THE CHANGING ROLES OF EDUCATIONAL-PSYCHOLOGISTS IN HONG-KONG

This is a study of the roles and functions of educational psychologist s in Hong Kong. A questionnaire survey was conducted with 21 Hong Kong educational psychologists in spring 1997. The purposes of the survey were to investigate how much time Hong Kong educational psychologists use in various services and with various clients, what difficulties th ey encountered in their work, what skills and knowledge they perceived as important to their practices, and how frequently they work with ot her professionals. The results of the survey indicated that Hong Kong educational psychologists have gone beyond the traditional role of psy chometricians or gatekeepers of special education. Their services rang ed from remediation to prevention, case work to systems work, and dire ct services to indirect services. Reflecting a universal trend, Hong K ong educational psychologists function in an advanced model of service delivery which is proactive and systems-oriented. However, they are s till faced with many difficulties in their work. These difficulties in clude lack of government planning, a poor ratio between educational ps ychologists and students, and poor promotion prospects in their career s. On the basis of the survey findings, implications for training and the future development of the profession are discussed.