Running Head: Facing Reality 1

Facing Reality

Diego Gandara

Lee High School

Facing Reality 2

The Story of My Search

More than 15 million American adults or about 6.7 percent of the U.S. population

age 18 and older, are diagnosed with depression, which can last about two years to 10

years (Screening for Mental Health, Inc.). Stress is one of the main causes of

depression, but psychology helps people get through their problems. My concern has

always consisted of worrying about the wellbeing of others. One day I was watching a

movie about a psychologist; she helped many people with their problems. As soon as I

discovered that psychologists does that, it got my attention.

Getting into psychology, I was already aware of some the basics. I know they

help people deal with their problems; they also tend to work long hours. Psychologists

are able to manage peoples issues and guide them to a better life. Other than that, I

dont know much about it.

As a teenager, I could be targeted by depression sooner or later. As the movie

continued, the psychologist came across a teenager that was highly depressed. The

teenager poured out his feelings and memories, the psychologist did what she had to

do, and soon enough the teenager ended with hope and tears. After seeing that my

interest got brighter because a victim of depression got all better by a single person.

Many questions popped into my head; I wanted to know more about psychology. What

is psychology? What types of topics does it cover? Are there specific questions or

strategies they use? How do I get into psychology? What is the salary?

As I was studying the profession, I made a list of what I was curious about.

During that process, I developed my research question: how effective are psychologists
Facing Reality 3

in society? Soon enough I found an answer to my question: psychologists are needed

all around the world. Psychologist help control peoples emotions. Without them people

would go crazy, being a threat in society. Psychologists are very effective and needed in

our society.

I began my research by finding out what psychology was and what it consists of.

I then looked up the types of topics it covered such as depression, marriage, emotions,

traumas and anxiety. During my research, I came upon questions psychologists usually

cover with their patients to make them comfortable. For example, psychologists would

ask a patient a question, and a follow-up question to figure out the situation.

Psychologists tend to talk calmly and have patience; they cant get irritated what the

patients feel and how long they take to talk about it. Soon enough, I came along the

salary which was high but depending where you live; it ranges from about $65,000 -

$100,000. All my research took about a week or so to gather.

During my research I learned many things about writing a research paper such

as it takes a time to gather information, many sources to study from, a whole lot of

writing and patience is key. Some specific skills I learned from my research were

communication, patience, and problem-solving. These skills helped me improve

personally by bettering my communication. Patience helped me personally by keeping

up with people and staying focused on the topic. Getting through to people, learning

their emotions and not becoming overwhelmed comes from problem-solving. These

specific skills are huge factors in this career and in everyone's daily lives.

Results of My Search
Facing Reality 4

We see and meet thousands of people everyday. We don't really know what goes

on throughout their day. Are they happy? Are they sad? Are they grieving? We come

across people who willingly go to others for help when theyre in their lowest stage.

Those who are willing to take in people's feelings and emotions are psychologists.

Psychologists are needed in any part of the world to help people with their problems.

They are needed to control people's emotions, without psychology people would go

crazy making them a threat, they make the environment safer because people know

how to deal with their feelings with no issue. During my research I evaluated my

research by discovering what psychology is, how much education it takes, where it

takes place, pros/cons, and what the salary is consists of.

Psychologists help many people with different situations due to their mental

illnesses. Psychologists undertake many techniques to assist their patients, such as

counseling, researching, psychotherapy, conducting a personality test, and also by

teaching in colleges or universities. An example of a type of psychologists would be a

licensed social worker or a counselor, which are located in companies, they help the

workers with their needs. Theyre there to talk to the workers issues and help them get

through them. All Star Directories, Inc. talks about psychology and they state They help

people overcome fears and anxiety, relate better to friends, family, and colleagues, and

generally lead better lives. Theyre many different types of psychologists but all tend to

help the people with their problems to better themselves.

Becoming a psychologists takes many years and patience. Depending on your

psychology practice youre required to earn your bachelors, masters, followed by a

license and a doctorate. This all takes about 5-7 years to be a certified psychologist.
Facing Reality 5

There are a number of specializations that you can choose from including clinical,

counseling, industrial- organizational, educational, development, experimental and

social psychology (CMU 2017). Many different types of psychology but some require

more and some less schooling. Psychiatrists are one of the professions of psychology

that need more education, which include more privileges such as prescribing patients

with medicine. All psychology professions have different schooling ranges and have

different privileges.

Psychologists are needed anywhere in the world, they are located in different

parts of the world. Location and comfort is a huge factor in psychology, beleive it or not

psychologists arent just stuck in some random office of their company. They decide

where they want to be located depending on their company or their own business. They

also decide how they want to be located, comfort is key.Psychologists work in

environments thats cozy and comfy, for themselves and their patients to feel at home

and relax.Approximately two thirds of all psychologists are self employed and maintain

a private practice (All Star Directories, Inc.). Psychologists are most likely to start their

own business, this is convenient to them and their patients. Patients and psychologists

schedule their appointments when theyre both available.

Psychologists have advantages and disadvantages of their own. They have the

opportunity to start their own business which is a huge factor, you are your own boss.

