Attainment of Competencies in Clinical Psychology Training: Ways Forward in the Australian Context

Pachana, Nancy A.; Sofronoff, Kate; Scott, Theresa; Helmes, Edward

doi:10.1111/j.1742-9544.2011.00029.x

Cited by 36 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Popular assessment tasks such as multiple-choice, short-answer, and essay assignments may be appropriate tasks to measure knowledge competence but be incapable of capturing progress in skills, relationship, and attitude-value competencies Pachana et al, 2011). This deficiency is probably most pronounced in the assessment of competencies in field placements.…”

Section: Measurement Of Competence and Competenciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of psychology competencies in field placements: Standardized vignettes reduce rater bias.

Gonsalvez¹,

Bushnell²,

Blackman³

et al. 2013

Training and Education in Professional Psychology

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Supervisors' ratings of psychology trainees' competence in field settings are a critical component of training assessment. There has been little systematic research regarding the validity of these assessments, but the available evidence suggests we have a problem! Supervisors' judgments may be affected by systemic biases that pose a serious threat to assessment credibility. The current study is part of a research collaboration among six universities that endeavors to develop and evaluate a new method the use of vignettes against outcomes derived from a conventional rating scale. Individual vignettes were designed and subjected to a rigorous process of peer-review and revisions, before final vignettes were assigned calibration scores by a group of experts. A catalogue of vignettes (n = 41) that represent various domains of competence across several developmental stages was compiled. University and field supervisors used the conventional rating scale and the vignette-matching procedure (VMP) to evaluate competencies at end-placement. Data from a pilot (n = 20) and a follow-up study (n = 57) suggest that compared with a conventional rating scale, the VMP reduced leniency and halo biases. The VMP has the potential to improve outcomes of competency assessments in field placements and merits further research and development.

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Section: Measurement Of Competence and Competenciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of psychology competencies in field placements: Standardized vignettes reduce rater bias.

Gonsalvez¹,

Bushnell²,

Blackman³

et al. 2013

Training and Education in Professional Psychology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…There is general agreement among clinical psychology educators on the importance of developing and evaluating core competencies in clinical psychology training (Borden & McIlvried, 2010;Ducheny, 2010;Nelson, 2007;Pachana, Sofronoff, Scott, & Helmes, 2011). This emphasis on a competency-based model enables training programs to provide systematic assurance that their graduates are fit to practice.…”

Section: What This Paper Addsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Crooks, Kane, and Cohen (1996) suggested that major threats to test validity can occur at the administration stage of an assessment. Recently, Pachana et al (2011) reported on the use of a similar competency assessment process called the Multi-station Assessment Tasks (MSAT) in the clinical psychology program at the University of Queensland. Accordingly, investigations into students' feelings and attitudes following an assessment are important sources of information about the usability of an assessment.…”

Section: What Is the Osce?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Clinical Psychology Students’ Experiences of a Pilot Objective Structured Clinical Examination

Yap

Bearman

Thomas

et al. 2012

Australian Psychologist

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There is a need to improve methods used to assess students’ clinical skills in postgraduate clinical psychology training, but research into the use of new competency‐based assessments are sparse. The current study examines the potential application of the objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) to clinical psychology training. Commonly used in medical training, the OSCE requires students to demonstrate clinical skills across a number of standardised stations with trained actors playing the part of patients. A pilot OSCE was conducted with nine students from a psychology doctoral program. Participants completed a brief student feedback questionnaire and attended a focus group after the OSCE. They also completed the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory before and after the OSCE. The results showed that students viewed the OSCE as a valid, realistic, and fair assessment method. They reported high levels of anxiety during the OSCE but noted that the OSCE was a positive learning experience. These results suggest that OSCEs should be considered in clinical psychology training programs for the assessment of clinical competence. Further evaluations of the validity and reliability of the clinical psychology OSCE using a larger sample size are required. Other limitations and implications of the study are discussed.

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“…Ahmed & Pillay, 2004). All fall within the internationally dominant scientist-practitioner model (Pachana, Sofronoff, Scott, & Helmes, 2011) but may differ in terms of their theoretical orientation. There is a greater disparity in how established some programmes are relative to others.…”

Section: Clinical Psychology Training In South Africamentioning

confidence: 99%

Clinical psychology training in South Africa: A call to action

Pillay

Ahmed

Bawa

2013

South African Journal of Psychology

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With the profession of clinical psychology and its formal training programmes less than 40 years old in South Africa, it is important that efforts are made to critically examine its challenges and the extent to which it is meeting the prevailing mental health needs. The profession has gone through a chequered history in South Africa and needs to look at how it realigns its goals and practices, to be in tune with the imperatives of democracy, and to ensure that mental health benefits accrue to all of the country's people, rather than a minority. To this end, the authors examine training issues, such as recruitment, curricula, and future directions. We assert that a clinical psychology that draws from current resources and foregrounds a primary health-care orientation can start to address some of the challenges facing training in South Africa. KeywordsMental health, primary health care, psychologist, psychology, training Although professional psychology is not new in South Africa, it is still relatively young, considering formal training in the sub-disciplines (e.g., clinical psychology) began less than 40 years ago. The field straddles both apartheid and post-apartheid eras and carries a significant history that has affected its development and recognition nationally and internationally. With the demise of apartheid, the accessibility of mental health training and services to all aspirant students and academics, as well as in the development and production of psychological and mental health knowledge, by a wider group of researchers is crucial.South African psychology has come a long way, from its tainted history of association with apartheid (Cooper, Nicholas, Seedat, & Statman, 1990) to the point of organising and hosting the 2012 International Congress of Psychology (ICP 2012) and welcoming to its shores psychology colleagues from around the world. It is, therefore, an appropriate time to reflect on how South African psychology can consolidate some of the gains and focus on further developing clinical psychology training within the context of present day and historical challenges. Although research

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Attainment of Competencies in Clinical Psychology Training: Ways Forward in the Australian Context

Cited by 36 publications

References 29 publications

Assessment of psychology competencies in field placements: Standardized vignettes reduce rater bias.

Assessment of psychology competencies in field placements: Standardized vignettes reduce rater bias.

Clinical Psychology Students’ Experiences of a Pilot Objective Structured Clinical Examination

Clinical psychology training in South Africa: A call to action

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