Prepared by:

MAILLEN GRACE G. QUILALA (Instructor)

▪ The scientist-practitioner model (also
called the Boulder model) represents
an attempt to “marry” science and
clinical practice.
▪ It remains the most popular training
model for clinical psychologists.
▪ This model saw a profession comprised
of skilled practitioners who could
produce their own research as well as
consume the research of others.
▪ The Boulder vision was of a systematic
union between clinical skill and the
logical empiricism of science.
▪ The scientist-practitioner model was intended to help students of
clinical psychology “think” like a scientist in whatever activities
they engaged in.
▪ As a clinician, they would evaluate their clients’ progress
scientifically and select treatments that were based on empirical
evidence.
▪ The scientist-practitioner model is just as applicable to clinical
researchers as it is to practicing clinicians.
➢clinical researchers: can only produce solid, meaningful research
if they keep their clinical sensitivity and skills honed by
continuing to see patients.
➢practicing clinicians: must not forsake their research training and
interests, neither must researchers ignore their clinical
foundation.
▪ The Boulder model has been
durable, but the debate continues.
▪ Increasingly, clinical psychologists
are split into two groups: those
interested primarily in clinical
practice and those interested
primarily in research.
▪ Although many believe that the
scientist-practitioner model has
served us well and successfully,
others conclude that it is a poor
educational model that deserves
the wrath of its critics.
▪ The said controversy was partly responsible for the emergence of Doctor of
Psychology (Psy.D.) degrees.
▪ Psy.D. programs are not significantly different from Ph.D. programs during the
first two years of training. The real divergence begins with the third year. At that
point, increasing experience in therapeutic practice and assessment becomes
the rule. The fourth year continues the clinical emphasis with a series of
internship assignments (Peterson, 1968).
▪ The main difference between Ph.D. in Psychology and Psy.D. is that:
➢Ph.D. emphasizes research; programs study the theories behind
psychology
➢Psy.D. prepares student for practicing psychology; programs focus on
applying scientific knowledge directly to the practice of psychology
 Psy.D. (Doctor of Ph.D. in Psychology
Psychology)
- designed for more clinical - focuses on research
practice
- a doctorate degree - a doctorate degree
designed to work with designed to lead to the
people who seek therapy, development of new
or for more resinous information in the field,
clinical interventions for though it can just as well
the severely mentally ill in be used to go into clinical
psychiatric hospitals. practice.

- primary career path is - multiple career path

Clinical Psychology and options: teaching, patient
working directly with care, forensic psychology,
patients scientific researcher,
clinical practice
▪ As observed, large numbers of clinical
psychologists work in private practice
settings.
▪ The goal of some clinical psychology
graduate students is to essentially open an
office for professional practice.
▪ This suggests that the physician is now
serving as a role model for these aspiring
clinicians---a model that does create hazards.
➢In the recent past, the medical profession has
experienced a great deal of criticism and the
loss of its Good Samaritan image because it
has appeared more concerned with
economic privileges than with the welfare of
patients.
▪ What alarms many psychologists is that
clinical psychology seems to be moving in
the same direction.
▪ A larger social question is whether training clinicians for private
practice is an economical, efficient response to the nation’s mental
health needs.
▪ Traditional fee-for-service private practice is a thing of the past;
managed health care now dominates the scene.
▪ However, training programs must ensure that future clinical
psychologists are not sent out into the real world lacking the requisite
skills and knowledge demanded by managed health care systems.
▪ This economic squeeze has raised many concerns.
▪ As a result of declining earnings over the last few decades, some predict
that private practitioners will need to expand their roles to areas such as
alternative medicine, telehealth, psychopharmacy, and life coaching.
▪ It may even be the case that, because of cost, today’s Ph.D. clinicians will
be replaced by tomorrow’s masters’-level mental health professionals.
▪ Over the last two decades, a hotly
debated issue concerns the pursuit of
prescription privileges for clinical
psychologists.
▪ The decision to pursue these privileges
will have far-reaching implications for
the role definition of clinical
psychologists, the training they require,
and their actual practice.
▪ Several advocates have argued that
obtaining prescription privileges will
ensure the autonomy of clinical
psychologists as health service
providers and will enable a continuity of
care that is missing when a psychiatrist
prescribes the patient’s medications
and a psychologist provides the same
patient’s psychotherapy.
▪ It is our professional and ethical duty to improve and broaden the
services offered so that society’s needs can be met
▪ Clinical psychologists with prescription privileges would be available
to meet the needs of underserved populations like rural residents and
geriatric patients.
▪ However, the pursuit of prescription privileges has been questioned on
philosophical grounds.
▪ Furthermore, it is clinical psychology’s non-medication orientation that
identifies it as s unique health profession and that is responsible for the
field’s appeal.
1. Having prescription privileges would enable clinical psychologists to
provide a wider variety of treatments and to treat a wide range of clients
or patients.
2. It can provide potential increase in efficiency and cost-effectiveness of
care for patients who need both psychological treatment and medication.
3. It will give clinical psychologists a competitive advantage in the health
care marketplace.
4. Obtaining prescription privileges can be a natural progression in clinical
psychology’s quest to become a “full-fledged” health care profession
rather than just a mental health care profession.
5. Due to the unique training of psychologists, they are most qualified to
consider psychopharmacological treatment as an adjunctive option to
psychosocial treatment.
1. Other clinical psychologists point out that prescription privileges may
lead to a de-emphasis of “psychological” forms of treatment because
medications are often faster acting and potentially more profitable
than psychotherapy.
2. It may also damage clinical psychology’s relationship with psychiatry
and general medicine.
3. Many fear that psychologists’ ability to prescribe medications would
lead to more drug-company-sponsored research.
▪ Telehealth refers to the delivery and
oversight of health services using
telecommunication technologies.
▪ Web sites, e-mail, telephones, online
videoconferencing, and transmitting medical
images for diagnosis are often used as a
means to assess, evaluate, and treat
psychological and behavioral problems.
▪ To date, most of the applications of telehealth
have focused on rural populations where
services are harder to obtain due to distance
and number of local providers, as well as
institutionalized populations who may not
have ready access to services outside the
institution of interest.
▪ Ambulatory assessment involves
assessing the emotions, behaviors,
and cognitions of individuals as
they are interacting with the
environment in real time.
▪ For example, to track a client’s
mood state, an electronic diary or
smart phone might be used to
prompt the client to complete
mood ratings at various points
throughout the day and night.
▪ Computer-assisted therapy has the
potential to be less stigmatizing, more
efficient, more accessible, and more
convenient for clients.
▪ Whether treatment is administered
through videoconferencing or through e-
mail, text messaging, or recent therapy-
based “apps,” clients who might not be
present to a mental health professional for
face-to-face treatment because of
embarrassment or shame seem more
likely to be willing to initiate a treatment
contact if this can occur in the privacy of
the clients’ own choosing.
1. Beneficence and non-maleficence: Psychologists strive to
benefit those they serve and to do no harm.
2. Fidelity and responsibility: Psychologists have profession
and scientific responsibilities to society and establish
relationships characterized by trust.
3. Integrity: In all their activities, psychologists strive to be
accurate, honest, and truthful.
4. Justice: All persons are entitled to access to and benefit
from the profession of psychology; psychologists should
recognize their biases and boundaries of competence.
5. Respect for people’s rights and dignity: Psychologists
respect the rights and dignity of all people and enact
safeguards to ensure protection of these rights.