10-26-2012, 07:38 AM
(10-26-2012, 07:14 AM)Sagittarius Wrote:(10-26-2012, 01:56 AM)rie Wrote:(10-26-2012, 01:33 AM)Parsons Wrote: This has brought interesting catalyst in discussing this article with my wife who has a BA in psychology and working towards her masters. She unfortunately treats the field of work as her religion and does not agree with this article. Oh well, at least she has made some headway in understanding that government and financial institutions are corrupt.
Which masters is she getting - counseling, clinical, MFT?
I was just thinking... many students are passionate about what they are studying/doing, it's part of the 'initiation' process or buy in. Understanding of & beliefs around the industry usually change when you're out in the field and really working with people and seeing how you impact other people's lives.
One of the skill sets that students (hopefully) learn is to learn to be reflective & reflexive. Actually, reflexivity is one of the biggest challenges and it's one of the most important skills to build when working in the field. When you're reflective, you become self-aware and you think about what is occurring in self or other or in a therapeutic relationship. When you're reflexive, you're understanding how your reflective thinking impacts others and self. It's like looking at yourself from a higher vantage point and understanding your own belief system and how you understand the client and client's situation, then understanding how those thoughts and beliefs impact the client and your relationship with the client. You could be reflexive about power and authority. It's a complex way of thinking (we call it meta-cognition or thinking about thinking)... and with experience, it becomes more routine/in-the-moment type thing. That helps to keep personal beliefs and biases of the psychological 'world' in check. What one does with that information depends on the person's experience level and skills, etc.
Any advice for someone who is starting psychology at Uni next year?
Dont take any of it too seriously, but consider that for their "soc mem complex" it is the best information so 100% certain that you will learn new ways to see things, even if they are less overall useful as your previous ways