As a psychologist at Corrections, you could be working in a range of settings – from working in specialist therapeutic units with a small group of people, to providing strategic guidance to teams across the country.

Psychologists can also sometimes move across different settings, to grow their skills and experience in another area. For example, psychologists may start out in one of our special treatment units because group treatment is a passion, then move into an Area Office to deepen skills in undertaking health assessments for the courts. There can also be opportunities to do secondments to try out different areas.

In this article, we break down the four main areas where our psychologists work, to help unpack the different career opportunities and help you consider which may be for you.

In Area Psychology Offices

Many of our psychologists at Corrections work in offices around the country, working with both people in prison and on community-based sentences.

Their work involves both individual treatment and assessment-based activities, much like in any other psychological setting. However, there are some unique aspects. For example, psychologists at Corrections provide reports to NZ Parole Board and the Courts to assist them with their work.

They also need to work closely with other staff across Corrections, including probation officers and case managers, to support the rehabilitation pathway for each person and get input into decisions. 

As well as the opportunities for collaboration, one of the benefits of working in the area psychology offices is the diversity of cases, creating plenty of opportunities to grow.

“You can grow a lot professionally working in an area psychology office,” says Senior Adviser Christine.

“For example, you might work on more complex tasks, provide supervision to colleagues, or you could become a subject matter expert in an area.”

In Special Treatment Units                                                                                                         

Another area that our psychologists may work in is our Special Treatment Units (STUs). STUs are separate units within a prison facility where therapy and custody staff work together to create a ‘community of change’ to support pro-social thinking, behaviour, and identity of participants.

Psychologists work alongside cultural experts and practitioners dedicated to the STUs, to deliver bi-cultural approaches and support people’s rehabilitation.

“Over the last 30 years, there’s been the development of a number of special treatment units that bring some specialist training and opportunities to deliver treatment in a very dedicated therapeutic environments,” says Principal Adviser Nick.

“When I first started, we only had one, and now we have 6, or 7 if we count Tai Aroha, which is a community-based program. So that's provided a lot more opportunities for staff to specialise in treatment and particularly in group treatment.”

Nick says that for psychologists working in an STU, the focus is on the delivery of intensive treatment, often for up to eight months.

“It’s a dedicated space where everyone is there to change. So, for the psychologists working there, they’re able to dedicate themselves to the pathway of care for the small number of men in the group.”

In prison-based mental health services

A slightly different practice focus is our mental health focused psychologists. Mental health psychologists work as part of Intervention and Support Practice Teams, providing support to people experiencing mental distress.

This involves working alongside nurses, Māori mental health practitioners, occupational therapists, social workers and Corrections Officers, as part of a collaborative multi-disciplinary team.

At our National Office

The last main area that our psychologists may work in is our National Office. Teams working at our National Office provide guidance for our psychologists, as well as strategic oversight.

“This includes designing effective rehabilitation programmes, consultation on policy changes, and providing advice to a number of stakeholders,” Chief Psychologist Jessica Borg says.

Jessica says that maintaining a close connection with the frontline is important for her teams.

“Our ear needs to be on the ground constantly in terms of what our workforce and the people delivering interventions need in terms of training and support, as well as psycho-legal advice.

Much of the work that comes up in our setting are questions that need to be answered or problems to be solved. And some of them require a legal component, an ethical component, and very regular problem solving on complex issues and matters. I think that many psychologists enjoy that aspect of work. They like to unpack a particular problem or difficult situation and come up with an optimum solution, and that can involve different lenses.”

She says that for people seeking a long-term career at Corrections, experience helps to give an indication of which area they most want to work in and where their passion lies.

“You may want to see a variety of people with different presentations, working with them and their families and their support systems in one of our Area Psychology Offices.

It may be that you want to specialise in a particular area more. For example, working in a special treatment unit within a therapeutic environment.

Or it may be that you develop an interest in assessments and being an expert witness in the court and writing reports to the court. It might be that you consider that you would like to lead teams of psychologists or provide expert advice and support of other parts of Corrections.

I think over time you develop your knowledge and understanding of what your passion is.”