How does work intrusion in psychotherapy affect patients?

Psychotherapy is a key field of work both in the world of mental health and in relation to psychological support for people who want improve your well-being in some aspect: relationships, time management to promote new projects, job performance, preparation of oppositions ...

However, unfortunately not all people who advertise themselves as providers of psychological therapy services are qualified to do so. And if we add to that that many people do not have the knowledge to distinguish these cases, on the one hand, and that apart from the This fact is indifferent to the population because they believe that it does not affect them, on the other hand, the result is a problem to be taken into account.

With the intention of helping to remedy it, in this article you will find the reasons why labor intrusion is problematic and what can be done to verify that a professional is qualified to serve patients in this area.

• Related article: "The 12 branches (or fields) of Psychology"

What is intrusion?

Let's start from the basics: what exactly does the word “intrusion” mean? It's about the fact

carry out the work of a specific professional profile without having the qualification to do so, either on a paid or unpaid basis.

Thus, intrusions are committed by those who are fully or partially engaged in a job that can only be done by people with the authorization to do so, since they are trained to do so. In fact, in many cases, this activity constitutes a crime.

It is true that In certain areas of work, the concept of intrusion is poorly defined and difficult to identify. Along these lines, if we talk about those jobs that psychologists in general can perform (including those that are not specialized in psychotherapy), we will see that many of these activities overlap with other disciplines and areas of science.

For example, a research work on social dynamics among urban tribes in a city It can be done by psychologists, but it can also be done by sociologists or even by anthropologists.

However, if within the field of psychology we focus specifically on the field of psychotherapy, the fence tightens and labor intrusion is much better defined. Thus, in these cases there are criteria to determine what type of training and certificates are necessary to serve patients offering psychological therapy, given that the set of training requirements and skills to practice are much more detailed and guided.

After all, in psychotherapy a series of scientifically tested guidelines are followed in order to offer quality services, and being part of the world of mental health, it is important to regulate how works. This simple fact already gives us an idea of ​​why work intrusion in psychotherapy is a problem.

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What problems can intrusion in psychotherapy cause you?

As a patient, Occupational intrusion in the field of psychological therapy affects you in these ways:

• It exposes you to people who offer services ignoring the deontological code of psychology.
• It exposes you to people who are not trained to offer you effective solutions to your problems (but they charge you the same).
• You can be the victim of pseudo-therapy procedures that generate side effects, without having professional supervision to prevent or mitigate them.

• Related article: "The 8 benefits of going to psychological therapy"

How to avoid going to those who offer psychotherapy committing intrusion?

What are the main measures that you can adopt, in the Spanish context, to avoid falling into cases of labor intrusion as a psychotherapy patient? The fundamental thing is to verify that the professional is registered in the COP.

The General Council of Psychology of Spain (COP) It is the main entity through which the professional activity of psychologists is legally regulated, especially those whose work is of special social sensitivity.

This organization exists to ensure that the country's psychology professionals are subject to the highest ethical and training standards. Therefore, to offer psychotherapy services in Spain, one of the main requirements is to be a member of the COP.

So, when you go to choose a professional who offers psychological therapy, Make sure you have a COP collegiate number in a territorial area of ​​Spain. This way you will know if you have registered or not in one of the branches of the COP; for example, in the Official College of Psychologists of La Rioja.

In principle, this is the main criterion to avoid cases of labor intrusion, since it is not possible to join this entity without have completed the university degree in Psychology and without having the basic material elements to pass a consultation in a place safe.

Now, it could be that at one point the professional has ceased to be a collegiate member and that he hides from you that he is no longer under the umbrella of the COP. Luckily, you can go to the COP website to, from there, see if the professional in question is still registered, through your digital search engine.

On the other hand, keep in mind that even if a person has obtained a university degree in Psychology and at some point has reached college, technically it is possible that, for whatever reasons, it no longer offers true psychotherapy or abides by the deontological code of psychology, but offers supposed remedies that have nothing to do with psychology, such as "mystical" experiences of "connection with the universe", homeopathy...

Keep in mind that anything that goes beyond adopting new ways of managing emotions, thoughts, and behaviors is not psychotherapy.

• You may be interested in: "Code of Ethics of the Psychologist"

Are you interested in having psychotherapy services?

I am a General Health Psychologist federated by the FEAP (Spanish Federation of Associations of Psychotherapists) with more than 20 years of experience in patient care.

I work helping adults and adolescents, as well as couples and families, and I offer face-to-face sessions in my office in Seville or online by video call.