Internship question

[RayneeDeigh]

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Okay guys, so I have a question and I can't believe I don't know the answer 'cause I feel dumb but maybe other people have the same question so I'm going to ask anyway. Please don't make fun of me, haha.

How important is it for your internship to be in the same kind of setting as your PhD research? I mean... here are the specifics. I'm currently in a forensic lab but everyone and their mother keep telling me that I'll never make it in this kind of setting because I'm not good enough. So I have two options, I can get better and say screw 'em, or I can come up with a contingency plan in the event that I really do need to change my focus. If I complete a forensic-related thesis, do I still have the option to do an internship with a completely different population? Or... is it pretty much a given that your research, internship setting, and future job goals have to all match up?

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

All or nothing RD....ALL OR NOTHING!!!!!!!!!

Okay...not really.

It may be different for hardcore research academics, but the internship year will also include clinical therapy/assessment hours and probably a good deal of didactic training, so it may be hard to do *exactly* what you want, but you should try and look at places that are generally a good fit for you. Post-doc is where you definitely need to work in your area of interest.

I looked into internship sites that allowed me access to one of two preferred settings, some/a lot of exposure to my chosen population, had opportunities to gain experience in other areas, and offered at least optional research options.

-t

 

[Ollie123]

Depends on your career goals.

Everyone here seems to think internship is pretty meaningless beyond the "Did you get an APA one", and where you go/what you do doesn't matter. That being said, they also mentioned its obviously best to get as much out of it as you can so going somewhere that matches your interests is better.

Again, might be a different story for people who want to work in a clinical setting. I'm just passing on what the faculty here have told me.

 

[biogirl215]

I know I'm a broken record with no personal experience and a sample size of one, but a good friend of mine is currently doing her internship at a competitive site where the population and pathology is pretty much a complete 180 from her thesis, previous clinical experience, and research (think psychotic disorders in a correctional setting to eating disorders and substance abuse at a college counseling center... yeah, geographic location was very important! 😀), so it's definitely possible.

Also, I take it from your post that you've decided to stay at your program...?

 

[RayneeDeigh]

Thanks guys. I'm definitely more interested in clinical practice than academia... so I guess I need to do some reflection over the holidays and see if I'm making a poor choice being in forensics.

I honestly don't know if I'm staying in my program or not... I'm taking it one day at a time since every day is different. I'm trying to remind myself that my department is not an indication of how the world will be once I'm out of school. I dunno... there are no easy answers I guess.

The only thing I know for sure is that I'm glad I finally opened up about my situation on here. Having support means everything and I can't believe I lived with it for like two months before I told anyone. lol

 

[psychanon]

Sure, as others have said, you can change your focus later on (although staying with what you do tends to be the path of least resistance). The bigger question is why people in your lab are telling you that you won't make and and that you're not good enough, when you're only in your first semester (and haven't even had the chance to prove yourself)? This is NOT how clinical psychology programs are supposed to operate-- people are generally supportive of each other. Advisers in particular have an incentive to see their students succeed, so if they're trying to disparage you then something is wrong.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

I'd have to agree with psychanon. I've seen the vast majority of people be very supportive, and people at other programs (met at conferences and the like) to be very supportive. We've swapped interesting researched, shared tips, etc.

The only times it gets cut throat is during the screw off time between studying or when a random game of whatever breaks out.

-t

 

[RayneeDeigh]

Sure, as others have said, you can change your focus later on (although staying with what you do tends to be the path of least resistance). The bigger question is why people in your lab are telling you that you won't make and and that you're not good enough, when you're only in your first semester (and haven't even had the chance to prove yourself)? This is NOT how clinical psychology programs are supposed to operate-- people are generally supportive of each other. Advisers in particular have an incentive to see their students succeed, so if they're trying to disparage you then something is wrong.

Yeah, I've pretty much already discovered that my department is a jumble of neuroses and that nobody's supportive. It sucks and I want to blink and be in another program but I'm stuck here so... I'm trying to make it work.

I just got off the phone with a member of my cohort who also cried about it today since the department's starting to treat her the same way. At least we have each other, haha.

And more on the subject of changing focus... does anyone know how qualitative research is viewed in the field? I think I have a fairly good chance of being able to do my research interviews in another city if I go with my latest idea but it involves case studies. I think this is the only way I can stick with forensics and not lose my mind. Is qualitative less respected?

 

[Ollie123]

Case studies as a means to generate ideas, or as preliminary work can definitely be a good thing. After all, many research ideas come out of therapy sessions. But are you referring to case studies or qualitative research? They are not one in the same. Case study n = 1, whereas qualitative research that is not necessarily the case. Usually qualitative you conduct a bunch of "interviews" and then attempt to code it as best you can.

