What does a staff psychologist do?
A staff psychologist is responsible for monitoring patients with mental health conditions and conducting counseling services to observe their behaviors and diagnose their developmental disorders. Staff psychologists develop treatment plans and administer medications for the patients and may also facilitate referrals to other institutions and medical professionals for further examinations. They utilize necessary resources, especially therapy programs, to manage the patients' conditions and document their progress during each session. A staff psychologist seeks advice from other mental health experts to identify case management concepts and assessments.
Staff psychologist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real staff psychologist resumes:
- Provide psychological therapy for children with autism spectrum disorder, deficit/hyperactive disorder, specific learning disorder and others mental diagnosis.
- Provide consultation regarding appropriate placement/treatment of juveniles in the DJJ system.
Staff psychologist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 14% of Staff Psychologists are proficient in Patients, Group Therapy, and Crisis Intervention. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Integrity.
We break down the percentage of Staff Psychologists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 14%
Provided crisis interventions, including writing and implementing behavior management plans/contracts for patients in crisis.
- Group Therapy, 8%
Provide psychological services including intake interviews, individual therapy, and group therapy to the university population.
- Crisis Intervention, 7%
Provided individual therapy and crisis intervention to a diverse group of adult and adolescent college students.
- Veterans, 6%
Collaborate with psychiatrists to provide comprehensive care for Veterans.
- Treatment Planning, 5%
Administered and interpreted personality testing to aid in differential diagnosis and treatment planning for complex cases.
- Social Work, 5%
Provided direct clinical supervision to unlicensed psychologists, social work residents and MH technicians.
"patients," "group therapy," and "crisis intervention" are among the most common skills that staff psychologists use at work. You can find even more staff psychologist responsibilities below, including:
Analytical skills. One of the key soft skills for a staff psychologist to have is analytical skills. You can see how this relates to what staff psychologists do because "psychologists must examine the information they collect and draw logical conclusions." Additionally, a staff psychologist resume shows how staff psychologists use analytical skills: "provided training in the assessment of substance abuse issues and led the data collection and statistical analyses of the project. "
Communication skills. Many staff psychologist duties rely on communication skills. "psychologists must have strong communication skills because they spend much of their time listening to and speaking with patients or describing their research.," so a staff psychologist will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways staff psychologist responsibilities rely on communication skills: "maintained ongoing communication with medical & administrative staff re patients' status. "
Integrity. staff psychologists are also known for integrity, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to staff psychologist responsibilities, because "psychologists must keep patients’ problems in confidence, and patients must be able to trust psychologists’ expertise in treating sensitive problems." A staff psychologist resume example shows how integrity is used in the workplace: "manage all aspects of small business/ private practice ownership in alignment with ethical guidelines. "
Interpersonal skills. For certain staff psychologist responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "interpersonal skills." The day-to-day duties of a staff psychologist rely on this skill, as "psychologists study and help individuals, so they must be able to work well with clients, patients, and other professionals." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what staff psychologists do: "ensured effective communication and interpersonal skills when interacting with patients, families, physician, and the interdependent care team. "
Patience. Another common skill required for staff psychologist responsibilities is "patience." This skill comes up in the duties of staff psychologists all the time, as "psychologists must demonstrate patience, because conducting research or treating patients may take a long time." An excerpt from a real staff psychologist resume shows how this skill is central to what a staff psychologist does: "interviewed patients and their families to collect full information on patience's case. "
Problem-solving skills. Lastly, "problem-solving skills" is an important element of what a staff psychologist does. Staff psychologist responsibilities require this skill because "psychologists need problem-solving skills to collect information, design research, evaluate programs, and find treatments or solutions to mental and behavioral problems." This resume example highlights how staff psychologist duties rely on this skill: "provide crisis intervention / resolution strategies and services. "
The three companies that hire the most staff psychologists are:
- Partners Healthcare Solutions Inc
4 staff psychologists jobs
- Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center3 staff psychologists jobs
- NC.gov2 staff psychologists jobs
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Compare different staff psychologists
Staff psychologist vs. Clinical fellow
Clinical fellows are doctoral-level health professionals whose interest focuses on biomedical research. They take part in protocol-based clinical research and laboratory research. Their significant role in research leads them to a higher academic degree. Usually, they conduct research for 2-3 hours. They have completed their general residency, and train in health specialties like oncology or cardiology. They examine and treat patients, execute medical procedures, and complete patient charts.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between staff psychologists and clinical fellow. For instance, staff psychologist responsibilities require skills such as "treatment planning," "apa," "psychological services," and "clinical services." Whereas a clinical fellow is skilled in "surgery," "patient care," "asha," and "medicaid." This is part of what separates the two careers.
The education levels that clinical fellows earn slightly differ from staff psychologists. In particular, clinical fellows are 14.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a staff psychologist. Additionally, they're 12.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Staff psychologist vs. Eating disorder specialist
Clinical psychology interns are responsible for assisting the clinical psychology staff by utilizing their academic knowledge to practical applications. A clinical psychology intern observes the daily operations in a health care facility, shadows medical staff, and prepares reports for clinical psychology processes or psychological research. The interns perform administrative and clerical duties as needed, including responding to the patients' inquiries and concerns, joining psychology professionals on conducting counseling and therapies, and interpreting patients' behaviors and practices.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, staff psychologist responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "patients," "group therapy," "veterans," and "treatment planning." Meanwhile, an eating disorder specialist has duties that require skills in areas such as "community organizations," "community resources," "substance abuse treatment," and "health professionals." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Eating disorder specialists tend to reach higher levels of education than staff psychologists. In fact, they're 7.9% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 12.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for staff psychologists in the next 3-5 years?
Dr. Jim Sliwinski Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Psychology, Defiance College
Staff psychologist vs. Clinical psychology internship
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a staff psychologist is likely to be skilled in "group therapy," "treatment planning," "social work," and "rehabilitation," while a typical clinical psychology internship is skilled in "group therapy sessions," "behavioral interventions," "cognitive behavioral therapy," and "clinical interviews."
Most clinical psychology interns achieve a higher degree level compared to staff psychologists. For example, they're 10.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 28.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Staff psychologist vs. Licensed psychologist director
Types of staff psychologist
Updated January 8, 2025
