Sometimes a person has a problem with which he is unable to cope on his own. Then he asks for help from relatives, friends or specialists. If the problem is psychological in nature, then you need to go to a psychologist. Today there are more and more of them, and it is not clear who is better to turn to. After all, specialists are not always literate and good. The publication will tell you how to choose a psychologist. You will also learn what points to look for when searching for a suitable candidate.
Where to find a psychologist?
This is the first question that immediately arises in a simple person. In general, you can go in several ways:
- Consult a psychologist for recommendations.
- Search for a specialist on ad sites.
- Attend a psychological event.
Next, each of the methods will be considered in more detail: their features, pros and cons.
The choice of a psychologist on the recommendation
That is, you just need to ask your relatives, friends or just acquaintances if they can advise any good psychologist. In recent years, people have increasingly begun to ask similar questions on the Internet in city forums and on social networks. And it is worth noting that this is a fairly effective way. The chances are good that someone will share the contacts of a truly competent specialist.
However, in the case of relatives and friends, one can hear a negative reaction. Many people are still wary and even negative of psychologists. Such personalities will most likely begin to spread rot and blame them for doing stupid things. Some loved ones may not share contacts, because they are embarrassed to say that they go or once went to a psychologist.
Also, if someone liked the specialist, this does not mean that he is suitable for absolutely everyone. After all, everyone has their own individual characteristics. In addition, you will have to admit yourself that there was some kind of problem that could raise a bunch of questions from relatives and friends.
Search Ads
This method will help to form a huge base of specialists. There are several places where finding a psychologist is not difficult. You can study absolutely any ads. They can be placed on advertising stands, in newspapers or broadcast on television and radio. A lot of information about psychologists is available on the Internet. It can be seen on city forums, specialized sites, personal pages of specialists, in social networks and so on.
Of course, this method takes a lot of time. But the chance is high to choose a really suitable specialist. But it is worth remembering that not every psychologist is competent, and he can even be a fraudster who has nothing to do with science.
Attend a psychological event
Psychological conferences, festivals, master classes - these are exactly the places where good psychologists are very common. You can get to know them and see their work right at the event.
The method is good in that you can see several competent specialists live and take part in the training. However, there are also disadvantages. As a rule, a lot of people gather at such events, and this may confuse someone. In addition, the attention of the psychologist will be drawn to the whole group as a whole, and not just to one person.
Whatever method of finding a psychologist is chosen, it is worth taking into account several nuances and criteria. They will be discussed further.
Assessment of appearance
Often it is enough to look at one photograph of a person to have some kind of opinion about him. Sometimes you can find a video with this specialist. Some themselves post similar materials on their website. If a person has an untidy appearance, then most likely he will not be able to help another, even if he does not know how to put himself in order. Also, the psychologist’s face itself should simply be liked. If a person is elementary unpleasant, then what kind of long-term work with him can we talk?
Reviews about the specialist
Before using the services of a psychologist, you need to study the reviews about him. Finding them is not a problem. It’s only worth understanding that today you can order and buy anything, including colorful and positive reviews. Therefore, reading praise needs to be a little biased. You can ask yourself the question: “Could the client write such a review or is he very embellished?”.
Psychologist education
Of great importance is the professional education of a psychologist. Ideally, it should be obtained in a specialized university, which has a strong training program and a high rating. You should also pay attention to the direction of the specialist. He can be a child, family, clinical, gestalt psychologist, psychoanalyst and so on. It is important to familiarize yourself with each approach and decide for yourself which one is acceptable and which one is definitely not.
Basic education alone is not enough. A good psychologist constantly improves his skills and takes training courses. Usually, all received diplomas and certificates are placed by specialists in their office in the frame.
Personal therapy
Supervision is an integral part of training and excellent help in the work of a psychologist. What is meant by this term? This is an organized space for developing professional skills and working out any of their problems. That is, in fact, the specialist is undergoing personal therapy with another psychologist. On the recommendation of higher organizations, each practicing connoisseur of human souls must undergo at least 50-100 hours of personal therapy before starting counseling himself. First, the psychologist solves his problems and only then begins to help others. For example, a specialist is overly worried about his loved ones. If he does not work out this problem, then he most likely will not help a client with a similar situation.
As a rule, a consultant undergoing personal therapy is a member of a professional psychological community and participates in various activities. This will only be a big plus. Such a person does not violate “professional hygiene”, which means that working with him will be safe and useful.
