Psychology and People with Disabilities?

[sike2b]

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Hello there,

I am really interested in working with people with disabilities, and have done so at various agencies for a few years. During undergrad I've also become more interested in psychology, and think I want to be a psychologist that works with people with disabilities. Are there any programs that are designed to give experience working with people with disabilities? Specifically, I like working with intellectual or developmental disabilities, more than physical disabilities.

Also... I know Gallaudet University in DC has a program about working with deaf people (my sister is deaf, so that's also an area of interest)... it looks like they have both clinical psych and a school psych program. anyone have any information on those programs? It says the PhD program in clinical is APA accredited, but is it a good program?

thanks!

 

[snowcherries]

Some school psych PhD programs will have a very strong focus on research and clinical work with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. I can specifically recommend the University of Oregon's school psych program, as long as you also have some interest in research, and there's strong training in autism specifically at the University of Utah's school psych program. I don't know anything about Gallaudet specifically, but I strongly recommend that you seek out school psych programs.

 

[paramour]

I don't believe that anyone conducts any research with any emphasis into disabilities (unless it's a secondary interest maybe?), but it seems like many/most of our adult practicum sites are with this population...

 

[coldsweat]

Ohio State University has a program that focuses on this population called the Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Psychology Program. The program has a clinical track which would allow you to become licensed as a psychologist.

I would also second the recommendation about exploring school psychology programs, as in general they emphasize clinical work with children with developmental disabilities more than clinical psychology programs do. The school psychology programs that provide you the best training with this population are generally behavioral in their orientation (Louisiana State University, Mississippi State University, University of Southern Mississippi, etc).

When exploring programs, determine if students match to internships that are known for providing quality training in this area. Based on my discussions with faculty and students, some of the best internship sites for working with this population are Devereux, Kennedy Krieger Institute, the May Institute, Marcus Autism Center, Munroe-Meyer Institute, and the Oregon Health & Science University.

Another recommendation is to search for programs at universities that have an University Center of Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD). You can likely pursue practicum opportunities with this population through these centers.

 

[nika751]

If you are interested, school psychologists can really focus in on disabilities. School psychologists (with a doctorate) can work in the schools, private practice, community organizations, etc. They have a strong focus in testing, educational issues, disabilities, and child psychology. You will not do as much counseling in these programs. You would be learning to test for developmental delays in all areas (including social ,behavior, emotional, educational), work with children in small group interventions, and develop/ intervention plans. School psychologists do some counseling with induvidual students. They also consult with parents and teachers often. There are opportunities to work with all kinds of delays including learning disabilities, autism, emotional behavioral, etc. Good luck!

 

[JustNoticing]

There definitely are faculty at clinical, and even counseling programs that research various aspects of developmental disabilities. Going to a program with strong behavioral training will have you best suited to work with this population.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

There definitely are faculty at clinical, and even counseling programs that research various aspects of developmental disabilities. Going to a program with strong behavioral training will have you best suited to work with this population.

Agreed. One of the labs in my program worked almost exclusively with individuals (both adults and children) with developmental disabilities, and I'd imagine there are at least a few others out there like it.

 

[PsyDr]

Division 22: rehabilitation. Specializes in disability of all genres.


Many at the midwinter convention also have a disability

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Also... I know Gallaudet University in DC has a program about working with deaf people (my sister is deaf, so that's also an area of interest)... it looks like they have both clinical psych and a school psych program. anyone have any information on those programs? It says the PhD program in clinical is APA accredited, but is it a good program?

Donna Morere, Ph.D. is on the Gallaudet faculty and she does research with deaf children and language disorders (w/ a focus on neuropsych assessment). I am not super familiar with her work, but she and Gallaudet were both recommended to me when I needed more info about selecting and adapting neuropsych assessment measures for use with a patient who had significant hearing loss.

 

[sike2b]

Thanks so much everyone!! I have a lot of work to do now to try to figure out exactly what types of programs I want to apply to. :-D.