Open AccessThe big shortage: Geropsychologists discuss facilitators and barriers to working in the field of aging.
Author(s) -
Caroline Merz,
Deborah Koh,
Erin Y. Sakai,
Victor Molinari,
Michele J. Karel,
Jennifer Moye,
Brian Carpenter
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
translational issues in psychological science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2332-2179
pISSN - 2332-2136
DOI - 10.1037/tps0000137
Subject(s) - economic shortage , qualitative research , axial coding , psychology , intervention (counseling) , coding (social sciences) , field (mathematics) , public relations , medical education , nursing , sociology , medicine , political science , grounded theory , social science , linguistics , philosophy , mathematics , government (linguistics) , pure mathematics , theoretical sampling
Geropsychology is a vibrant field of scientific study, pedagogy, and clinical practice, and the need for more geropsychologists will only expand as the population ages. This study involved in-depth, semi-structured telephone interviews with 30 clinical geropsychologists about their training and current work. Qualitative coding of interviews was undertaken using an inductive coding approach. Results revealed four major themes: factors influencing entry into the field of geropsychology, the rewards of being a geropsychologist, competing demands on time and money, and barriers to involvement in leadership. These results suggest some possible points of intervention to attract people to the field of aging and promote their professional development and success.