PSYCHOLOGY PRACTITIONER-SCHOLARS

As stated in the 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 McClintock’s 2004 article, and Capella’s learning model, which is based on the ideas in that 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.

If you had any trouble understanding the scholar-practitioner model or its application in the field of psychology, use this discussion to receive support from your peers and instructor to work through your challenges.

Be sure to integrate both the McClintock article and the Capella practitioner-scholar guide into your discussion post. Use the following APA reference:

• Capella University. (2003). Capella University’s scholar-practitioner educational philosophy[White paper].
• 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.

Response Guidelines

Read the posts of your peers and respond to at least two. Try to choose the posts that have had the fewest responses thus far.

• What can you add to clarify your peers’ understanding?
• What strategies can you suggest to help them connect this model to their vision and goals for their future careers?
• Do their goals meet the criteria of being specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART)?
• Can you think of any way they could be improved to better meet these criteria?

Be sure to provide substantive responses to help your peers build on their learning and reference any relevant assigned readings, additional resources, or professional literature to support your response.