Psychology: Not just for psychologists Dr Matthew Hale School of Psychology and Public Health CRICOS PROVIDER 0115M
Stories Psychology Careers Psychology at La Trobe
Psychology is the academic and applied discipline that involves the scientific study of mental functions and behaviours Academic/Discipline Molecular neuroscience Cognitive/social psychology Profession Assessment/Therapy
Story 1 Solomon Asch
What does this mean? A majority can influence a minority even in an unambiguous situation in which the correct answer is obvious Group size matters, as well as the familiarity of the group Normative influence: Going along with the crowd in order to be liked or accepted Self-categorization: People adopt the norms, beliefs, and behaviours of fellow ingroup members Social Psychology Social Psychology is the scientific study of how people affect and are affected by others Attitudes to climate change, sharing scarce resources, attitudes to poverty or inequality
Story 2 Simon Baron-Cohen, Sally and Ann
What did they find? All children could answer the Naming Question The results from Typically Developing and Down s Syndrome children were the same (23 of 27 TD, and 12/14 DS passed the Belief Question) By contrast, 16 out of 20 (80%) of the children with Autism failed the Belief Question
What does this mean? Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) fail to employ a Theory of Mind. In other words individuals with ASD are unable to represent the mental states of others, and are thus at a disadvantage when having to predict the behaviour of others Specific deficit, independent of general intellectual level Gives an insight into ASD, which affects 1/88 people, and suggests therapeutic strategies which may individuals with ASD to become better mind-readers Developmental Psychology Developmental psychology is the scientific study of changes that occur in human beings over the course of their life. Developmental disorders like ASD, typical development, education, ageing
Website www.latrobe.edu.au/otarc Mission To advance knowledge of the nature, causes and treatment of Autism Spectrum Conditions
Story 3 Benjamin Libet and Free Will
What does this mean? This research may suggest that this subjective experience of freedom is no more than an illusion and that our actions are initiated by unconscious mental processes long before we become aware of our intention to act What does this mean for the complex decisions that we make everyday? Cognitive Psychology/Cognitive Neuroscience/Behavioural Neuroscience Cognitive psychology is the study of mental processes such as attention, language use, memory, perception, problem solving, creativity and thinking Behavioural Neuroscience is application of the principles of biology (in particular neurobiology), to the study of physiological, genetic, and developmental mechanisms of behavior in humans and non-human animals.
Story 4 beyondblue
Anxiety and Depression Almost half the total population (45%) experience a mental health disorder at some point in their lifetime Depression has a high lifetime prevalence - one in seven Australians Depression-associated disability costs the Australian economy $14.9 billion annually In Australia more than 6 million working days are lost each year Clinical psychologists are health professionals trained to help people who experience mental health problems
Careers in Psychology
Becoming a Psychologist Become a registered psychologist Clinical Clinical neuropsychology Counselling Community Educational & Developmental Forensic Health Organisational Sport & Exercise La Trobe courses
Becoming a psychologist 3 years 1 year 2-3 years Bachelor of Psychological Science (3 years) Honours or postgraduate diploma (1 year) Minimum two years supervised experience Masters degree (2 years) or Doctoral degree (3 years) Supervision with a practising psychologist Generalist masters (1 year ) plus 1 year supervision
Workforce demand for psychologists Indicator Level Decile What has been the long-term employment growth - 10 years (%)? What has been the medium-term employment growth - 5 years (%)? What has been the short-term employment growth - 2 years (%)? What will be the likely future employment growth for the next five years? 101.7 10 19.6 8 24.9 9 very strong growth What will be the level of future job openings? average 6 9 Source: The Australian Government s Job Search page https://joboutlook.gov.au/occupation.aspx?code=2723; retrieved 08/05/17 Copyright Commonwealth of Australia
Careers after a psychology degree An undergraduate degree in psychology will equip graduates with core skills, including the ability to: Apply psychological principles to personal, social and group issues Plan, implement and evaluate research Think critically and creatively, and use scientific methods to solve problems. Communicate effectively in a variety of formats and settings Act professionally within an ethical framework.
Careers after a psychology degree Many graduates of psychology find employment or continue their studies in fields such as: Community services and counselling: Social work, child protection, disability work, drug and alcohol Business: Marketing and market research, public relations, human resource management Education Health services: Speech therapy, occupational therapy, rehabilitation counselling Graduate programs: VPS Graduate Recruitment and Development Scheme Research: University, Research Institutes or Centres, Australian Bureau of Statistics
Psychology at La Trobe What s special here? A dedicated four-year Bachelor of Psychology (Hons) degree A dedicated three-year degree in Psychology (Bachelor of Psychological Science) with the option of honours More psychology than in Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science programs Plenty of room for electives Development of generic skills Laboratory classes from first year Placement subject Department of Human Services (Child Protection Services) Accredited by the Australian Psychology Accreditation Council
Psychology Field Placements at La Trobe Part of an initiative to assist students in building Career Ready skills and employment opportunities In this elective subject, students complete a psychology-related fieldwork placement as part of their study
Valuable skills are developed Developing skills for the workplace Teamwork Written communication skills Oral communication skills Learning and applying skills for gaining employment Students submit a resume and cover letter Undertake an employment interview Learn about selection processes at DHHS
La Trobe and DHHS: A unique partnership We are the only university partnership with DHHS in which they set aside placements especially for our La Trobe undergraduate psychology students As a result, our students have a much better chance of obtaining placements with DHHS than students from other universities
A variety of opportunities have been offered within DHHS Students have had placements with Child Protection Services Disability Services Corporate services Human Resources Occupational Health and Safety Payroll Services Office of Psychological Services Secure Services Client Outcomes and Improvement Branch
Types of career outcomes from these placements Positions and careers with DHHS Students still completing their degrees may be offered part time positions with DHHS Students who have completed their degree can apply for a full time position Some students use the placement as relevant experience to obtain positions in other workplaces Some use it to gain experience or references for applying to postgraduate programs
Double degrees with psychology Bachelor of Laws/Bachelor of Psychological Science Bachelor of Criminology/Bachelor of Psychological Science Bachelor of Cybersecurity/Bachelor of Psychological Science Bachelor of Commerce/Bachelor of Psychological Science
Educational Assistance All psychology subjects have their own dedicated websites (LMS site) Contains information on lectures, tutorials, all handbooks, lecture recordings, discussion board, assessment information and more All psychology lectures (but not tutorials) are available for streaming or download. Equality and Diversity Centre / Student learning support Massive Online Library Collection
Social and Networking Activities Semester abroad program Spend one semester at one of more than 80 partner Universities from Argentina to the USA with course credit Psych Society Social Events Psychology in the pub Study Help
OPEN DAY Sunday 5 August 2018 General Enquiries psychology@latrobe.edu.au 9479 1590 Contact Associate Professor Art Stukas, Undergraduate Course Coordinator a.stukas@latrobe.edu.au 9479 1515 Our Website: www.latrobe.edu.au\psy
Thank you latrobe.edu.au La Trobe University CRICOS Provider Code Number 00115M Copyright La Trobe University 2017