The Profession of a Psychologist: the Ideals of Applicants and the Validity of the Choice of Students

Abstract

The main problem is the frequent mismatch of ideals when choosing a future profession and various aspects of subsequent professionalization of a person. As a result, there may be a loss of interest in the profession and an individual's alienation from his professional choice. This article touches upon the issue that the idealization of the profession of a psychologist coincides with certain values of applicants, and then during their studies at the university, students make adjustments to their ideas based on obtaining the necessary knowledge and skills. This allows to achieve the effect of the right professional choice and "join" the profession. The purpose of the study is to show how the professional choice of future psychologists is formed and how it is related to the value orientations of individuals. At the same time, psychology of professions and sociology of professions became the main methodological approaches. The empirical study was conducted in 2018-2021 and was based on the method of semi-structured interviews with applicants and later with university students who are receiving the profession of a psychologist. The sample was determined by a combination of "applicant-student" in the system of universities that train future psychologists (42 applicants and then 20 students from this group). As a result of the study, the following results were obtained: the idealization of the profession of a psychologist is associated with the need to help people, while applicants are guided in their ideas about the profession by their value stereotypes: respect for the individual, following moral principles, responsibility for themselves and others, etc. Idealization of the profession of a psychologist is also connected with its cognitive capabilities in two main directions: human cognition and cognition of the surrounding reality and the world.