The Role of Autonomous Agents in Training School Psychology Graduate Students

Abstract

Graduate training in helping professions, such as psychology, requires knowledge, skills, and competency in discipline specific knowledge, as well as interpersonal skills. School psychologists are unique professionals trained to work with children, families, and school staff in public schools. The profession requires critical communication competencies across all domains of practice, yet training programs remain stagnant in ways to teach, measure, and evaluate these competencies in innovative ways. Interdisciplinary collaboration between computer science and school psychology holds great promise in remediating these concerns and advancing training using technology. Specifically, mixed reality and artificial intelligence tools, such as an autonomous training agent (ATA), where students can practice verbal and non-verbal communication strategies during clinical situations has the ability to provide deliberate practice for students in the classroom setting prior to working with real clients.