Child psychology is a very challenging and rewarding profession. It mainly deals with the study of a child's mind and behavior. Read on to know more about this job profile.
Amruta Gaikwad
Psychology is a complicated and a tough subject to study. It involves the study of an individual's mental functions as well as his/her social behavior.
Among the many psychology fields, studying and assessing the psychology of a child has attracted many youngsters to pursue it as their career.
Childhood is the most crucial stage of life, because children are likely to get easily influenced by the environment in which they live.
Children are often under the pressure of performing their best in their academics. Sometimes, this pressure can have harmful effects on the minds of children such as, they may isolate themselves or even try to commit suicide to escape from the grueling competitions of life. Some may even develop a certain fear and begin lying.
Therefore, utmost care must be taken, to bring up an ideal child. In the competition of providing best for the family, parents spend their entire time working and unknowingly ignore their own children. This takes a toll on the minds of these little ones and are likely to develop a negative approach towards life.
At such times, a psychologist can give right guidance to the child and also help him/her cope up with the daily stress.
Career and Role
A psychologist plays a pivotal role in a child's life. He holds the responsibility of shaping the mind and behavior of the child. Therefore, this task must be performed very diligently and with great interest.
A patient and well experienced psychologist can develop a bond of comfort and trust with the child. Such a bond, can always bring positive results and greatly improve the personality of the child.
A psychologist has many responsibilities. Though they work closely with children, they also have to monitor the environment in which the child lives. It could include parent-child relationship, friend circle and even the basic school environment.
All these factors must be well understood to develop certain strategic methods to shape a child's attitude. Hence, a key to become a successful psychologist is to have thorough knowledge and experience in the field.
A psychologist mainly focuses on moral, intellectual and social development of a child. Working with children as well as with the parents, requires thorough knowledge in the field.
An individual who chooses the path of child psychology must obtain significant degrees in the field. Students can obtain a degree of Bachelor of Arts in psychology (B.A) or Bachelor in Science (B.S). These are basic degrees to start with and takes up to 5 years to complete.
These degrees are followed by a master's degree, which can be pursued with a PhD. A master's degree might take up to 2 years to complete, but master's as well as a PhD course can take up to 8 years to complete. These courses, trains the individuals thoroughly and specialize them in child psychology.
Working Style
Though a psychologist can specialize in different fields, the working style is similar. Given here is the job profile - ► Creating innovative behavior management programs. ► Keenly observing the environment and making customized program for the child. ► Reviewing the policies of the program designed for the child.
► Assessing child's behavior and emotional needs through observation and building a plan to help the child.
► Maintaining reports and making reports for future references.
► Working closely with the teachers, parents and children to provide counseling on teaching methods and bringing up.
► Attending meetings with multidisciplinary teams to understand and meet the emotional, learning and behavioral needs of the child. ► Creating certain activities to boost the child's confidence and increase the level of knowledge.
Psychologists, who prefer to perform their own practice, tailor the job profile as per their working style. Depending on the specialization and experience the salary could range from USD 43,700 to USD 128,300 per year.
Kinds of Specialization
A psychologist can have his own practice or work in schools, research centers and even work with the organization that help for the betterment of children. An individual can pursue the psychology field that they are interested in. Some may specialize in behavioral management, developmental disorders, research or even choose to counsel.
Developmental Disorders
There are many children who face learning disorders. Such disorders greatly influence the behavior of the child, which can be treated with the help of a psychologist. Many times, children facing such disorders are neglected by the society and face tremendous trouble in coping with their life.
This sometimes disrupts the personality of the child. In this case, a psychologist, explains and counsels the parents to understand the child's problem and adopts different methods to improve the situation of the troubled child. He also helps to develop a certain parenting style as well as strengthens the parent-child relationship.
Behavioral Management
Hyperactive children or behavior of seeking attention all the time, disrupts the surroundings of the child. Sometimes, parents face a lot of trouble in keeping this behavior in control. They often resort to strict methods, which could turn the child arrogant and reluctant.
He brings together parents and their child, which helps them to understand each other. A psychologist designs innovative strategies to help the family overcome the behavioral problem.
Education
Some children face difficulties to cope with academics. Poor performance can lower confidence and build the fear of shame. A psychologist studies such cases and develops different learning methods for them. Slow learners need special attention as some of them may have potential to perform well. Certain teaching methods can boost their academic performance.
He holds a place of great importance in a child's life. A psychologist dealing with children must not only look at their problems, but he/she must show love and respect to them. This helps in creating a relationship of trust and friendship and the child feels free to express. Therefore, the description varies to make the work more effective and efficient.