What type of psychology classes are needed to become an Occupational therapist, and how would that knowledge be applied to the job?

Hi Victoria,

Imagine that you are in a coffee shop. You wait patiently in line, you order your drink, you pick up your drink and then you sit and sip it quietly. Others around you do the same thing, and you are able to sit peacefully and read a book or listen to music. In other words, it's a pretty normal afternoon in the cafe. But, what if someone did not stick to the script? What if a man cut in front of everyone in line? Or, what if a woman suddenly starts yelling out nonsense words? Would you still consider it a normal afternoon?

Psychology is the study of human thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Abnormal psychology is the study of abnormal thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Abnormal thoughts, feelings and behaviors may or may not be part of a larger mental illness, or psychopathology.

What Causes Abnormality?

Think about the lady in the coffee shop, yelling out nonsense words. Why would anyone do that? What's wrong with her? There are two theories about what causes abnormality: the somatogenic theory and psychogenic theory.

Somatogenic theory states that abnormality is caused by a biological disorder or illness. In the example above, somatogenic theory would say that there's something wrong with her brain. Perhaps she has damage to the left side of her brain, which causes language disorders. Or, maybe she has damage to the bottom part of the front of the brain, which makes people do things that are socially inappropriate. Either way, somatogenic theory explains abnormality in terms of physical causes. As such, a somatogenic approach to abnormality often focuses on using drugs, surgery or other physical therapies to treat psychological disorders.

When working with someone with a mental health condition, occupational therapists employ a variety of assessments. Once the necessary information has been obtained, the therapist creates a personalized occupational profile. This profile is used for goal-setting and treatment planning.

Common areas of assessment include:

Activities of daily living (e.g., bathing, dressing, eating)
Instrumental activities of daily living (e.g., driving, money management, shopping)
Education
Work (paid and volunteer)
Play
Leisure
Social participation
Motor processing skills
Mental and cognitive processing skills
Communication and interaction skills
Habits, roles and routines
Performance contexts (e.g., cultural, physical, spiritual)
Activity demands
Client factors (e.g., difficulties due to body structures or functions)
Occupational self-assessment
For example, an occupational therapist may assess a client with schizophrenia who is living in a residential hospital in order to help to determine the best placement in the community. The assessment may include standardized evaluation tools, individual interview, and observation to determine ability to function and live alone safely, and identify important roles and occupations. This information is then used to determine the skills, supports, and environmental modifications the person may need to live as independently as possible.

Occupational therapy can be vitally important in the overall mental health treatment process. Following are some common interventions:

Life skills training
Cognitive rehabilitation
Supported employment
Supported education
Social and interpersonal skills training
Life balance intervention
Modalities such as biofeedback and mindfulness-enhanced therapy

In: http://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-abnormal-psychology-definition-and-common-disorders-studied.html
https://psychcentral.com/lib/occupational-therapy-and-mental-health/

I hope this information can help you.

Best!