Fall 2009                                                                                                                     Psychology 480

3 credits                                                                                                                           Dr. Norcross

                                      Field Experience in Clinical Settings

 

Catalog Description: (Prerequisites: Psychology major; junior or senior standing with priority given to seniors; a grade of C or higher in Psyc 225 and Psyc 360; permission of instructor. Prerequisite or co-requisite: Psych 335) This course entails supervised field experience in a mental-health or social-service facility in the community. Students are required to spend 8 hours a week at their placement and 1.5 hours a week in a seminar throughout the semester. The professor provides classroom instruction, and the on-site supervisor provides clinical supervision. Graded Satisfactory/ Unsatisfactory.

 

Faculty Information:

Instructor:                     John C. Norcross, PhD, ABPP, Professor of Psychology

Office hours:                 Mon 8:15 – 10:00, Tue 1:15 – 2:30, and by appointment

Office:                          224 Alumni Memorial Hall

Contact numbers:          941-7638 (office); norcross@scranton.edu (e-mail); 585-5726 (home)

Web page:                    http://academic.scranton.edu/faculty/norcross/

 

Required Texts:

 

Baird, B. N.  (2008). The internship, practicum, and field placement handbook (5th edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ:  Prentice Hall.

 

Kottler, J. A. (2003). On being a therapist (3rd edition). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

 

Norcross, J. C. (2009). Field experience in clinical settings: Readings and workbook.  University   of Scranton.

 

Course Goals: The goals of this course are multiple and occasionally competing. These are: to increase your didactic knowledge of the subject area; to apply psychological knowledge and methods to the "real world"; to evaluate your own values and attitudes in a clinical setting; to provide needed services to the community; to develop your interviewing, helping, and interpersonal skills; to enhance your critical thinking concerning clinical phenomena; to foster the ability to learn in a self‑directed fashion; to acquire a sustaining ethical perspective; to gain an understanding of the operation of mental health/social service agencies; to acquire an appreciation of the responsibilities of clinical work; and by extension, to clarify your own educational and occupational goals. 

 

In many ways, the field experience constitutes a "capstone" by which you integrate your learning within psychology and by which you explore your suitability for a career in a clinical setting.

 

Course Requirements: The nature of this course necessitates your responsible involvement in the practicum setting and your active participation in the weekly seminar.  The specific requirements are enumerated below. Careful reading and adherence to these will largely determine both the tangible and intangible rewards of this experience.


(1)  Attendance at all seminar meetings.

(2)  Punctual completion of assigned duties at your placement.  This commitment entails a minimum of 8 hours a week for at least 13 weeks (100 hours).

(3) Preparation for seminar meetings, including reading and written assignments prior to class.

(4) Documentation of your reactions and experiences throughout the semester in a journal.  Guidelines for the preparation of the journal are appended.        

(5) Visitation to two other placements accompanied by the students placed at those settings.

                                                                                                                                                           

Grades will be determined on the basis of completion of the aforementioned course requirements as reflected in your class performance, written assignments, and supervisor's evaluation. A satisfactory/ unsatisfactory grading system will be employed.

 

Course Outline and Assignments:

 

Date                                   Topics                                                         Assignments

Aug 24             Introduction and Getting Started                                    Exercise 1

                                                                                                            Beginning the Practicum

                                                                                                            B Chapter 1    

 

Aug 31             Ethics: Confidentiality                                                    B Chapters 2 and 3

                                                                                                            APA Ethical Principles

                                                                                                            Exceptions to Confidentiality

                                                                                                            Exercise 2

Sep 7               Labor Day; no class

 

Sep 14             Ethics: Relationships and Limitations                              B Chapter 3

                                                                                                             Professional Bill of Rights

                                                                                                            Four Elements of Malpractice

                                                                                                            Exercise 3

                                                                                                            Review Journal in class

 

Sep 21             Supervision; Process Approach                                    B Chapter 4

                                                                                                            Getting the Most Out

                                                                                                            Profiting from Supervision 

                                                                                                            How Therapists’ Therapy

                                                                                                            A Process Approach

                                                                                                            Exercise 4

                                                                                                           

Sep 28             Critical Thinking about Clinical Phenomena                    Exercise 5

 

Oct 5              Problem Emotions                                                        K Chapter 3

                                                                                                            Don't Be Fooled by Me

                                                                                                            Exercise 6

                                                                                                            Journal due

Oct 12             Fall Break; no class

 

Oct 19             Dealing with Difficult Clients                                          Personality Disorders

                                                                                                            B Chapter 8

                                                                                                            K Chapter 5

                                                                                                            Exercise 7

                                                                                                            Mid-Semester Evaluation

                                                                                                           

Oct 26             Giving and Receiving Criticism                                      K Chapter 1

                                                                                                            How We Shut People Up

                                                                                                            The Keyboard of Press

                                                                                                            Constructive Criticism

                                                                                                            Exercise 8

 

Nov 2              Satisfactions, Stressors, & Self-Care                             K Chapters 4 & 6

