Mental Health Therapists: Psychotherapists, Psychologists and Social Work Counsellors

There are a number of mental health professionals who offer a variety of services to children, adolescents and adults. The two main types are:

• Psychologists: psychologists are professionals who have a deep understanding of human development, abnormal psychology and therapeutic therapies and practices. They:
  • Assess individuals through the use of standardized tests (Fig. 1), checklists, observations and interviews;
  • Diagnose mental illness (such as obsessive-compulsive disorder) or a developmental disability (such as autism);
  • Offer psychotherapy on an individual or small group basis;
  • Refer people to more specialized professionals.
  • Psychiatrists: psychiatrists are medical doctors who also have a in professional psychology. They also assess individuals, diagnose them with a mental illness or a developmental disability and offer them psycho-therapy. They are also able to offer prescription drugs to those who need them.

Figure 1. Standardized tests

To learn more about mental health professionals, please visit the birth to six section of this course.

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