On Becoming a New Psychologist:
Using Innovation and Opportunity to Overcome Crisis
by Corey J. Habben, Psy.D.
The Crises
As a recent graduate, I have just returned from doing another program
on getting through internship and getting your first job. This
program was for the students and new psychologists looking for work. The
looks on the faces of the young audience were those of fear and
desperation. Whatever state the profession is in, it certainly has had to
deal with a lot of alarming crises recently.
In the past couple of years, there have been too many students and not
enough accredited internships, bringing forth the need for last year's
national supply & demand conference.
New graduates are finding themselves having a difficult time finding a
job. The market, particularly in the urban areas where most of the
jobs used to be, seems to be more saturated than anytime in recent
memory.
Psychologists throughout the country are making, on average, less and
less than they did even five years ago. There are numerous theories
tossed around as to why; managed care, the feminization of psychology,
perhaps even the magic bullet theory . . . and yet the fact still remains
that psychologists are gradually losing their value, at least as it
relates to the marketplace.
Other professions are gradually taking over the turf once held by
psychology, from social workers and master's level counselors to
psychics and professional "coaches," while psychologists slowly step
aside and move closer to insignificance.
And all this could not happen at a worse time for new
psychologists, as many of them leave school owing more money than ever
before, often no different from the debt owed by medical students.
To put it simply, the future looks a lot worse than it did five or six
years ago, when many of today's students and graduates first started.
Back then, new students were seduced by the promise of a strong future
and even the prospect of prescription privileges, while a footnote was
usually given about this "new managed care thing." Today, it seems we
are just trying to keep our head above water.
Personally, I do not believe that it does any good to continue to
complain about the fact that the market is tight, that my
colleagues and I can not find jobs, that psychologists are earning less and
less, that the supply seems to exceed the demand . . . that the future does not look
good for this generation of psychologists. Because quite frankly, the
students are already scared, the new psychologists are tired of saying
it, and the established psychologists are probably tired of hearing us
complain about it.
Still, let's just say for the sake of argument that the profession of
psychology is, in fact, in a state of crisis. This crisis not only
affects students and psychologists in a very direct way, but it also
has an insidious effect on the profession itself. Because as these
trends continue, the disparity between psychology's intrinsic or
potential value, or "what psychology could be," and its actual or
perceived value, or "what it is," grows greater and greater.
So . . . what do we do with this?
The Answer
Today in psychology, we often hear ad nauseum several presentations of
research, data, theory, past history, pontificating, and solutions to
the problems facing the profession. Well, I will be so bold as to
tell you I do not have the faintest idea how to solve this. And you know
what? I am glad . . . because it is then, when you are unsure where else to
turn nor what exactly to do, that you begin to innovate.
I doubt anyone can spend a few years around psychologists and not hear
the following example used at least once, yet it is still so
appropriate for this current situation in psychology that it bears
repeating. The original Greek and Latin derivations of the word
indicate that "crisis" is a time of decision; a turning point where
change will occur for either good or bad. And, perhaps more
interestingly, the Chinese word for crisis "weiji" is made up of the
two characters for danger and opportunity occurring at the same time.
Personally, when I look at the crisis facing psychology and how it
relates to my generation of psychologists, my initial reaction of fear
is overcome by a sense of welcome, a sense of necessity . . . and a sense of
opportunity.
This is something that needed to happen! I would argue that
psychology has consistently sold itself short and demonstrated an alarming
inferiority complex. Think of how we have limited ourselves. We
often forget the most simple truth about psychology; that we are experts in
human behavior, something that no one else can fully claim, and
that we have the ability to make life better for people, in very profound and
meaningful ways. Think of what that encompasses.
In the history of our profession, it seems that we seem to stick to
these limited roles; in academia and research, health care, a little
consulting, a little industrial/ organizational, perhaps a few other
places. I often think about what psychology could be and wonder,
"Why? Why isn't the profession bigger? Why are we scrambling to hold onto
old roles rather than expanding into new ones?" And while
explanations and rationales from the older salts in the profession are
often provided, such as "we had to build" and "we had conflicts with
science and practice," the sad truth is that to a large extent it
is our own fault. Perhaps we have spent too much time talking to each other
and not enough time talking to the public. Perhaps we have spent too
much time building fences and not enough time jumping them. There
is a notion that goes around APA, that says "whenever psychologists circle
their wagons, they aim their guns inward."
