by Corey J. Habben, Psy.D.
The Crises
As a recent graduate, I have just returned from doing another program on getting through internship and getting your first job. This program was for the students and new psychologists looking for work. The looks on the faces of the young audience were those of fear and desperation. Whatever state the profession is in, it certainly has had to deal with a lot of alarming crises recently.
In the past couple of years, there have been too many students and not enough accredited internships, bringing forth the need for last year's national supply & demand conference.
New graduates are finding themselves having a difficult time finding a job. The market, particularly in the urban areas where most of the jobs used to be, seems to be more saturated than anytime in recent memory.
Psychologists throughout the country are making, on average, less and less than they did even five years ago. There are numerous theories tossed around as to why; managed care, the feminization of psychology, perhaps even the magic bullet theory . . . and yet the fact still remains that psychologists are gradually losing their value, at least as it relates to the marketplace.
Other professions are gradually taking over the turf once held by psychology, from social workers and master's level counselors to psychics and professional "coaches," while psychologists slowly step aside and move closer to insignificance.
And all this could not happen at a worse time for new psychologists, as many of them leave school owing more money than ever before, often no different from the debt owed by medical students.
To put it simply, the future looks a lot worse than it did five or six years ago, when many of today's students and graduates first started. Back then, new students were seduced by the promise of a strong future and even the prospect of prescription privileges, while a footnote was usually given about this "new managed care thing." Today, it seems we are just trying to keep our head above water.
Personally, I do not believe that it does any good to continue to complain about the fact that the market is tight, that my colleagues and I can not find jobs, that psychologists are earning less and less, that the supply seems to exceed the demand . . . that the future does not look good for this generation of psychologists. Because quite frankly, the students are already scared, the new psychologists are tired of saying it, and the established psychologists are probably tired of hearing us complain about it.
Still, let's just say for the sake of argument that the profession of psychology is, in fact, in a state of crisis. This crisis not only affects students and psychologists in a very direct way, but it also has an insidious effect on the profession itself. Because as these trends continue, the disparity between psychology's intrinsic or potential value, or "what psychology could be," and its actual or perceived value, or "what it is," grows greater and greater. So . . . what do we do with this?
The Answer
Today in psychology, we often hear ad nauseum several presentations of research, data, theory, past history, pontificating, and solutions to the problems facing the profession. Well, I will be so bold as to tell you I do not have the faintest idea how to solve this. And you know what? I am glad . . . because it is then, when you are unsure where else to turn nor what exactly to do, that you begin to innovate.
I doubt anyone can spend a few years around psychologists and not hear the following example used at least once, yet it is still so appropriate for this current situation in psychology that it bears repeating. The original Greek and Latin derivations of the word indicate that "crisis" is a time of decision; a turning point where change will occur for either good or bad.
And, perhaps more interestingly, the Chinese word for crisis "weiji" is made up of the two characters for danger and opportunity occurring at the same time. Personally, when I look at the crisis facing psychology and how it relates to my generation of psychologists, my initial reaction of fear is overcome by a sense of welcome, a sense of necessity . . . and a sense of opportunity.
This is something that needed to happen! I would argue that psychology has consistently sold itself short and demonstrated an alarming inferiority complex. Think of how we have limited ourselves. We often forget the most simple truth about psychology; that we are experts in human behavior, something that no one else can fully claim, and that we have the ability to make life better for people, in very profound and meaningful ways. Think of what that encompasses.
In the history of our profession, it seems that we seem to stick to these limited roles; in academia and research, health care, a little consulting, a little industrial/ organizational, perhaps a few other places. I often think about what psychology could be and wonder, "Why? Why isn't the profession bigger? Why are we scrambling to hold onto old roles rather than expanding into new ones?"
And while explanations and rationales from the older salts in the profession are often provided, such as "we had to build" and "we had conflicts with science and practice," the sad truth is that to a large extent it is our own fault. Perhaps we have spent too much time talking to each other and not enough time talking to the public. Perhaps we have spent too much time building fences and not enough time jumping them. There is a notion that goes around APA, that says "whenever psychologists circle their wagons, they aim their guns inward."
