Which one of the following is not a core/basic skill in the field of psychological services?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Leadership skills
The skills a psychologist needs fall into three broad sections: general skills, observational skills and specific skills. The specific skills are the ones core/basic to the field of psychological service, and they are classified as communication skills, psychological testing skills, interviewing skills and counselling skills.
Option (1) Leadership skills — Correct. Leadership is a valuable quality in many jobs, but it is not one of the core/basic skills of psychological service; the core skills are the four specific skills above.
Option (2) Communication skills — Incorrect. Communication, made up of speaking, active listening and body language (non-verbal skills), is the first of the specific skills.
Option (3) Psychological testing skills — Incorrect. Using psychological tests to assess individuals is the second specific skill.
Option (4) Counselling skills — Incorrect. Counselling, with its qualities of empathy, positive regard and authenticity, is also one of the specific skills.
Note: The skills of an effective psychologist are not there in the 2023-24 NCERT, which NTA followed in 2024, or in the NCERT book (2025-26). They were there in the pre-rationalised NCERT, and hence this question has been picked from the pre-rationalised NCERT.
NCERT (Pre-rationalised): “Developing as an Effective Psychologist … The basic skills or competencies which psychologists have identified for becoming an effective psychologist fall into three broad sections, namely, (a) General Skills, (b) Observational Skills, and (c) Specific Skills. These are discussed in detail here.” “SPECIFIC SKILLS … These skills are core/basic to the field of psychological service. For example, psychologists working in clinical settings need to be trained in various techniques of therapeutic interventions, psychological assessment, and counselling. Similarly, organisational psychologists working in the organisational context need to have skills in assessment, facilitation and consultation, behavioural skills to bring about individual, group, team and organisational development besides research skills, etc. Though, specific skills and competencies are required for a very specialised professional functioning, nonetheless, all skill sets do overlap quite a bit. They are not exclusive to an area. Relevant specific skills and competencies can be classified as follows:
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