And yet, psychology has survived despite itself. It has survived
because it is one of the most valuable commodities out there. I would
argue that this fact has spoiled us. As students and new
psychologists, we are getting upset because we cannot just hang up a
shingle or walk into a job like before. We actually have to compete!
What we do now at this crucial point determines what direction the
profession is headed. Will we sit together in informal process groups
and merely discuss the change as it happens to us? Will we crawl into
a corner in fear, hoping that magically someone or some force will
change things for us? Or will we take it upon ourselves to find new
ways around this problem; to innovate, to create, to achieve new
possibilities?
The Message
Well, I am making a call to arms to this next generation of
psychologists; that we write our own futures, damning the forces
against us. For so long, psychology has been held back because of a
reluctance to look forward. It is time for us to turn danger into
opportunity and to do it ourselves. And I would say that students are
the best equipped for this task. If there is one thing graduate
school has taught us, it is that nothing motivates you like sheer terror.
So my message to students and new psychologists is this. First, we
need to break out of our sense of entitlement, that psychology owes
us, and we need to take it upon ourselves to seek out new innovative
opportunities. This means going beyond considering "should I get a
clinical job or should I get an academic job." There is a whole
frontier of uncharted territory for psychology where we have been too
afraid to venture. In essence, it is 1492 and we still think the
earth is flat, fearing that we will fall off if we go too far.
This does bring up one point; how do you innovate when you are just
starting out? When you are trying to get on your first leg? At the
previously mentioned APA program on getting a job in psychology, I
mentioned to the students the harsh reality that as a new psychologist
there will probably never be a time in your career where you are at a
greater disadvantage. As a new psychologist, you will never be less
qualified, you will rarely be less appealing to an employer, you will
probably never have fewer connections to find the jobs, and it is
doubtful you will ever face more intense and fierce competition, in
volume and concentration, because so many other people are doing the
same thing at the same time that you are. Which begs the question:
how does one innovate when it is one of the worst times to try to do it?
When presented with that dilemma, I take solace in the promise of the
future, because I do not underestimate today as students. This
generation of new psychologists is a different breed. Because of the
new pressures, they are strong. The hungry ones will endure these
crises and apply their skills in new, innovative ways that will change
the profession of psychology as we know it. By turning crisis into
opportunity, these new psychologists will innovate and seek new
directions not considered before, perhaps because the pressure was not
as intense.
As such, my message to the psychologists who train today's students
and new psychologists is simple. Use the benefit of your experience in
psychology to help these students explore new possibilities. Of
course, train students to succeed in clinical settings or in academe.
But do not just stop there; train them to be experts in human
behavior, first and foremost, and expand your view of how that expertise
can be applied. In doing so, today's student can become tomorrow's
psychologist; succeeding in new roles and expanding the scope of the
profession.
The Opportunity
In all fairness, it seems that a lot of this comes off as rather
idealistic. As I write this I am technically still a student, so
perhaps I can still afford to be idealistic. Soon, I am sure that I
will become cynical and worry more about treading water than swimming
upstream. Still, that is no reason to dismiss the notion. Because at
this point, I still see hope. I still see opportunity. I still see a
generation of psychologists ready to move the profession in the place
it should have been a long time ago. The years of transition from
student to psychologist is one of the great stages in the development
of a psychologist's life. This is when the idealism of graduate
school meets the realism of the "real world," and the opportunity for
innovation is most ripe. In the long run, I am not the least bit
worried about the future because I have seen the future of psychology,
which is today's students. I will be the first to admit that not
all of them are perfect; however, there are more shining stars ready to take
the profession to new places than you can possibly imagine.
So to answer my original question; how do we solve these crises? I do
not have the answer. Which means we will have to innovate and come up
with new solutions. I would argue that we have needed some new
solutions for some time now. It is time for us to get to work. We
owe it to ourselves, to the profession, and to the people out there who
need to benefit from the science and practice of psychology; and I
think that includes just about everyone.
10/04/98
Corey J. Habben, Psy.D., is one of the vocal proponents
of the next generation of new psychologists. He has been highly active within
the American Psychological Association (APA) and has written and spoken on the
topics of new psychologist issues, new roles in psychology, training in the
future, and the psychology of men.
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