Perspectives Regarding the Role of School Psychologists: Perceptions of Teachers, Principals, and School Psychologists in Victoria, Australia

Abstract

School psychologists have a unique and multifaceted role within schools and must work with a variety of stakeholders. Therefore, it is important to explore and understand the perspectives of other educational professionals regarding the roles of school psychologists. This study examined the perspectives of principals (N = 21), teachers (N = 86), and school psychologists (N = 81) regarding what they believe should be the role of school psychologists. Participants were working in Catholic, Independent, and Government primary and secondary schools across Victoria, Australia. Results revealed both similarities and differences between the three groups regarding perspectives about school psychologists' role. For instance, the three groups shared similar perspectives that school psychologists should: (a) conduct research on issues relevant to the school, (b) be up-to-date on relevant research, (c) conduct psychological assessments, (d) provide counselling to students, (e) organise group programs for students, (f) organise workshops and provide information to teachers on issues of students' welfare and (g) inform primary students' parents of their child's participation in counselling. However, the three groups also differed in their perspectives about some aspects of the school psychologists' role. It was notable that each of the differences in perceptions between the groups had implications for potential ethical dilemmas, for instance: (a) boundaries, (b) dual relationship, (c) confidentiality/who is the client? and (d) informed consent. Implications for practice and scholarship in the field of school psychology are discussed.

School Counselors’ Perspectives of a Web-Based Stepped Care Mental Health Service for Schools: Cross-Sectional Online Survey

“…School counselors reported undertaking a wide range of daily tasks with one-fifth of their time spent on administration. This confirms the multispecialist role of the school counselor [ 24 ].…”

“…This disparity is also common in the United States [ 23 ], which may reduce the school counselors’ capacity to proactively identify students in need [ 12 ]. Australian school counselors also occupy a multispecialist role as they conduct psychometric assessments, deliver training to staff, and liaise with parents, teachers, and external services [ 24 ]. These demands can lead to a sense of role ambiguity [ 24 ].…”

“…Australian school counselors also occupy a multispecialist role as they conduct psychometric assessments, deliver training to staff, and liaise with parents, teachers, and external services [ 24 ]. These demands can lead to a sense of role ambiguity [ 24 ]. Despite the emotional impacts of the role, school counselors can feel isolated because of confidentiality issues [ 25 , 26 ] and a perceived lack of clinical supervision [ 26 ].…”

Exploring ethical dilemmas for principals arising from role conflict with school counsellors

“…Studies from the United States (Bodenhorn, 2006;Gilman and Gabriel, 2004;Kaplan, 1995;Kirchner and Setchfield, 2005), Canada (Lehr et al, 2007), the United Kingdom (Voskuijl and Evers, 2007) and Australia (Thielking and Jimerson, 2006) have explored the role of the school counsellor and the varied perspectives of counsellors, principals and teachers regarding the role of the school counsellor. In general, there seems to be a lack of understanding of what the counsellor could do and how the counsellor is expected to act, particularly in relation to situations that were ethically wrought.…”

Collaborative Practices Among Australian School Psychologists, Guidance Officers and School Counsellors: Important Lessons for School Psychological Practice

“…Alternatively, while it has been reported that school psychologists collaborate with teachers and other professionals both within and outside of a school setting, research on the mechanisms of school psychologist collaboration is scarce. What we do know is that teachers and principals often desire the school psychologist to engage in more information sharing, but that this can place a school psychologist in a tricky ethical and professional dilemma (see Thielking & Jimerson, 2006). Such competing demands for information from a range of stakeholders has been aptly described as a 'complex balancing act' (Glosoff & Pate, 2002).…”