Its no restaurant or product, they can even do it in their own home to start off!

Psychology also offers many benefits such as challenging your own beliefs, learning

new things everyday, meeting new people, and improving in problem solving skills.

Theres also disadvantages to a psychologist, dealing with peoples emotions and their
Facing Reality 6

past can affect one as a whole. Patients knowing where you live could be dangerous,

they can show up whenever they want and can be violent. You have to provide yourself

with healthcare and all those benefits a company would provide for you. Psychology has

advantages and disadvantages but something no other company or business can

provide is the ability to care for their clients as much as a psychologist.

Salary affects many jobs you might go for but for a psychologist you make that

happen yourself. .... it is important to remember that actual come depends on upon a

variety of factors including geographic location, sector of employment, educational

background, and years of experience (All Star Directories, Inc.) In the psychology field

the highest salary you can make is about $200,000 per year, which is a psychiatrist. In

average a psychologist pay can range from 50k-150k per year, depending on your

situation if you work for a company or you started your own business. Location and

education affects the salary, depending where you live and how long you went to school

for. A different state offers more money because of the population, the more people the

more problems theyll be. As much as schooling, if you went longer you will get paid

more. The salary all depends on you, you have to make things happen yourself. You

have to act now.

After doing my research, I came to a conclusion that there is a lot of ways of how

psychologists effect society. During my research I came across the many techniques

psychologists use. Ten years is the maximum schooling for my profession in order to get

certified. I believe this profession is the right fit for my personality but I know I wouldnt

have the patience to constantly deal with other peoples problems. During my research I

evaluated my research by discovering what psychology is, how much education it takes,
Facing Reality 7

where it takes place, pros/cons, and what the salary is consists of. Psychologists are

very effective and needed in our society.

Reflections on My Search

Researching took time and effort but after reviewing my work I realized ive

learned a lot. For one thing, the research taught me to use my time wisely and be

patient with finding information. I gathered knowledge learning to set up and write out a

research paper. Developing the skill of focus, not only to be used for my project but also

in real life situations. I learned to evaluate my sources from web sites. In addition to

these academic benefits, collecting enough information led me to fully understand how

effective psychologists are in society.

Works Cited

All Star Directories, Inc. (2017). Learn how to become a psychologist. All Psychology

Schools.

Retrieved from http://www.allpsychologyschools.com/clinical

-psychology/how-to-become-a-psychologist/.

All Star Directories, Inc. (2017). Psychology schools. All Psychology Schools.

Retrieved from http://www.allpsychologyschools.com/clinical-psychology

/how-to-become-a-psychologist/#schools.
Facing Reality 8

All Star Directories, Inc. (2017). Psychologists vs psychiatrists. All Psychology

Schools.

Retrieved from http://www.allpsychologyschools.com/clinical-psycholog

y/how-to-become-a-psychologist/#psych.

All Star Directories, Inc. (2017). The benefits of a psychology degree. All Psychology

Schools.

Retrieved from http://www.allpsychologyschools.com/clinical-psychology

/how-to-become-a-psychologist/#benefits.

All Star Directories, Inc. (2017). Different types of therapists and counselors. All

Psychology Schools.

Retrieved from http://www.allpsychologyschools.com/clinical-psychology

/how-to-become-a-psychologist/#type.

All Star Directories, Inc. (2017). Where do psychologists work?. All Psychology

Schools.

Retrieved from http://www.allpsychologyschools.com/clinical-psychology

/how-to-become-a-psychologist/#work.

All Star Directories, Inc. (2017). Psychology: the future is up to you. All Psychology

Schools.

Retrieved from http://www.allpsychologyschools.com/clinical-psychology

/how-to-become-a-psychologist/#future.

All Star Directories, Inc. (2017). Differences between phd, psyd, eds and edd degrees.

All Psychology Schools.

Retrieved from http://www.allpsychologyschools.com/clinical-psychology

Facing Reality 9

/how-to-become-a-psychologist/#degree.

Bourget, D. Chalmers, D. (2017) Revolution in psychology: alienation to emancipation.

PhilPapers.

Retreived from https://philpapers.org

/rec/PARRIP.

Central Michigan University. (n.d.). About us. Cmichi.edu.

Retrieved from https://www.cmich.edu/colleges/chsbs/Psychology

/AboutUs/Pages/default.aspx.

Cherry, K. (2016). The 9 highest paying psychology careers. VeryWell.

Retrieved from https://www.verywell.com/the-9-highest-paying

-psychology-careers-2794940.

J. Yeh, Christine. G. Inman, A. (2007). Qualitative data analysis and interpretation in

counseling psychology: strategies for best practices. The Counseling Psychologist.

Retrieved from http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/

10.1177/0011000006292596.

Powell, J. Jurling, J. (2017) How to become a psychologists in 5 steps. Learn.org.

Retrieved from http://learn.org/articles/Psychologist_How_to_

Become_a_Psychologist_in_5_Steps.html.

Screening for Mental Health, Inc. (2016). About. National depression screening day.

Retrieved from https://mentalhealthscreening.org

/programs/ndsd.