Is Psychology a desk job?

[NMoren]

So, I did a search for this, didn't find anything. I know psychology jobs can vary widely depending on the setting. But I'm wondering...is it mostly an office job? I'm currently studying psychology (ug) and I love it but I think I'd have to shoot myself if I spent an entire day in the same office. I have a desperate need to move around and have variety. I imagine academia would be a good fit for me...if only those jobs were easily attained.

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[WisNeuro]

I spend a good deal of my time in different areas of the hospital. I get inpatient consults from a variety of settings (e.g., spinal cord, psych inpatient, med inpatient, CLC). But, I'd say I spend about 60% of my time in my office.

 

[CheetahGirl]

It really depends on what specific aspect of professional psychology are you looking into: Neuro, Experimental, Social, Clinical, Counseling, School, Sports, Forensic, Educational, Occupational, Industrial/Organizational, Health, etc. etc.??? All of which vary in options of day-to-day occurrences - from international travel (research professor) to 90% "office job" (private practice psychotherapist).

 

[NMoren]

It really depends on what specific aspect of professional psychology are you looking into: Neuro, Experimental, Social, Clinical, Counseling, School, Sports, Forensic, Educational, Occupational, Industrial/Organizational, Health, etc. etc.??? All of which vary in options of day-to-day occurrences - from international travel (research professor) to 90% "office job" (private practice psychotherapist).

Within psychology: Clinical Neuropsychology, no doubt in my mind about it 🙂 maybe I'd be interested in forensic but I haven't had exposure to it to know for sure.

 

[NMoren]

I spend a good deal of my time in different areas of the hospital. I get inpatient consults from a variety of settings (e.g., spinal cord, psych inpatient, med inpatient, CLC). But, I'd say I spend about 60% of my time in my office.

That sounds great! I want your life. Haha

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Within psychology: Clinical Neuropsychology, no doubt in my mind about it 🙂 maybe I'd be interested in forensic but I haven't had exposure to it to know for sure.

Neuropsych is probably one of the most office intensive speciality areas bc there is so much document review, report writing, etc. Forensic evaluations is similar. I'd strongly recommend talking w local clinicians about their work, as the day to day work can be intensive and a grind (often sitting in your office trying to make sense of all the data).

 

[NMoren]

Neuropsych is probably one of the most office intensive speciality areas bc there is so much document review, report writing, etc. Forensic evaluations is similar. I'd strongly recommend talking w local clinicians about their work, as the day to day work can be intensive and a grind (often sitting in your office trying to make sense of all the data).

Aah! So I should probably not discard medicine just yet. I'm volunteering at a hospital and might get to shadow a neurologist too but I thought approaching a neuropsychologist (if I even find one near me) was out of the question. I wouldn't know how to go about doing it. I know I can't shadow psychologists given the nature of their jobs so it's difficult to get a good idea of how the lifestyle would be. Thanks so much for the feedback!

 

[erg923]

A job where you spent a minority of time in an office or in front of a computer eliminates most all jobs that come with high levels of education.

I might suggest house flipping, home care nurse, or circus clown.

 

[WisNeuro]

You may want to ask a medical resident or MD about the medicine thing. The ones I interact with still spend quite a bit of their time in an office. Whether it's seeing patients, or doing the paperwork on those patients. As erg said, these high education jobs involve a lot of desk time.

 

[NMoren]

Time to become a circus clown! Haha, thank you all for the feedback. I guess I don't mind an office THAT much what I mind is lack of variety. I've had an administrative desk job the past year where I do the exact same thing every single day and it bores me out of my mind. I'm hoping that seeing different patients, doing research, paper work, etc. will not feel incredibly monotonous. So, I guess I should've titled this "Is Psychology monotonous?"

 

[erg923]

Depends. Irritablility, sleep problems, and vague depression is the cough of my clinic... and probably clinical psychology in general.

 

[CheetahGirl]

Seeing different patients daily is never "monotonous," especially for their presenting problems and the clinical material that eventually unfolds after subsequent visits (when their clinical pictures present themselves more fully). What can be mononomous (which I have yet to experience in training) is the therapist's perspective of hearing/discussing individual's problems day in and day out. And this is why self-care is so important so you don't burn yourself out doing your chosen job.

