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To clear up complicated personal relationships, to cope with addiction, to feel more confident, to survive grief, to change our life… With such requests, each of us can seek the advice of a specialist. But the question is: with which of the professionals will the work be more effective? Let’s try to figure out the difference between a psychologist and a psychotherapist and a psychiatrist.
Many people confuse psychologists and psychotherapists. Let’s face it: the specialists themselves do not always share their tasks and cannot always clearly explain the difference between counseling with a psychologist and therapy sessions. For example, counseling masters Rollo May and Carl Rogers viewed these processes as interchangeable.
In fact, all of these professionals are engaged in «healing conversations», come into direct contact with the client to help him change his attitudes and behavior.
“It used to be customary to call “counseling” single and superficial contacts,” notes Carl Rogers, “and more intense and prolonged contacts aimed at a deep reorganization of the personality were designated by the term “psychotherapy” … But it is clear that intensive and successful counseling is no different from intensive and successful psychotherapy»1.
However, there are reasons for their differentiation. Let’s try to see the difference between specialists.
The difference between a psychologist and a psychotherapist and a psychiatrist
One of the psychologists in social networks jokingly defined the difference as follows: “If you look at a person who makes you angry, you can’t express your feelings and think“ hit him on the head with a frying pan! ”- you need a psychologist. If you have already brought a frying pan over his head, you should see a psychotherapist. If you are already banging on his head with a frying pan and you can’t stop, it’s time to see a psychiatrist.”
Psychologist-consultant
This is a specialist with a higher psychological education, but he has not been trained in psychotherapy and does not have a standard certificate that allows him to engage in psychotherapeutic activities.
The psychologist conducts consultations, where he helps the client to understand some kind of life situation, usually associated with interpersonal relationships. Psychological counseling can be limited to one meeting and the analysis of one specific topic, for example, “the child is lying”, “my husband and I constantly swear”, or several meetings can continue, usually up to 5-6.
In the process of work, the psychologist helps his visitor to understand thoughts, feelings, needs, scenarios, so that there is clarity and the ability to purposeful and meaningful actions. His main means of influence is a conversation built in a certain way.1.
Psychotherapist
This is a specialist with a higher medical and (or) psychological education. He has received training in psychotherapy (at least 3-4 years) which includes personal therapy and work under the supervision of a qualified specialist. The psychotherapist works in a certain method (“Gestalt therapy”, “cognitive-behavioral therapy”, “existential psychotherapy”), using various techniques.
Psychotherapy is designed mainly to solve the deep personal problems of a person, which underlie most of his life’s difficulties and conflicts. It involves working with trauma, as well as with pathology and borderline conditions, but using psychological methods.
“Clients of a counseling psychologist usually emphasize the negative role of others in the emergence of their own life difficulties,” writes Yulia Aleshina. Deep work oriented clients are more likely to worry about their own inability to control and regulate their inner states, needs, and desires.
Those who turn to a psychotherapist often talk about their problems like this: “I can’t control myself, I’m very quick-tempered, I constantly yell at my husband” or “I am very jealous of my wife, but I’m not sure about her betrayal.”
In a conversation with a psychotherapist, not only the actual situations of the client’s relationship are touched upon, but also his past — the events of distant childhood, youth
Psychotherapy, like counseling, implies a non-drug, that is, psychological impact. But the process of therapy lasts incomparably longer and is focused on dozens or even hundreds of meetings over a number of years.
In addition, the psychologist and psychotherapist may refer a client suspected of having a psychiatric diagnosis to a psychiatrist, or work with the latter in tandem.
Psychiatrist
This is a specialist with a higher medical education. What is the difference between a psychiatrist and a psychotherapist? A psychiatrist is a doctor who determines if a patient has a mental disorder. He diagnoses and treats those whose emotional state or perception of reality is disturbed, whose behavior harms the person or other people. Unlike a psychologist and psychotherapist (who does not have a medical education), he has the right to prescribe and prescribe medications.
Psychoanalyst
This is a psychotherapist who owns the method of psychoanalysis, a member of the International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA). Psychoanalytic education takes at least 8-10 years and includes theoretical and clinical training, many years of personal analysis (at least 3 times a week) and regular supervision.
The analysis lasts very long, on the average 4 7 years. Its main goal is to help the patient become aware of his unconscious conflicts (in which the causes of his behavioral and emotional difficulties are hidden) and to gain a mature «I». A lighter version of the analysis is psychoanalytic therapy (up to 3-4 years). In short, counselling.
A consulting psychoanalyst differs from a psychologist in that he uses psychoanalytic ideas and techniques, analyzes dreams and associations. An important feature of his work is a special attention to the relationship with the client, the analysis of which in terms of transference and countertransference is considered one of the most important means of deepening and expanding the possibilities of influence.
Analysis of the deep layers of the psyche leads to an understanding of the causes of pathogenic experiences and behavior and contributes to the solution of personal problems
Psychologists, psychotherapists and psychoanalysts use different approaches and techniques and do not always speak the same language. And yet they share one goal, which the existential psychotherapist Rollo May formulated as follows: “The task of the consultant is to lead the client to take responsibility for his actions and for the final result of his life.”
3 books on the topic:
1 Carl Rogers Counseling and Psychotherapy
2 Yulia Aleshina «Individual and family psychological counseling»