Psycho Snake Oil

[Supercharts]

"Pop quiz. Can you tell the difference between the following: A social psychologist, a clinical psychologist, a psychiatrist, a psychoanalyst and a psychotherapist? Eh... let me guess - you want more time. And therein lies the problem with the prefix - it suggests that all professions are one in the pursuit of knowledge about the workings of the mind, Not so fast, writes Carol Travis, a social psychologist, in The Chronicle of Higher Education. The difference between the first three and last two can be looked at as the difference between science and pseudoscience."

http://www.stats.org/logentrybrowse.jsp?type=logentry&date=true&orderby=date%20desc&limit=11&start=0

[Goshawk]

Eh, your link's not working for me.

[Supercharts]

Go to www.stats.org

[jasonmccoy]

Originally posted by Supercharts
"Pop quiz. Can you tell the difference between the following: A social psychologist, a clinical psychologist, a psychiatrist, a psychoanalyst and a psychotherapist? Eh... let me guess - you want more time. And therein lies the problem with the prefix - it suggests that all professions are one in the pursuit of knowledge about the workings of the mind, Not so fast, writes Carol Travis, a social psychologist, in The Chronicle of Higher Education. The difference between the first three and last two can be looked at as the difference between science and pseudoscience."

http://www.stats.org/logentrybrowse.jsp?type=logentry&date=true&orderby=date%20desc&limit=11&start=0

I couldn't agree with Travis more! As an Instructor of psychology, the task of helping students differentiate between science and pseudoscience is my first priority. While topics such as homeopathy, iridology, telepathy, and dowsing spark quite an interest, nothing has peaked my students curiosity for knowledge quite like the discussion I have aptly entitled "I know what's wrong with the mental health profession." This lecture explores the differences between liscensed professionals in the field of clinical psychology and all others who call themselves "psychotherapists." I also touch on utility! The idea that for psychology to remain a legitimate enterprise, it must give up it's romantic historical ties to Freud is visited!