Are you thinking about getting a community psychology degree? Community psychology is about looking beyond the individual and seeing how the overall health of the community interacts with health on a personal level.
Human beings are not isolated. When they suffer from problems such as drug addiction, depression, suicide attempts or homelessness, the entire community suffers along with them. Drug addicts often steal from innocent citizens to support their addiction. Those who attempt suicide sometimes physically injure others in the process, and this is on top of the emotional injury that the community endures if they actually succeed in ending their lives. Underage pregnancy puts unfair pressure on the surrounding community and often hinders the young parents from attending college. All of these things put a collective stress on the community, and community psychologists work to find ways to use the study of the human mind to combat these issues.
What Does a Community Psychologist Do?
Community psychologists provide a number of valuable services, including:
- Consulting with organizations to find better ways of working through social problems.
- Working with scientific organizations to help gain an understanding of how society as a whole effects individuals and communities.
- Creating and developing new programs that can improve psychological health.
- Collaborating with community groups and organizations to solve specific issues within the community. For example, an abnormally high rate of teen pregnancy or drug abuse.
- Analyzing community or workplace interactions to increase diversity, tolerance, acceptance and communication.
Sponsored School(s)
What Are Some Careers in Community Psychology?
Earning a community psychology degree will leave you with a lot of great career options. Aside from working directly with mental health organizations, you could also work at schools, advocacy organizations, government agencies and private companies. A degree in community psychology will allow you to learn about an overall field and then narrow your interests down as you progress in your career. Some people discover their niche right away, and others choose to test out a variety of areas before finding an aspect of community psychology they would like to focus on.
What are the Educational Requirements for Community Psychologists?
Your first step is getting your four-year degree in psychology. You might be able to find a school that offers a specific four-year community psychology degree. If not, you can study it during graduate school. While it might be possible to find an entry-level job with only a four-year degree, you will need to consider earning a Master’s or possibly a Doctorate degree if you want to go as far as possible. Those with high-level degrees have the potential to become well known throughout the world of community psychology.