W12 - CPD

Psychological Science: Putting Theory Into Practice

Overview of Course Material

Example Questions

Easy Level Questions

  • Family Violence Context:

    • Frequency of police interaction with domestic violence cases in Australia. Options included:

    • a) Several times a day

    • b) Every two minutes

    • c) Every 6 1/2 minutes

    • d) Every minute

    • e) At least once a day

Moderate Level Questions

  • Master of Professional Psychology Program Structure:

    • Questions regarding the structure and accreditation of the program with options such as:

    • a) Training across all psychology practice endorsements.

    • b) 4 years of undergraduate study plus 2 years of master’s coursework.

    • c) Accreditation by SPANKT.

    • d) Direct entry from a 3-year psychology degree.

    • e) 5 years of study plus a 6th year internship.

Hard Level Questions

  • Scenario with Police and Ambulance Service:

    • Evaluating criteria for classifying a middle-aged man causing public disturbance, with options for diagnosis breakdown.

  • Least Restrictive Alternative Provocation:

    • Identifying which admission types do not qualify under this mandate.

Registration and Professional Development

  • Registration Process:

    • Psychologists register via the Psychology Board of Australia (ADRPA).

    • APS offers professional support but does not handle registrations.

Ongoing Professional Development (CPD)

  • Necessity for Psychologists:

    • Continuous assessment of professional practice is required.

    • Clinical Supervision: Focused on professional growth, a key aspect of CPD.

  • CPD Requirements:

    • Must develop a flexible learning plan and document CPD hours yearly.

    • Requirement of 30 hours CPD annually, including 10 hours peer consultation.

Types of CPD Activities

  • Includes attending or conducting workshops, reading peer-reviewed journals, assessing proposals, etc.

  • Documented Peer Consultation: Counts towards CPD hours but not towards required peer hours.

  • Active CPD Recommendation:

    • Recommended to achieve 10 hours through varied methods to enhance engagement and effectiveness.

Importance of Self-Care in Psychology

  • Critical Self-Evaluation:

    • Essential for maintaining tools of trade used in practice—knowledge, experience, skills, and empathy.

    • Poor self-care correlates with decreased job motivation, cognitive clarity, judgment quality, problem-solving ability, and overall effectiveness with clients.

Understanding Burnout

  • Burnout Prevalence:

    • Notably high in caring professions including psychology.

    • Recent studies (2024) report high burnout levels in Australian psychologists, alongside feelings of unwellness and attrition desire.

Dimensions of Burnout (Maslach PhD Model)

  • Three Core Dimensions:

    1. Exhaustion: Aching fatigue and cognitive capacity interruptions.

    2. Cynicism: Distancing from clients, leading to a protective emotional state.

    3. Ineffectiveness: Self-perception of failure in fulfilling job responsibilities.

Six Dimensions of Burnout (Tavella)**

  • Additional Aspects:

    • Includes loss of empathy, impaired work performance, cognitive impairment, withdrawal, and unsettled mood.

    • Examples of Symptoms Under Each Dimension:

    • Exhaustion: Fatigue, lack of energy, unrefreshing sleep.

    • Loss of Empathy: Difficulty in understanding colleagues and clients, diminished care for others.

    • Impaired Work Performance: Lack of pleasure in work, diminished productivity, decline in quality of output.

    • Cognitive Symptoms: Concentration issues, mental fog, slowed cognitive processing.

    • Withdrawal: Social detachment, avoidance of familial/personal interaction.

    • Unsettled Mood: Emotional drain, self-criticism, feelings of stagnation.

Factors Influencing Burnout

  • Situational Factors:

    • Type of occupation, working conditions (overload, resource deficits), organizational environment, and employee-employer values mismatch.

  • Individual Factors:

    1. Demographics: Burnout risk variances based on age (younger <30), marital status (unmarried), and education level.

    2. Personality Considerations: Those with lower hardiness and external locus of control may be more prone.

    3. Attitudinal Factors: Higher expectations increase burnout risk.

Combating and Preventing Burnout

  • Organizational Changes:

    • Promote job engagement by making jobs more meaningful, relevant, and challenging.

  • Personal Strategies:

    • Focus on self-care before burnout occurs, including stress management training, peer support, and counseling availability.

What to Do When Burnout Occurs

  • Initial Steps for Support:

    • Seek advice from a trusted supervisor or peer, consider professional support if distress impacts job performance or life quality.

Summary Points

  1. Elevated risk of burnout among psychologists and counselors.

  2. Key burnout characteristics include exhaustion, cynicism, and feelings of ineffectiveness.

  3. Important to minimize personal-job mismatches.

  4. Job engagement serves as the favorable alternative to burnout.

  5. Proactive personal and professional strategies necessary to ensure well-being.