 

[WisNeuro]

I see a wide variety of referrals in neuropsych, so I don't feel as if my job is monotonous at all. Add on top of that supervision of students at various levels and different research projects and I'm pretty happy with my variety.

 

[PsyDr]

I spend the day running from pp office, hospital(s), court, and a shared research office. But most of the time, I am sitting in those locations.

If the job gets monotonous, I just change up the composition.

 

[NMoren]

Thank you, guys. That's really encouraging! 🙂

 

[IT514]

I work in a huge medical center. I'm in decent shape, and some days I am actually sore from taking the stairs from one consult to another across the hospital. Other days, yes, I'm staring at a computer all day. Overall, its certainly not monotonous, which it shouldnt be as I'm still a fellow, but for my first "real" job I can see myself wanting a bit more of a predictable schedule for family life.

 

[FadedC]

It's certainly not for everyone, but working with kids can be the ultimate way to make sure you don't have a desk job. Working at a private school doing primarily therapy for a clinical population last year I spent most of my time out and about, going to classrooms, taking kids out to play outside. Sometimes I even spent the whole day on a field trip (which was usually exhausting).

Now I work in a clinic though and I definitely have a desk job there. Although as people say, the high variety of different clients can help keep things from getting too old.

 

[smalltownpsych]

Day to day I spend a lot of time in the office, but when I am on call I get out and about quite a bit more. I had a job at an adolescent treatment facility where I could go skiing and hiking with the kids. That definitely wasn't sedentary. Even in my current setting, I'll take kids for walks or play a little ball with them. I know wilderness therapists that never set foot in an office. The beauty of psychology is that there is a lot of variety of settings and clientele and roles that we can take. It never gets boring for me.

 

[psych84]

I think if you have a real interest in psychology, just seeing different clients in your office and getting to know them (no matter what they may or may not have), is pretty exciting in itself. I don't think you would get bored.

 

[erg923]

Seeing different patients and hearing different stories does NOT mean something isn't, or won't become, monotonous. PEOPLE are interesting, but let's face it, some issues/symptoms are just plain boring. Simple Insomnia and CBT-I? Boring. Irritability? Boring.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

I feel like stroke neuropsych evals quickly become monotonous for me….which is why I don't do them anymore. I have a colleague who does a great job with them, so it was an easy transition. I heard a similar complaint about assessment of ADHD and concussion, but I find both very interesting…so YMMV.

 

[NMoren]

Thanks, everyone. I'm taking everything with a grain of salt since I know everyone's experience is different but these posts have definitely been encouraging. And as to what erg923 said, it probably rings true for most healthcare professions. Sometimes I hang around the neurology forum and they seem to also have their share of boring patients. So, I imagine that to a certain extent..monotony is inevitable.

 

[sockit]

there are more physically active jobs in healthcare (e.g. nursing, PT), if you can't stand sitting

 

[psych84]

I feel like stroke neuropsych evals quickly become monotonous for me….which is why I don't do them anymore. I have a colleague who does a great job with them, so it was an easy transition. I heard a similar complaint about assessment of ADHD and concussion, but I find both very interesting…so YMMV.

I'm sure the different forms of dementia are pretty good, too?

 

[smalltownpsych]

I find test administration to be boring at times so that limits how much assessment I do and is why I didn't pursue neuropsych although I do love neurobiology. I do enjoy the interpretation of test results though so am always willing to help a colleague with that part. I also get bored with patients who are not motivated to change and especially if they want to come in and complain about other people causing their difficulties. I have become pretty good at addressing that and some are able to make the shift and others try to find another therapist who will validate their pathology. My favorite patients to work with are teenagers in crisis, never a dull moment there!

 

[psych84]

I find test administration to be boring at times so that limits how much assessment I do and is why I didn't pursue neuropsych although I do love neurobiology.

Couldn't you hire a psychometrist?

 

[erg923]

Couldn't you hire a psychometrist?

Hes not in private practice.

 

[WisNeuro]

I feel like stroke neuropsych evals quickly become monotonous for me….which is why I don't do them anymore. I have a colleague who does a great job with them, so it was an easy transition. I heard a similar complaint about assessment of ADHD and concussion, but I find both very interesting…so YMMV.

