psychology practitioners scholars

  • Read Capella’s Learning Model Quick Reference and Examples [PDF], which provides an overview of Capella University’s expectations for learners at the bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels.
  • Read McClintock’s 2004 article, “Scholar Practitioner Model,” in DiStefano, Rudestam, and Silverman’s Encyclopedia of Distributed Learning, pages 394–397. This laid the theoretical foundation for Capella’s learning model.

As stated in the unit introduction, connecting scholarship and practice is critical for professionals in psychology. In one of the unit studies, you examined both the scholar-practitioner model, as presented in the McClintock article, and Capella’s learning model, which is based on the ideas in the McClintock article. In Capella’s learning model, the master’s level degree program is described as practitioner-scholar, to distinguish it from the doctoral degree program, which is described as scholar-practitioner.

This discussion will provide you with an opportunity to enhance and deepen your understanding of the scholar-practitioner model in general and the practitioner-scholar expectations at Capella in particular. At the same time, it will enable you to get valuable feedback from your peers on your vision statement and action plan. Your thinking and exchanges in this discussion will support your success in the assignment that you will submit in the next unit.

In your initial post:

  • Compare McClintock’s scholar-practitioner model and Capella’s scholar-practitioner learning model. You probably notice that only Capella uses the term practitioner-scholar. What aspects of McClintock’s model supports Capella’s learning model?
  • Describe the role of a practitioner-scholar within the field of psychology.
  • Discuss how the role of a practitioner-scholar will influence you to become a wise consumer of research and theory.
  • Summarize your vision of a career in psychology and your main SMART goals. How did the practitioner-scholar model help clarify and strengthen your vision of your future in the field, and your professional goals?
  • Explain how this model might apply to your studies as a graduate learner in psychology at Capella.

Be sure to integrate both readings into your discussion response and cite them in APA style.

References

Capella University. (2003). Learning model quick reference and examples. Minneapolis, MN: Author.

McClintock, C. (2004). Scholar practitioner model. In A. DiStefano, K. E. Rudestam, & R. J. Silverman (Eds.), Encyclopedia of distributed learning (pp. 394–397). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.