                                                                                                            Stressors & Satisfactions

                                                                                                            12 Self-Care Strategies

                                                                                                            Exercise 9

                                                                                                            Re-review Critical Thinking

Nov 9              Easter Monday; no class

 

 

Nov 16                        Responding Therapeutically to Anger                B Chapter 8

                                                                                                            When Patients Express Anger

                                                                                                            Exercise 10                             

                                                                                                            Supervisor Evaluations

 

Nov 23                        Responding Therapeutically to Sexual Attraction            K Chapter 9

                                                                                                            Concluding the Practicum

                                                                                                            Exercise 11

 

Nov 30                        Working with Diversity                                     B Chapter 5

                                                                                                            Exercise 12     

 

Dec 7               Finishing the Practicum                                                  K Chapter 7

                                                                                                            B Chapter 9 & 10

                                                                                                            Exercise 13

                                                                                                            Finish Placements

 

TBA                 Closure and Evaluation                                                 B Chapter 11

                                                                                                            Journal Due

                                                                                                            Self‑Study Due


                                                                                                                              Clinical Experience

                                                                                                               Dr. John Norcross

JOURNAL GUIDELINES

 

Obtain a notebook or a secure computer file/disk to use as your journal.  Immediately record your name, telephone number, and “Confidential” on it. Adhere to the principle of confidentiality in maintaining your journal. Do not write anything that would identify individual persons or institutions. This means no last names (use first names, initials or nicknames) and no agency identifications.  It should be shared only for purposes of learning and teaching, and then in a professional manner.

 

A field journal is a collection of notes on your observations, thoughts, questions and feelings about your off‑campus learning experience.  Like an anthropologist in the field, you will keep notes on the activities and people around you. 

 

Your journal will serve three major purposes: (1) as a method of organizing, reporting, and assimilating your clinical experience; (2) as a means of relating the assigned readings to your field experience; and (3) as an aid to self-exploration and self-growth.

 

At least once a week make a dated entry about your field work experiences.  Record the number of hours you spent at your placement that day, and maintain a running tally of the total number of hours.

 

Once a week in your journal relate your clinical experiences to the assigned readings (as explained in d below). 

 

The types of topics you can address include:

(a)   concrete details ‑ "what I did today," "what so‑and‑so did today," "what happened on the ward."  Concrete incidents that are revealing, amusing, disturbing or otherwise of interest.  You might even want to include details that are not so interesting but represent a change, e.g., new admission, high staff absenteeism, which may be significant over the long run.

 

(b)   your personal reactions ‑ "how I feel today," "my opinions about an incident," "my guesses about what will happen."  By recording each day your feelings and thoughts you will be able to look back at how relationships developed.  Retrospectively, it is more difficult to obtain an accurate and comprehensive picture of early reactions.

                                                      

(c)   analysis or insights  "how I conceptualize what happened," "it just occurred to me that," "changes occurring here or in me."  Typically, these are based on pertinent information from readings, class, and your placement.  You may have a question about something you have experienced, or something we discussed in class happened to you.  

 

(d)   relation to assigned readings - "I just experienced what I read about," "Just as Kottler described, "unlike the views expressed by Baird."  These entries can better integrate your clinical experience and intellectual learning.  A minimum of 13 of these is expected to appear in your journal throughout the semester; please star or number these in the margins.

        

One final word: Your journal, like any sort of writing, can be a useless piece of junk and an unpleasant chore to produce; or it can be an exciting record of your work and a dynamic exploration of yourself. The difference rests with your attitude toward writing it and the commitment you make to share yourself. Only in this way will it become a useful tool for reflection and conceptualization.

 

During the last few weeks of the practicum, I would like you to summarize your experiences at the placement and in the seminar.  This self‑study should include the following topics, numbered as such in your journal.  However, you are by no means limited to these, and you are encouraged to reflect on the entire experience.

 

1.    Review your fears and prejudices about the experience before it began. (Refer back to your responses to Exercise 1.)  Which of these were borne out?  Which were not?

 

2.    Discuss the development of your interpersonal relationships at the agency with clients, co‑workers, and supervisors.  What did you learn from these relationships?  What do you still have to learn?

 

3.    How did your field experience relate to and strengthen your previous course work in psychology,   if at all?  Please give specific examples.

 

4.    What have you learned about yourself personally and professionally from the entire experience? 

 

5.    What do you consider your biggest successes?  Your  worst frustrations? 

 

6.    Fill in the blanks and discuss the following:  (a) "If I were a therapist..." and (b) "If I were a supervisor..."

 

7.    Look back through your journal and attempt an overview of the semester.  Can you identify changes in your thinking and feeling over the semester?  How do you account for these changes?

 

8.    Where does this field experience leave you?  Lead you? Having evaluated the experience, what do you want to do next?  Has it altered or reinforced your career choice? 

 

 

Adapted in part from materials provided by Jim Dalton, Bloomsburg University, and Laurie Heatherington, Williams College.