Psy 480 Week 5 Final

Running Head: Personal Interview and Response 1

Personal Interview and Response 1

Personal Interview and Response

Moses Sandoval

Psy480

October 16, 2018

Dr. Darriel McWhorter

Stacey Campos, Masters Degree in Psychology, Qualified Autism Service Professional, 5 years

Dr. Kennedy, Masters Degree in Psychology, Behavioral Psychologist/Faculty, 10 years

· In what setting do you practice? How long have you been practicing?

Stacey: I have been in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis for 5 years. In which ABA is an applied

psychology. 

Dr. Kennedy: I practice in the hospital setting. I have been practicing a total of 10 years, 3 of which

have been independently.

· What are your specialties or areas of clinical focus?

Stacey: We focus on teaching functional and social skills using reinforcement strategies. All of our

programs are client specific and all programs are scientifically validated.

Dr. Kennedy: My specialty was Clinical Forensic Psychology, evaluating and treating for the criminal

justice system.

· What are the most common disorders you treat?

Stacey: I provide in-home services to those who are diagnosed with autism and related disabilities.

The most common disorder we provide behavioral health treatment to are children

diagnosed with Autism.

Dr. Kennedy: The 3 most common disorders are Schizophrenia, Manic Depressive Disorder and

PTSD.

· Do you have any special certifications or training beyond your original graduate coursework?

Stacey: I am a QAS Professional which is a qualified autism service professional

Dr. Kennedy: None qualified but when I was in school I was part of the Applied Behavioral Analyst track.

· How do you approach therapy or treatment? Do you use specific modalities, techniques, or interventions?

Stacey: When we are referred new consumers we conduct a functional behavior assessment (FBA).

Conducting an FBA requires using a variety of assessment tools such as, VB-Mapp, ABAS,

and FAST. Included in the FBA is interviews and observations. After this is completed, a

behavior plan is put in place utilizing Antecedent and consequence strategies.

Dr. Kennedy: I mainly use the Attachment theory and some integrated techniques.

· What ethical and legal issues do you think are the most challenging or common?

Stacey: The most challenging ethics encountered in this field is dual-relationships and confidentiality.

Some staff are unaware of the topics that can be discussed with families and the families

continue to try to give staff food or gifts which is against ethic codes. With confidentiality,

staff seem to accidentally say consumers names in public settings or it just may be hard to

avoid seeing a family in public.

Dr. Kennedy: In general I think confidentiality is a big issue, it’s very easy for new psychologist to slip

up and mention things that they shouldn’t about a client to someone that has no right

or reason to know. While on the forensic side of my career it was difficult to balance

between the stakeholders in client life. Balancing between the stakeholders and

supervisors and staying within the law. 

· Do you have an opinion on where you think the field of psychology is heading?

Stacey: I think the field of psychology is heading toward stricter standards in which I believe is a

good thing. Some insurances require more qualified staff to provide behavioral health. Some

qualifications direct staff will have to uphold are, Applied Behavior Analysis Technician or a

Registered Behavior Technician.

Dr. Kennedy: I think psychology is limitless, we are discovering all the time and entering places we

have never been before.

· What do you enjoy most about your work?

Stacey: What i enjoy the most is seeing families feel more confident when dealing with their

children's behaviors. It's a great feeling behavior apart of the not only the child's success in

becoming more independent but as well as the families.

Dr. Kennedy: I enjoy the teaching aspect the most. Being able to teach clients and their families

about whatever they are dealing with and how to handle situations. Teaching them that

they can live a normal life given the circumstances.

· What advice would you provide an aspiring psychologist or therapist?

Stacey: It takes a lot of patience and dedication as you have to obtain a masters degree, receive

supervision, and pass a very difficult board exam. However, after all the busy work of study,

it is very worth it to accomplish such an amazing goal of helping others improve in their lives.

Dr. Kennedy: Advice that I would give an aspiring psychologist would be to get personal therapy to

see if you like the setting and information. It can tell you if you are into it or not, if you

can’t handle personal evaluation and advice how do you expect to be good at helping

others in similar settings. Also learn different fields in psychology so that you have a

better understanding of the fields to better guide you into a field that you enjoy.