The 10 Most Outstanding Social Skills Of A Good Psychologist
Social skills are those communication and emotional management skills that allow us to express ourselves, understand others and connect with other people.
These skills help us to develop correctly in our private lives, but there is no doubt that they are also of great importance in most jobs. And the role of psychotherapist psychologist is one of the positions in which these become more relevant. Therefore, in this article we will see What social skills are most important for the professional performance of psychologists?.
What are the most important social skills for a good psychologist?
Psychology is one of the professions where these skills are most necessary because the correct relationship and communication between client and therapist is essential to understand the root of the reason for consultation, to communicate well what the solutions proposed by the psychologist consist of, and to increase the degree of commitment to the treatment, which contributes to meeting the objectives of any form of psychological intervention.
In this sense, there are several social skills that are essential for the correct functioning of psychological therapy, and without which a psychology professional would have serious difficulties in doing his or her job. They are the following.
1. Synthesis capacity
The ability to synthesize when giving specific information is a key communication skill that allows us to summarize complex ideas and feelings in a few key words that the client can understand almost everything in a short time.
This skill is also necessary to help the client express what they feel and, ultimately, to put in a few words everything that the person presents in their inner emotional world something necessary to understand what is happening to him.
Since the main therapeutic vehicle for any psychologist is based on words, any professional who is dedicated to treating psychological disorders must train this communication skill and many others associated with it.
2. Assertiveness
Assertiveness is the ability to express one’s interests, approaches or ideas, always defending one’s own point of view but at the same time without neglecting the interests or integrity of others.
It is one of the most important social skills to function in society and also a very important virtue for any psychologist, since in therapy it is necessary to deal with delicate topics, being tactful, but without avoiding talking about it due to the discomfort that it may generate. .
3. Ability to read the context
Knowing how to correctly identify the context in which things are said is essential for every good psychologist who intends to understand everything their client tells them in therapy and to know how to express themselves.
This is of great relevance because Context greatly influences the meaning of words and phrases and information can have one value or another depending on the situation in which it is expressed.
Likewise, it is also important to know how to identify the motivations that a person may have to say or do something in particular, according to the context in which they find themselves.
4. Empathic capacity
Empathy is the ability that human beings have to put ourselves in another person’s shoes and understand what their motivations, desires, intentions, opinions or suffering they may experience are.
This social skill is surely one of the first that a psychologist must incorporate, and it consists of a process of recognition and identification of the actions, circumstances and feelings that the other person may have, without necessarily having to accept or validate them. Of course, all of this without confusing the role of therapist with the role of friend.
Leadership is an essential skill for any professional, but in the case of psychology it acquires capital importance, since a good therapist Must be able to guide your client through the therapy process.
This means knowing how to direct therapy and conversations where it is most convenient for the client and, on the contrary, avoiding dealing in depth with those topics that may not be so important at that moment.
6. Self-leadership
Self-leadership is also an essential social skill, since the psychologist himself must be clear at all times What is the path to take during therapy with a client and knowing how to put their personal interests before anything else? even above one’s own impulses.
Self-leadership also means being methodical, orderly, disciplined and always following the path that best suits the person the therapist is treating.
7. Self-criticism
Self-criticism is as necessary as self-leadership and is the skill that allows each professional to stand in front of the mirror and analyze if they are really doing their job well or if they are suitable for the task that has been entrusted to them.
This ability allows each of the therapists to recognize, whenever this is the case, that we cannot know at all times what the client thinks or how he or she feels and helps us seek support or advice from other professionals other psychologists or referring the case to another professional.
8. Respect
The respect of a psychologist towards his client and towards the profession itself It must be constant from the beginning of therapy until its completion. It involves taking into account everything that is at stake when addressing the problems that the patient experiences.
It is one of the basic social skills to relate correctly in society and also one of the essential pillars for therapy to achieve its main objective: improvement in the client’s mental health.
9. Active listening
Active listening is also another of those social skills that cannot be missing from the repertoire of a good psychologist, and is the basis for achieving a clear understanding during each therapy session.
Active listening means listening to the other person’s words and also paying attention to what they are not saying, their concerns, motivations, fears, feelings, emotional pain and non-verbal language.
You may be interested: “Active listening: the key to communicating with others”
10. Sense of humor
A sense of humor is one of those accessory social skills, which may seem of minor importance, but which can be very useful during the course of therapy.
Humor in therapy can be used to relieve tension provoked by serious or very serious topics and also helps the client relax when they have to talk about difficult or traumatic topics.
Do you want to train in psychology?
If you want to train and develop the key social skills of the psychologist, you will be interested in the Master in Integrative Psychotherapy offered by Institut Mensalus.
This is a one-year training program that can be completed in person or online, and focuses on the importance of practice in the treatment of patients. This Master gives the possibility of learning from observation and participation in real psychotherapy contexts, with real patients, and in the facilities of Mensalus, an entity dedicated to psychological assistance. To find out more, contact us.