And yet, psychology has survived despite itself. It has survived because it is one of the most valuable commodities out there. I would argue that this fact has spoiled us. As students and new psychologists, we are getting upset because we cannot just hang up a shingle or walk into a job like before.
We actually have to compete! What we do now at this crucial point determines what direction the profession is headed. Will we sit together in informal process groups and merely discuss the change as it happens to us? Will we crawl into a corner in fear, hoping that magically someone or some force will change things for us? Or will we take it upon ourselves to find new ways around this problem; to innovate, to create, to achieve new possibilities?
The Message
Well, I am making a call to arms to this next generation of psychologists; that we write our own futures, damning the forces against us. For so long, psychology has been held back because of a reluctance to look forward. It is time for us to turn danger into opportunity and to do it ourselves. And I would say that students are the best equipped for this task. If there is one thing graduate school has taught us, it is that nothing motivates you like sheer terror.
So my message to students and new psychologists is this. First, we need to break out of our sense of entitlement, that psychology owes us, and we need to take it upon ourselves to seek out new innovative opportunities. This means going beyond considering "should I get a clinical job or should I get an academic job." There is a whole frontier of uncharted territory for psychology where we have been too afraid to venture. In essence, it is 1492 and we still think the earth is flat, fearing that we will fall off if we go too far.
This does bring up one point; how do you innovate when you are just starting out? When you are trying to get on your first leg? At the previously mentioned APA program on getting a job in psychology, I mentioned to the students the harsh reality that as a new psychologist there will probably never be a time in your career where you are at a greater disadvantage.
As a new psychologist, you will never be less qualified, you will rarely be less appealing to an employer, you will probably never have fewer connections to find the jobs, and it is doubtful you will ever face more intense and fierce competition, in volume and concentration, because so many other people are doing the same thing at the same time that you are. Which begs the question: how does one innovate when it is one of the worst times to try to do it?
When presented with that dilemma, I take solace in the promise of the future, because I do not underestimate today as students. This generation of new psychologists is a different breed. Because of the new pressures, they are strong. The hungry ones will endure these crises and apply their skills in new, innovative ways that will change the profession of psychology as we know it. By turning crisis into opportunity, these new psychologists will innovate and seek new directions not considered before, perhaps because the pressure was not as intense.
As such, my message to the psychologists who train today's students and new psychologists is simple. Use the benefit of your experience in psychology to help these students explore new possibilities. Of course, train students to succeed in clinical settings or in academe. But do not just stop there; train them to be experts in human behavior, first and foremost, and expand your view of how that expertise can be applied. In doing so, today's student can become tomorrow's psychologist; succeeding in new roles and expanding the scope of the profession.
The Opportunity
In all fairness, it seems that a lot of this comes off as rather idealistic. As I write this I am technically still a student, so perhaps I can still afford to be idealistic. Soon, I am sure that I will become cynical and worry more about treading water than swimming upstream. Still, that is no reason to dismiss the notion.
Because at this point, I still see hope. I still see opportunity. I still see a generation of psychologists ready to move the profession in the place it should have been a long time ago. The years of transition from student to psychologist is one of the great stages in the development of a psychologist's life.
This is when the idealism of graduate school meets the realism of the "real world," and the opportunity for innovation is most ripe. In the long run, I am not the least bit worried about the future because I have seen the future of psychology, which is today's students. I will be the first to admit that not all of them are perfect; however, there are more shining stars ready to take the profession to new places than you can possibly imagine.
So to answer my original question; how do we solve these crises? I do not have the answer. Which means we will have to innovate and come up with new solutions. I would argue that we have needed some new solutions for some time now. It is time for us to get to work. We owe it to ourselves, to the profession, and to the people out there who need to benefit from the science and practice of psychology; and I think that includes just about everyone.
About the Author:
Corey J. Habben, Psy.D. is one of the vocal proponents of the next generation of new psychologists. He has been highly active within the American Psychological Association (APA) and has written and spoken on the topics of new psychologist issues, new roles in psychology, training in the future, and the psychology of men.
Revised 10/09/08 by Marlene M. Maheu, Ph.D.