Do You Need a Psychologist or a Psychiatrist? Do You Know the Differences?

For people who are not in the know, there are fundamental differences between a psychologist and psychiatrist. One can help you with mental problems, while the other can help you to understand how the mind works, similarly a mechanic can fix your car, but an engineer is needed to explain the physics of how an engine makes the car move.

What is a psychologist?

A psychologist studies mental processes and behavior. The psychologist conducts scientific research into such things as perception, cognition, behavior, emotion, and relationships. Many smaller fields of research can involve a psychologist such as health, human development, and law or even activities such as sports. A psychologist will delve into such topics as behaviorism, cognitivism, existentialism, and humanism. In his studies, a psychologist attempts to consciousness, social interaction, and behavior. A psychologist can be one or more of several types of psychology.

An abnormal psychologist is involved in the study of the abnormal functions that the brain can sometimes become associated with.

A biological psychologist studies the nuts and bolts of brain operation, or how the various parts of the brain work together to cause human behavior.

A cognitive psychologist studies how thought occurs and how it works in the brain.

There are many other types of psychology, you can find more at Wikipedia.com or just click here.

What is a psychiatrist?

A psychiatrist attempts to study, treat, and prevent mental disorders. Psychiatry is a broad subject and a psychiatrist must be familiar with social and biological sciences. Some of the research a psychiatrist will use in his work comes from psychology, neural science, and biochemistry. A psychiatrist must understand the relationship of brain functions and human behavior so that when something goes wrong, he can ascertain a cause and choose appropriate methods to help a patient. A psychiatrist can be of many disciplines.

A child and adolescent psychiatrist must work with young people and families.

A cross-cultural psychiatrist is concerned with how mental disorders relate to culture and ethnicity.

A social psychiatrist is concerned with a person's mental well being.

A military psychiatrist studies the mental issues that can arise in the armed forces.

There are many more types of psychiatry that can be found at Wikipedia.org or you can just click here.

How do you determine who to see?

Essentially, the differences between a psychiatrist and a psychologist are fairly easy to understand. Psychology is a science and therefore a psychologist is a scientist who studies the studies the mind and the human behavior associated with it. Psychiatry is a medical practice and therefore a psychiatrist is a doctor who attempts to treat medical conditions associated with the mind. A psychologist will treat your disorder by giving you information that will allow you to address your issues on your own terms, he may also suggest a medical solution to you problem, if one is available, and that would involve a psychiatrist.

A better way to understand the differences might be to suggest that if you are not getting along well with people and have a fear of social gatherings, then you should seek a psychologist. If, however, you have suddenly developed recurring headache that causes your vision to blur, then you should seek a psychiatrist. A more in depth look at the differences of psychology and psychiatry can be found at Webmd.com or just click here.