Concussion/mTBI is boring from an objective point if view considering that nothing is wrong with 99.99999% of the patients, but seeing the ridiculous ways someone tries to feign impairment can make for interesting evals.

 

[sockit]

Concussion/mTBI is boring from an objective point if view considering that nothing is wrong with 99.99999% of the patients, but seeing the ridiculous ways someone tries to feign impairment can make for interesting evals.

I can picture this, lol. Bad acting is always entertaining -- wouldn't imagined the comedy potential in neuropsychology 🙂

 

[psych84]

Concussion/mTBI is boring from an objective point if view considering that nothing is wrong with 99.99999% of the patients, but seeing the ridiculous ways someone tries to feign impairment can make for interesting evals.

You would think though that if that was some people's goals, they would do some research or at least use some logic lol But I guess the fact that they DON't, is what makes it funny.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

It is the why that makes the concussion/TBI cases interesting. The data tends to be straight forward, but being able to put together a treatment plan to address the underlying issues is what I find the most useful.

 

[testifeye]

Seeing different patients and hearing different stories does NOT mean something isn't, or won't become, monotonous. PEOPLE are interesting, but let's face it, some issues/symptoms are just plain boring. Simple Insomnia and CBT-I? Boring. Irritability? Boring.

Hey! I actually like insomnia/CBT-I. I think it would be hard to do it full-time as my only task, but I use it as a buffer for myself (and patients) since I'm in a PTSD outpatient clinic and it's hard for me to do trauma work without building in breaks. Plus, for people who (initially) refuse or are hesitant to do an EBP for PTSD and have comorbid insomnia, I like to encourage them to try CBT-I (since it's structured, involves homework, is a group experience without too much emotional disclosure), and use that to ease them into more challenging treatment down the road. For me, CBT-I is a straightforward way to feel productive... I really like it 🙂

I do think that in general though, even with building in diverse tasks, my job has a lot of sitting and listening built in. I've been more "on the move" when I've worked in residential positions, rather than outpatient.

 

[smalltownpsych]

Couldn't you hire a psychometrist?

When I did a practicum at the VA they had a psychometrist. I loved it. I also really enjoy working with supervisees as we are interpreting results and coming up with recommendations. Right now I doi about ten percent assessment and that suits me pretty well. I am not teaching or supervising currently and I miss that. Oh and when I teach, I am pretty active almost to the point of over-the-top, so that is another non-desk-job aspect. My last job also was primarily supervision and administration with some public speaking. I was only able to do therapy about 20%. Each setting and position is very unique in my experience and as a psychologist we have a broad skill set that we can tailor to the setting and we can usually tailor what we do to our own preferences as well. I have been at this hospital for about 5 months and am still creating what I will be doing on a day to day basis. Some of the ideas might take a year or two to implement such as getting a chronic pain clinic up and running. I also plan to teach at the local U once I am a bit more settled in.

 

[psych84]

It is the why that makes the concussion/TBI cases interesting. The data tends to be straight forward, but being able to put together a treatment plan to address the underlying issues is what I find the most useful.

How is it dealing with people with dementia?

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

How is it dealing with people with dementia?

I probably only get a handful of cases a year, as I have a colleague that sees most of the dementia referrals. The only time I get involved is if there was an existing or recent head injury or if something funky like a co-occurring seizure disorder (bc many antiepilectics can cause sig. cog problems). I don't do any treatment, strictly diagnostic assessment, recommendations, and referrals. I've been told I give much more detailed recommendations (including references and resources), though I don't follow cases regularly.

 

[NMoren]

When I did a practicum at the VA they had a psychometrist. I loved it. I also really enjoy working with supervisees as we are interpreting results and coming up with recommendations. Right now I doi about ten percent assessment and that suits me pretty well. I am not teaching or supervising currently and I miss that. Oh and when I teach, I am pretty active almost to the point of over-the-top, so that is another non-desk-job aspect. My last job also was primarily supervision and administration with some public speaking. I was only able to do therapy about 20%. Each setting and position is very unique in my experience and as a psychologist we have a broad skill set that we can tailor to the setting and we can usually tailor what we do to our own preferences as well. I have been at this hospital for about 5 months and am still creating what I will be doing on a day to day basis. Some of the ideas might take a year or two to implement such as getting a chronic pain clinic up and running. I also plan to teach at the local U once I am a bit more settled in.