However I don't think you will ever see "major" research that is purely qualitative anymore. Some have qualitative elements, many labs still use them for preliminary data (mine does as part of a decent sized grant). I don't think there's anything wrong with that. I do think doing exclusively case studies would not be viewed very well at all. Then again, you said you aren't interested in an academic career so it may matter less.

One major downside though is it is VERY hard (probably impossible) to get published in a decent journal. There are a decent number of lower-tier journals that still publish case studies, but JAP, JCCP, etc. would probably not even look at it. Might be some medical journals that do that since they seem more accepting of case studies than psych journals. I don't think I've ever seen a case study published in any of the journals I regularly peruse, though I've seen a few with qualitative elements.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

I agree with Ollie. My interests fall much more on the exploratory side, and case studies / small studies are going to be my research focus (though research isn't a primary focus of mine...more of a side-gig hopefully). I figure I can do the fun stuff (from my POV), and then hand off to someone like Ollie who can design a massive study and crunch all those numbers that haunt me in my sleep. 😀

-t

 

[RayneeDeigh]

Well I wanted to evaluate a certain kind of program that some correctional facilities use. I thought I could conduct a bunch of interviews and code them somehow to see what the benefits/risks seemed to be.

Maybe there's a way to make it more "publishable". I've only ever done research where I had > 200 participants so this would be a new area for me.

 

[JockNerd]

One of the profs in my program does qualitative and quant/qual mixed research. She has a huge lab, several *huge* grants, and gets published frequently in great psych journals and med journals. So, it can be done. I don't know how modal that is.

I actually applied to a qual research last year during apps. She does awesome LGBT research that's very well-known and well-respected. It's also very very cutting-edge; stuff no one else is doing. I think that's the important thing for qual research--as Ollie said, it can be used to generate research, so it has to be right on the leading edge to be really meaningful.

Your department sucks for not appreciating you. It's really not like that everywhere. I may have mentioned that to you once before.

 

[RayneeDeigh]

One of the profs in my program does qualitative and quant/qual mixed research. She has a huge lab, several *huge* grants, and gets published frequently in great psych journals and med journals. So, it can be done. I don't know how modal that is.

I actually applied to a qual research last year during apps. She does awesome LGBT research that's very well-known and well-respected. It's also very very cutting-edge; stuff no one else is doing. I think that's the important thing for qual research--as Ollie said, it can be used to generate research, so it has to be right on the leading edge to be really meaningful.

Yeah my department has one prof (actually one of only two profs who probably don't sleep hanging upside-down) who does all qualitative research but she started doing it years and years ago so I'm not surprised she's as successful as she is (plus it's fascinating stuff). I guess the key is to pick a topic that is unique and I think mine would be... only very preliminary research has been done on the kinds of programs I'm interested in (they're pretty controversial to begin with).

Your department sucks for not appreciating you. It's really not like that everywhere. I may have mentioned that to you once before.

You know the girl who commented in my facebook note about how not everything is bad here? In the span of 4 hours she completely changed her mind and is now considering quitting too. I swear this department can turn the toughest person into a mess. It's really quite special.

But hey at least I get to go back home soon. Although I had to push it back a day today since I've hit another snag in my work.

 

[biogirl215]

I have nothing of value to contribute, but I'm sorry you're having such a craptacular time.

 

[psychanon]

It is certainly true that qualitative research isn't going to get published in JAbnormal or JCCP, but not everyone is aiming for that tier (or that type) of journals. There are some respectable journals that are specifically geared toward publishing qualitative research. Journal of Adolescent Research (not to be confused with the Journal of Research on Adolescence) is one that comes to mind. I suggest you look at some of the article in journals like these and see what they include, and model your study after one of those. It would have to be systematic at the same time as qualitative, but that is possible to accomplish. I personally think that qualitative research has an important place in the literature, as long as it is conducted well. There are also, by the way, respectable journals that will publish case studies, but these are usually intended for a clinical audience, and their impact will be as such (i.e., they're not going to get cited much, but they might help people guide their own clinical work).

Going back to the nastiness in your department: yuck Before you internalize the negative things they say about you, think about what kind of motivations these people may have for criticizing you (e.g., feeling better about themselves, getting a leg up in the department, etc.). That doesn't excuse the behavior, but it's a good reason not to believe what they're saying.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

RD, if you get out and want to do qualitative research, look me up and we can do a wicked study...in what, who knows!

-t

 

[RayneeDeigh]

RD, if you get out and want to do qualitative research, look me up and we can do a wicked study...in what, who knows!

-t

We totally should. The one thing my department has going for it is that there are a few profs who are well-versed in qualitative and they even offer a qualitative analysis course. So I'm gonna take it and learn how to do it properly and then I'll graduate and we'll be famous with our study about whatever we choose! haha.

 

[biogirl215]

Wow... That sounds like a terrible situation. Maybe they're all just trying to induce pathologies in all of you for one huge, unethical experimental? (sorry, a bad attempt at humor there!). Good luck with whatever you decide to do.