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I recently participated in the Northeastern Conference on the Teaching of Psychology (NECToP), which was held at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine. One of my colleagues, Jane S. Halonen of the University of West Florida, gave the keynote address for the conference. During her talk, Dr Halonen raised an important issue that often gets ignored in discussions of teaching psychology: What should faculty members do about students who are not succeeding as psychology majors? In effect, should we steer them to some other major? The answer is “yes” if they are not thriving in the psychology major.
There are a variety of reasons that some students don’t thrive in psychology. These include:
Poor performance in research methods and statistics. The discipline of psychology relies on carefully designed experiments and interventions aimed at explaining the causes of all kinds of behavior. An important part of being a psychology major is learning to understand the importance of research methods and data analysis in the research process. An inability to understand research—understanding original studies in psychology journals, for example—will derail success in upper level courses. So will a lack of interest in conducting research (many psychology departments require students to do research projects in courses) or doing data analysis. In fact, a lack of understanding of basic statistics—doing data analysis and interpreting the results--will compromise a student’s ability to really benefit from an education in psychology.
An unwillingness to view psychology as a science. Psychology isn’t just a “social science.” On an increasing number of campuses, it is part of the natural or STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) disciplines. It’s been called a hub science because psychology connects readily to so many related fields, borrowing and building on the methods and theories found therein. If a student “doesn’t like science” then he or she won’t do well in psychology.
Possessing nothing but a free-floating goal to “help people.” Psychology is a big tent—only a few areas deal with the important practice side of the discipline. Many other areas deal with research or the application of psychological ideas. The competition to gain admission to a quality clinical program in psychology is stiff—as or more challenging than gaining admission to medical school. A loose desire to “counsel” people or help them with their “problems” is unlikely to lead to a satisfying career or an open set of opportunities.
Belief that an undergraduate degree allows one to be a “psychologist.” An undergraduate degree in psychology provides students with a variety of skills, but counseling is not one of them. To become a counselor, a graduate degree is required. To earn the title “psychologist,” a Ph.D. or a Psy.D. or an Ed.D. or some other advanced degree is required. Speak with some tough love: Undergrads cannot do therapy or become counselors unless grad school is in the cards.
Failure to transfer skills acquired in the major to the real world. Being a psychology major is a terrific academic choice but only if the student is willing to actively apply skills acquired in the classroom to real world contexts. Thus, reasoning, writing, public speaking, data analysis and interpretation, the ability to conduct and evaluate research, and so on, are all key skills that can transfer to the world of work. However, this transfer only happens if and when the student works to identify and leverage such connections in the workplace.
Lack of curiosity or an inability to tolerate ambiguity. Good psychology majors can become excellent professionals in a variety of careers if they are curious. If some “puzzle” or odd observation comes their way, then they should be quick to pursue and explain it. If they assume that Truth with a capital “T” already exists where the science of behavior is concerned, then they will be sorely disappointed. Scientific findings are provisional—the search for deeper, more detailed knowledge continues. Uncertainty is a familiar companion in the exercise of psychological research and practice. If such ambiguity can’t be accepted, then choosing psychology is not a good idea.
During her talk, Halonen indicated that psychology faculty members need to become more courageous to help our students, our discipline, and the work force, by speaking bluntly. If a student elects to be a psychology major for the wrong reason(s) and/or is floundering or failing in his or her studies, then we must be both candid and courageous by encouraging the student to rethink the major. Think about it: A mediocre or poor showing in one’s college major is never a good thing—it breeds discontent during the experience and leads to limited opportunities after graduation. Steering students to other majors that are a better fit or that don’t require the same set of rigorous standards (i.e., research methods, data analysis, empirical work, science) is appropriate.
Halonen urged, as do I, that we begin the conversation for an exit strategy sooner rather than later, that is, when performance begins to go south. Good teachers are good—and candid and honest—advisers. Waiting to “have the talk” when a plunge in a grade point average or self-esteem occurs is unwise. Better to be candid and courageous early on—and telling people what they may not want to hear requires courage. There would be more happy psychology majors in the world—and workplace—if more of us were candid, and better outcomes for all would likely result.