Wow, sounds great! You've made me even more excited to continue studying 🙂

 

[sockit]

It is the why that makes the concussion/TBI cases interesting. The data tends to be straight forward, but being able to put together a treatment plan to address the underlying issues is what I find the most useful.

So, at that point, an OT would implement your treatment plan? Would they have any input into the plan, either initially or at some later time? Who else would be involved, from that point on?

 

[WisNeuro]

So, at that point, an OT would implement your treatment plan? Would they have any input into the plan, either initially or at some later time? Who else would be involved, from that point on?

IMO involving an OT only makes things worse. Best thing is to tell people that they are alright. If there are other issues, such as mood/psychiatric, then you refer to those services. If people erroneously believe their problems are due to a concussion that happened years ago instead of a real psychiatric issue currently, goo luck treating that successfully.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Many of my concussion cases are 4-10+ months post injury/accident....so the vast majority of cases wouldn't be appropriate OT / PT / SLP referrals, though on occasion there are still some things that can be done. Usually I recommend talk therapy and spend some time talking about what is involved, provide additional education about expectations of rehabilitation/recovery, address exercise, provide education and help with sleep hygiene, work with the PCP/referring physician on meds, etc.

 

[psych84]

If people erroneously believe their problems are due to a concussion that happened years ago instead of a real psychiatric issue currently, goo luck treating that successfully.

I think that is a really bad attitude/approach to have. There is great stigma attached to mental illness, and men especially are prone to denying potential mental health problems because of the stigma. I think deep down we all WANT it to be something physical because then we can justify our symptoms. Nobody will blame a person missing a leg for not having the most positive attitude all the time. If it is actually mental, people connect that to being "crazy", "weak", not manly, someone making excuses, etc

I don't think these people are helpless and pointless to spend time on, I think they just need a little clarity, education, and some encouragement, and I'd wager many of them would be willing to face their problems. But I have to say if I had a doctor/psychologist who just wouldn't listen to me if I questioned the results, I'd question how good they were at their job.

Yes, we might be the authority on a diagnosis, and yes the test results may be objective/accurate, but some fight back/some questioning, should be accepted from the patients end.

 

[erg923]

I think that is a really bad attitude/approach to have. There is great stigma attached to mental illness, and men especially are prone to denying potential mental health problems because of the stigma. I think deep down we all WANT it to be something physical because then we can justify our symptoms. Nobody will blame a person missing a leg for not having the most positive attitude all the time. If it is actually mental, people connect that to being "crazy", "weak", not manly, someone making excuses, etc

I don't think these people are helpless and pointless to spend time on, I think they just need a little clarity, education, and some encouragement, and I'd wager many of them would be willing to face their problems. But I have to say if I had a doctor/psychologist who just wouldn't listen to me if I questioned the results, I'd question how good they were at their job.

Yes, we might be the authority on a diagnosis, and yes the test results may be objective/accurate, but some fight back/some questioning, should be accepted from the patients end.

Yea, Its as if they have some kind of financial investment/motivation in attrributing their symptoms to certain diagnosis....🙄

 

[psych84]

Yea, Its as if they have some kind of financial investment/motivation in attrributing their symptoms to certain diagnosis....🙄

?

 

[erg923]

?

http://www.benefits.va.gov/compensation/

 

[psych84]

And that has absolutley nothing to do with what I said.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

I think that is a really bad attitude/approach to have. There is great stigma attached to mental illness, and men especially are prone to denying potential mental health problems because of the stigma. I think deep down we all WANT it to be something physical because then we can justify our symptoms. Nobody will blame a person missing a leg for not having the most positive attitude all the time. If it is actually mental, people connect that to being "crazy", "weak", not manly, someone making excuses, etc

I don't think these people are helpless and pointless to spend time on, I think they just need a little clarity, education, and some encouragement, and I'd wager many of them would be willing to face their problems. But I have to say if I had a doctor/psychologist who just wouldn't listen to me if I questioned the results, I'd question how good they were at their job.

Yes, we might be the authority on a diagnosis, and yes the test results may be objective/accurate, but some fight back/some questioning, should be accepted from the patients end.

