What is competence defined as?
- Ability: the state of being competent
- An area in which a person is competent: a skill
- Adequately qualified or capable
- Therefore, competence is tied up with:
- education
- training
- qualifications
- skills
- ability
- experience
How does the APS define competence?
2007 definition:
- Psychs bring and maintain APPROPRIATE SKILLS and LEARNING in their areas of professional practice
- Psychs COMMUNICATE HONESTLY in the context of their psychological work
- Members must be refrain from offering advice or undertaking work beyond their professional competence. Psychs only provide psychological services within the BOUNDARIES OF THEIR PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE. This includes but is not restricted to:
a. ) WORKING WITHIN THE LIMITS of their education, training, supervised experience and appropriate professional experience
b. ) basing their service on the ESTABLISHED KNOWLEDGE of the discipline and profession of psychology
c. ) adhering to the CODE and the GUIDELINES
d. ) basing their service on the ESTABLISHED KNOWLEDGE of the discipline and profession of psychology
e. ) ensuring that their emotional, mental, and physical state does not impair their ability to provide a COMPETENT psychological service
How does the APS describe how competence is maintained?
- By seeking PROFESSIONAL SUPERVISION or CONSULTATION as required
- Continually MONITORING PROFESSIONAL FUNCTIONING
- Taking APPROPRIATE MEASURES TO ADDRESS PROBLEMS that may impair their ability to PROVIDE COMPETENT PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES including:
- Obtaining advice about
limiting, suspending, or
terminating practice - Taking action in
accordance with
legislation within the
jurisdiction in which
they practice, and
under the constitution of
the APS - Refraining from practicing
- Obtaining advice about
What does the Australian Psychology Accreditation Council do?
- Its an independent, not for profit quality and standards organisation
- appointed as an external accreditation entity under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law ACT 2009
- Developing standards for education and training of psychologists for approval by the PsyBA
- Assessing and monitoring higher education providers and the programs of study to determine whether they meet and continue to meet the Approved Accreditation Standards
- Assessing, accrediting and examining authorities in other countries to determine if graduates have the knowledge, skills and professional attributes necessary to practice the profession in Australia
What is the APS and what is their role?
- Leading source of psychological knowledge in Australia and the premier professional organisation for psychologists
What are the strategic objectives of the APS?
- Unity within diversity: Foster unity in the profession to grow the influence and impact of psychology
- Value for members
- Voice of psychology
- Knowledge and evidence-based practice: Foster and promote the knowledge base of the discipline and the profession of psychology
- Value to the community
What is AHPRA (Australian Health Practioner Regulation Agency) Psyc BA (Psychology Board of Australia)?
- The Psychology Board of Australia came into operation on 1st July 2010 under the AHPRA and adopted the APS Code of Ethics
What areas do the 4 Psychology Boards of Australia cover?
- NSW
- QLD
- NT/SA/WA
- ACT/VIC/TAS
What are the functions of the Psychology Board of Australia?
- Registering psychologists and provisional psychologists
- Developing standards, codes and guidelines for psychology profession
- Handling notifications, complaints, investigations and disciplinary hearings
- Assessing overseas trained practitioners who wish to practice in Australia
- Approving accreditation standards and accredited courses of study
How many areas of psychological practice are degrees offered in/ are PsyBA approved areas of endorsement?
9 areas:
- Clinical neuropsychology
- Clinical psychology
- Community psychology
- Counselling psychology
- Educational and developmental psychology
- Forensic psychology
- Health psychology
- Organisational psychology
- Sports and exercise psychology
What are the 8 core competencies training that a psychologists must meet as part of the pathways to becoming a registered psychologist?
- KNOWLEDGE OF THE DISCIPLINE:
- underpins all other
competencies and includes:
- knowledge of psychological principles, professional ethics and standards
- theories of individual and systematic functioning and change
- dysfunctional behavior
- psychopathology
- cultural bases of behavior and organisational systems - ETHICAL LEGAL AND PROFESSIONAL MATTERS:
- PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT AND MEASUREMENT:
- Use of appropriate psychometric tools that enable DESCRIPTION, CONCEPTUALIZATION, and PREDICTION of relevant aspects if a client’s functioning, behaviour and personality - INTERVENTION STRATEGIES:
- Activities that PROMOTE, RESTORE, SUSTAIN or ENHANCE cognitive functioning, emotional adjustment and a sense of wellbeing in individuals or groups of clients through:
- preventative
- developmental
- remedial services
- in groups or organisations - RESEARCH AND EVALUATION:
- The application of critical analysis to evaluate and apply findings from scientific publications in psychology to:
- working with clients
- evaluate and report on
interventions - COMMUNICATION & INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS
- appraise and interpret info orally, in writing, interact on professional level with client groups & other professionals - WORKING IN A CROSS-CULTURAL CONTEXT
- understanding of the competencies 1-6 to clients whose backgrounds differ from own - ATSI, non english backgrounds, age, gender, religious beliefs, sexual orientation & disabilities - PRACTICE ACROSS THE LIFESPAN
- understanding of competencies 1-6 applied to clients in:
- childhood
- adolescence
- adulthood
- late adulthood
What was the OLD (2003) APS definition of competency?
- Members shall bring and maintain appropriate skills and learning in their areas of professional practice
- Members must not misrepresent their competence, qualifications, training or experience
What is ethics?
- The study of moral principles that govern or should govern behaviour
- At an individual level: it relates to a persons principles, possibly unformulated, that underlie conduct
What are some moral foundations?
- Care: Harm
- Fairness: Cheating
- Loyalty: Betrayal
- Authority: Subversion
- Sanctity (Purity): Degradation
- Liberty: Oppression
What is the fundamental attribution error?
Our tendency to explain someones behaviour based on INTERNAL factors, such as personality or disposition, and to underestimate the influence of EXTERNAL factors, such as situational influences, have on another person’s behaviour
What is the Actor-Observer Bias?
The tendency to attribute own actions to EXTERNAL causes, while attributing other people’s behaviour to INTERNAL causes
What is motivated moral reasoning?
When a person’s decision-making skills are motivated to reach a specific moral conclusion
What is acculturation?
- process to change the cultural behaviour of an individual through contact with another culture
- process occurs when there is an adaption into an organisation or society
- can be a complex process
What is ethics acculturation?
- an outgrowth of positive ethics that integrates personal ethics and professional obligations
- psychology has a system of shared and distinctive norms, beliefs and traditions
- this set of beliefs is reflected in our ethics code
- some parts of a psychologist practice and lifestyle may be easily acculturated while others not
- process that will likely continue throughout the education or career as a psychologist
What are the 4 identification types in the acculturation model of ethical development?
Defined by the level of integration between professional vs personal ethics
- Integration
- Separation
- Assimilation
- Marginalization
What is “integration” according to the acculturation model of ethical development?
HIGH ID personal ethics x HIGH ID professional ethics
Implement values in context of professional roles
Reaching for the ethical ceiling
Aspirational ethics
What is “Assimilation” according to the acculturation model of ethical development?
LOW ID personal ethics x HIGH ID professional ethics
Risks: Developing an overly legalistic stance. Rigidly confirming to certain rules while missing broader issues
What is “Separation” according to the acculturation model of ethical development?
HIGH ID personal ethics x LOW ID professional ethics
Risks: Compassion overrides good professional judgement
Fail to recognize the unique role of psychologists
What is “Maginalization” according to the acculturation model of ethical development?
LOW ID personal ethics x LOW ID professional ethics
- Greatest risk of harm
- Lack of appreciation for ethics
- Motivated by self-interest
- Less concern for patients
