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Christian psychologists are licensed professionals who have completed a doctoral level in psychology and have strong Christian beliefs that may inform their work. They can work in private offices, churches, schools, and colleges, and may also teach. However, the broadness of the title can create problems if there is a wide gap between the spiritual beliefs of the client and the counselor.
A Christian psychologist is typically distinguished from a Christian counselor. Both can counsel people with problems in their lives or with mental illness, but the Christian psychologist is usually a licensed psychologist who has completed a doctoral level in psychology by earning a Psy.D or PhD degree. These professionals also completed all requirements to obtain licensure to practice in their home state or country. What makes this person a “Christian” therapist is that they have strong Christian beliefs that may, in whole or in part, inform the work they do, which may include individual therapy, school counseling, counseling ministers, counseling a church or teaching.
The Christian psychologist is not necessarily limited to treating only Christians and can treat anyone because of his training. However, problems can arise if a client feels that a counselor’s views are authoritative or contradictory to personal beliefs, which is not the task of a psychologist. The designation “Christian” often helps people choose their counselors, determining whether they want some form of faith-based discussion in the context of therapy and whether that faith should be Christian. People who do not have strong religious beliefs or practice another faith would not choose a Christian psychologist.
On the other hand, this counselor’s propaganda of faith attracts as many people as possible. This gives Christian psychologists several things to do. Some work in private offices where they can conduct individual, group, or family therapy with people who share a similar faith. These counselors could also run groups to deal with anxiety, depression, or loss of Christian and psychosocial perspective. There are many churches that now ask couples to have premarital counseling, and an approved Christian psychologist who works in a private setting can do this.
A psychologist may be hired by a church to provide free or low-cost counseling to church members and may perform many of the activities listed above. Some of these psychologists may be counselors to members of a religious order. They do not always think of themselves as Christian psychologists and may be priests, nuns or ministers who have a degree in psychology. Part of your ministry could be helping those you work with and live with.
There may be jobs available for Christian psychologists as school counselors or psychologists. Christian schools can demand the same mental health support from students. Alternatively, schools may need learning specialists who can diagnose learning difficulties, conduct educational tests and suggest ways to manage learning difficulties at home and at school.
Christian psychologists may also teach, usually psychology classes at Christian schools or Christian colleges. In Christian-oriented colleges, these psychologists can be very helpful. They can talk about how to combine psychology and faith-based counseling and help students study all the necessary aspects of psychology while commenting on how this applies to sharing faith with clients.
An uncomfortable aspect of this title is that it is extremely broad. There are huge differences in spiritual beliefs between various sects of Christianity. Especially in private therapy settings, the Christian psychologist may need to be a little more open about the type of Christianity, because too wide a gap between spiritual beliefs in the client and the counselor can create problems. In general, however, shared faith can be seen as advantageous in many ways.
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