormal or clinical problems.
 An experimental psychologist>>> memory of rats
 A social psychologist >>> social functioning of groups
of primates.
 A physiological psychologist >>>how organisms such
as snails learn new behaviors.
 An industrial-organizational psychologist>>> improve
performance or morale.
 A cognitive psychologist >>> how medications impact
attentional processes and sleeping behavior.
 A developmental psychologist >>> attachment
between child and mother.