desirable course of action selected. Assessment,
whether through observation, testing, or interview-
ing, is a way of gathering information so that an
important question can be answered or so that a
problem can be solved. These questions or pro-
blems are virtually infinite in variety, as the forego-
ing examples suggest. Assessment has long been a
critical part of the clinical psychologist’s role.
Indeed, for many years, assessment, especially test-
ing, was the chief element in the clinician’s profes-
sional identity.
Teaching. Clinical psychologists who have full-
or part-time academic appointments obviously
devote a considerable amount of time to teaching.
Those whose responsibilities are primarily in the
area of graduate education teach courses in
advanced psychopathology, psychological testing,
interviewing, intervention, personality theory,
developmental psychopathology, and so on. Some
of them may also teach undergraduate courses such
as introductory psychology, personality, abnormal
psychology, introduction to clinical psychology,
psychological testing, and others. Even clinicians
whose primary appointments are in clinics or hos-
pitals or who operate a private practice sometimes
teach evening courses at a nearby college or univer-
sity or may even have part-time appointments in
graduate programs to help teach or supervise stu-
dents working towards their doctoral degree.
Much of this teaching is of the familiar
classroom-lecture type. But a considerable amount
of teaching is also done on a one-to-one, supervi-
sory basis. Clinical psychologists in clinical settings
may also teach informal classes or do orientation
work with other mental health personnel, such as
nurses, aides, social workers, occupational thera-
pists, and so on. In some cases, the clinician may
go out into the community and lead workshops on
various topics for police officers, volunteers, minis-
ters, probation officers, and others.
Clinical Supervision. Clinical supervision is
really another form of teaching. However, it typi-
cally involves more one-to-one teaching, small
group approaches, and other less formal, non-
classroom varieties of instruction. Whether in uni-
versity, internship, or general clinical settings, clini-
cal psychologists often spend significant portions of
their time supervising students, interns, and others.
Becoming skilled in the intricacies of therapy and
assessment techniques requires more than just read-
ing textbooks. It also involves seeing clients and
then discussing their cases with a more experienced
supervisor. In short, one learns by doing, but under
the controlled and secure conditions of a trainee–
supervisor relationship. This kind of“practicum”
teaching and supervision can occur both in univer-
sity and internship settings and in postdoctoral pro-
grams as well.Research. Clinical psychology has grown out of
an academic research tradition. As a result, when
clinical training programs were first established
after World War II, the scientist-practitioner
model was adopted. This meant that, in contrast
to other mental health workers such as psychiatrists
or social workers, all clinicians were to be trained
as scientists and as practitioners. This model was
not adopted because it was expected that all
clinical psychologists would engage in both clini-
cal and research work with equal emphasis, but
rather because it was believed that to be an effec-
tive clinical psychologist, one must have expertise
in “thinking like a scientist.” The scientist-
practitioner model suggests that clinical work is
enhanced by a knowledge of scientific methods,
and research is improved by exposure to clinical
practice. Although the research emphasis may not
be so prominent in some“scientist-practitioner”
training programs as it once was, the fact remains
that clinical psychologists are in a unique position
both to evaluate research conducted by others and
to conduct their own research. By virtue of their
training in research, their extensive experience
with people in distress, and their knowledge of
both therapy and assessment, clinical psychologists
have the ability to consume and to produce new
knowledge.
The range of research projects carried out by
clinicians is enormous. Studies include searching for
the causes of mental disorders, development andCLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY: AN INTRODUCTION 15