Specialist Publications
Before choosing a psychologist, you should ask if he produces at least some kind of content. This can be articles in a scientific journal, maintaining a personal page or even a site where various notes and information about yourself are posted. Such publications will help to form an opinion about a person as a professional. They also reveal the approaches and characteristics of the psychologist’s thinking. Having become acquainted with its content, one can assume in advance whether there are common ground and whether a dialogue with these people will turn out.
Cost of services
Perhaps most people cannot say that price does not matter. Therefore, before choosing a psychologist, you should study the price list. Some already know in advance how much money they are ready to spend on a specialist in the field of psychology, and build on this. In a way, this is the right approach. It is one thing to fork out for a single consultation and quite another to regularly pay for expensive services. In some cases, working with a psychologist is delayed for many years if the client has an underlying problem. This may require from 20 sessions to 10 years. Short-term therapy usually takes 5-20 appointments. The cost depends on the duration of the work. Therefore, you must immediately examine the price issue.
Learn everything firsthand
If you want to contact a specialist, but there are any doubts, you can simply ask the psychologist all your questions by phone. For example, you can clarify about qualifications, work experience, how many people he has already helped, what problems he specializes in, how the work will go, how many sessions will be needed, and so on. These are the most common questions about services - the psychologist must respond to them adequately and calmly.
It is worthwhile to be wary if a person does not want to answer directly and barks, speaks in an aggressive tone, is unconvincing and unprofessional, interrupts, says that he will have to walk for a very long time and pay considerable amounts, for less money no one will solve the problem and the like.
Also, a competent specialist calmly responds if a potential client wants to think. During a conversation, it is worth listening to your feelings, the only way you can choose the right psychologist. As soon as there is confidence in the professionalism and competence of a specialist, you can sign up for a session.
First meeting
Many psychologists who work not for the sake of pumping money, but really want to help, offer their new clients an orientation consultation. It lasts 15-20 minutes and is very inexpensive or generally free. This time is given in order to understand whether this particular psychologist is suitable or not.
During the first meeting, it is necessary to pay attention to the behavior of a specialist. He should listen more than speak, not intimidate, not crush authority and not load in terms. She does not talk about abstract topics and writes down what the client said to later work with the information received. The psychologist during the session does not leave the office, does not answer calls and does not allow anyone to break into the office. Without a special education, he cannot prescribe antidepressants and other medicines. In general, a good personal psychologist behaves tactfully, confidently and professionally. After meeting with him, pleasant impressions should remain, and not thoughts like “What was it now?”
Place for consultation
It is also important where the psychologist takes his clients. If he works at home, then it is better to refuse such services. A good specialist will not accept clients in his home living room on the couch for ethical reasons. For these purposes, there should be a separate office, rented or allocated on the basis of a large psychological center. The room should not be like a creepy shack. The office should be clean, comfortable and beautiful, without any frills in the interior. For example, a pile of extraneous things can talk about unprofessionalism, and a lot of personal photographs in the frame - about narcissism. When you are in the psychologist’s office, you should feel calm and peaceful. If such feelings do not arise, then something is wrong here.
Factors Not to Consider When Choosing
There are several factors that prevent you from choosing a psychologist. As practice shows , these are the following stereotypes:
- Floor. Many are used to the fact that only women become psychologists. But men can also be excellent professionals in this area. Competency does not depend on gender, so it is not important.
- Age. Of course, when you see a twenty-year-old youth in front of you, doubts creep in over his vast experience and professionalism. If a student studied diligently, took additional courses and made every effort for development, then he will be able to advise well by about 25-30 years. The opposite can be said of a fifty-year-old specialist who received only two-week training and does not understand anything in psychology. Or he already has 20 years of practice, but he never learned anything. That is, age is not an indicator of competence.
- Nationality. Assessing a person by belonging to an ethnic community is very stupid. It doesn’t matter what color his skin, hair, eye shape or accent is. Appearance does not affect anything, so a person of any nationality can be an excellent personal psychologist.
What to remember when choosing a specialist?
Many people make a mistake when they go to a psychologist, believing that he is a magician and will instantly solve all problems. This is especially true for parents who ask: "Advise a psychologist for a teenager," but they themselves do not want to do anything to change the situation and are waiting for a miracle. A specialist can only reveal the paths of events, and the client will have to choose the best one. Also, the psychologist will not become a friend, will not find work, will not arrange personal life and will not understand neighbors who are annoying. That is, his task is to give a sound recommendation, to send along the right path, and only the client will act.
So, the publication described how to choose a good psychologist. When searching, you need to pay attention to the professionalism of the specialist and your intuition, because the personal factor also works in this area. If you can see that a person is competent, comfortable and pleasant to communicate with, then you can safely stop your choice on him.