Department of Psychology

INTRODUCTION

“Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. “WHO (1948). The department of Psychology comprises of one faculty, two clinicians and two administrative staff, who have been relentlessly working towards this mission of total well-being of persons with disabilities.

From time immemorial Psychology has been playing a significant role in all spheres of life. It is truly felt that- where there is life, there is Psychology. No field is devoid of its impact. Therefore, it is not surprising that it has significantly contributed to the field of speech and hearing and education. This is reflected explicitly in the history of Audiology and Speech and Language Pathology, as most of the diagnostic and the therapeutic procedures followed by them have their roots in the field of Psychology. Hence, inputs in Psychology are of utmost importance to professionals working in the area of rehabilitation of persons with hearing and communication disorders.

Thus, it can be concluded that the contributions of such professionals immensely empowers persons with disabilities, to move towards ultimate goal of equity, and inclusiveness and, thereby, in the process facilitate the development of these persons into well-adjusted and productive members of society

MANPOWER DEVELOPMENT

Long term Programmes

One of the most important activities of the department is capacity building. The department is instrumental in developing skilled human resources by providing education and training to students of the following courses

• F.Y.B.ASLP.
• B.ED.(HI)
• M.ED.(HI)
• M.Sc(Audiology)

The ultimate aim of capacity building is to sensitize the students to the nature, needs and issues pertaining to psychology of Persons with Disabilities. It strives to prepare well equipped professionals working with a holistic and humanistic approach. The students are given inputs related to basic psychological processes and development across the life span. This strengthens their understanding of any deviations and delays with respect to Persons with Disabilities. The goal is to create a cadre of professionals who have a transformed perspective towards disability management and who are committed to working towards an improved quality of life of Persons with Disabilities to ensure ascertaining a fair and inclusive standing of Persons with Disabilities.

Short term programmes

Feedback of several professionals and beneficiaries has reflected a strong need for dissemination of information on several topics. Hence, the department conducts short term courses in the form of workshops/ seminars/conferences/ refresher courses and Continuing Rehabilitation Education programme both within the institute and outside. Several organizations, both government and non government have been the beneficiaries. Some of the topics that have been included so far are:

• Psychosocial concerns of persons with HI
• Behavioral Problems of persons with HI
• Laughter Yoga and its applications
• Sex and Sexuality of persons with HI
• Psycho diagnostics
• Research Methodology
• Disabilities across the Life span

The target population includes teachers of regular and special schools, principals, psychologists, social workers, police personnel, allied professionals and parents and caregivers of children with HI.

In addition to this, academic and clinical expertise is provided as and when requested by various Universities and other organizations across the country. The department also extends its support towards outreach services which includes participation in camps and inspections of NGOs and other organizations from time to time.

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Projects and Material Development

Years of interaction with clients with hearing impairment and communication disorders generated a need to explore certain areas of interest. In an attempt to reach out to the maximum number of beneficiaries and professionals dealing with persons with HI, various research and resource materials have been developed by the department. Addressing a variety of concerns such as

• Conduct problems among the children with HI
• Psychosocial profiles of persons with HI
• Common behavioral problems among the Persons with HI
• Overall stimulation

These are provided to caregivers on a need basis.

CLINICAL SERVICE

Clinical service includes providing diagnostic and therapeutic facilities for clients presenting with a range of problems, such as hearing impairment, communication disorders, mental retardation, learning disabilities, and emotional disorders associated with hearing impairment. The department caters to individuals across all ages. The clinical services are divided into

Diagnostic services

The diagnostic services include

• Developmental Assessment

Developmental assessment involves evaluation of the child’s current status with regard to sensory motor development, communication and adaptive behaviors.

• Intelligence Testing

Intelligence testing involves assessment of general mental ability. These are standardized tests used to establish an intelligence level rating by measuring a subject’s ability to form concepts, solve problems, acquire information, reason, and perform other intellectual operations.

• Personality Assessment

Personality assessment involves tests usually involving a standardized series of questions or tasks, used to describe or evaluate a subject’s personality characteristics.

Sycho-Therapeutic Services

The psycho-therapeutic services include

Guidance

Guidance Involves providing clients/care givers with specific inputs over a limited number of sessions for circumscribed problems. Candidates for guidance could be clients themselves or their caregivers. Guidance may be given to persons seeking solutions for

• School placement decisions
• Academic problems
• Behaviour problems not involving serious infarctions and/or disordered interpersonal relationships.
• Problems in vocational choices and training

Counseling

Counseling Includes the provision of short or long term supportive and remedial

inputs for personal and/or interpersonal problems. Counseling is provided to

Clients presenting with problems pertaining to

• Personal immaturity
• Emotional distress
• Disordered behavior
• Interpersonal problems that result in a moderate impact on academic/family/ social and/or/vocational adjustments.

Caregivers who require support to come to term with the diagnosis of permanent impairment and disability in the client.

Psychotherapy: Psychotherapy as a generic term includes a number of approaches and techniques.

These are usually long-term and focus on

• changing perspective towards others and/or self
• creation of insight
• behavior change

This shapes the individual to move towards greater personal satisfaction, better interpersonal adjustments, enhanced productivity resulting in a improved quality of life.

FACULTY DETAILS

Sl No.	Name	Designation	Qualification	Experience	Area of interest	Photo
1	U. Pratibha	Lecturer and I/c Psychology	M.Phil in Clinical Psychology	17 Years	Hearing Impairment, Autism, Mental Retardation, Life skills training, Behaviour Modification and therapy