I didn't get the idea that WisNeuro was suggesting that we shouldn't expect some pushback and/or provide appropriate psychoeducation. Rather, by referring a patient with a remote history of concussion to OT, you're essentially validating rather than correcting their conceptualization of their symptoms. That is, by putting in the PT/OT referral, you would likely come across as saying, "yes, there's something wrong with your brain," when in fact the true etiology of the problems is going to be psychological/emotional and needs to be treated appropriately.

And yes, the compensation component can introduce a significant monkey wrench.

Edit: So using the amputation example you provided, if the amputee were having difficulty adjusting to and accepting the loss of a limb, resulting in significant stress and associated irritability, concentration difficulty, and exacerbation of back pain, would you be best served by referring the person to PT and prosthetics (and maybe throwing in some stimulant meds to help with attention and some opiates for the back pain), or instead to mental health for treatment of the underlying adjustment and chronic pain problems? Same idea with mild TBI/concussion.

 

[psych84]

Rather, by referring a patient with a remote history of concussion to OT,

Please see what part I quoted from WiseNeuro's post. I didn't comment on that part. I don't think they should be reffered to OT.

 

[erg923]

And that has absolutley nothing to do with what I said.

Sure it does.

I think deep down we all WANT it to be something physical because then we can justify our symptoms.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

Please see what part I quoted from WiseNeuro's post. I didn't comment on that part.

I mentioned OT because that was the context of WisNeuro's post, which was speaking to the potential problems associated with involving OT in a case of an individual with a remote concussion history who's attributing their current difficulties to said concussion, and not to a blanket statement that if folks have potentially incorrect conceptualizations about the etiology of their difficulties that they're going to automatically be difficult to treat.

 

[psych84]

Sure it does.

Sure it does.

Yes, it is in all of our interest for an issue to be physical because a) it is clear diagnosis/there is no stigma/society can accept mental problems if they are a result of real/objective physical problems b) then there are those who want it to be a physical for gain (disability)

I never said that we should change the results because a patient disagrees, nor did I suggest that they should be reffered to OT.

What I was trying to articulate is that for the most part we don't know if the patient is a or b. I might think that my head injury is the cause of my depression not because I want to gain from it (disability), but because of ignorance of the subject, or being the masculine guy that I am refuse to believe that I could have those kinds of issues. I almost hope its the head stuff not because I want gain, but for the purpose of clarity and not having to face the fact that it is mental. I see a huge difference between a and b.

Ultimatley though, there is no reason to treat a or b differently. You stick to the results, you stick to the diagnosis, you don't reffer to OT if you don't believe that is their issue, but you realize that it is WORTH your time to try to stir these people in the right direction, and that in many cases, YOU CAN do it. That is the part of WiseNeuro's post that I disagreed with. I don't think these people are a waste of time.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

Yes, it is in all of our interest for an issue to be physical because a) it is clear diagnosis/there is no stigma/society can accept mental problems if they are a result of real/objective physical problems b) then there are those who want it to be a physical for gain (disability)

I never said that we should change the results because a patient disagrees, nor did I suggest that they should be reffered to OT.

What I was trying to articulate is that for the most part we don't know if the patient is a or b. I might think that my head injury is the cause of my depression not because I want to gain from it (disability), but because of ignorance of the subject, or being the masculine guy that I am refuse to believe that I could have those kinds of issues. I almost hope its the head stuff not because I want gain, but for the purpose of clarity and not having to face the fact that it is mental. I see a huge difference between a and b.

Ultimatley though, there is no reason to treat a or b differently. You stick to the results, you stick to the diagnosis, you don't reffer to OT if you don't believe that is their issue, but you realize that it is WORTH your time to try to stir these people in the right direction, and that in many cases, YOU CAN do it. That is the part of WiseNeuro's post that I disagreed with. I don't think these people are a waste of time.

Again, I didn't get that from WisNeuro's post, but I could be wrong. In the end, I think we all agree that folks who may be misattributing their symptoms to the incorrect cause certainly aren't a waste of time. But if they're being significantly driven by compensation-seeking, then we need to keep that in mind, because this may then cause them to not respond to treatment (for a variety of reasons). Thus, at some point, we need to make the decision if further treatment attempts should be made, or if those limited resources are better spent elsewhere for the time being.