Pediatric psychologists' perceptions of their work settings.

Describes the results of a survey of pediatric psychologists' perceptions of their work settings. Respondents (n = 261) described heterogeneous work settings, professional activities, expectations for workload and administrative arrangements. Clinical activities were prominent, accounting for nearly half the respondents' time. Respondents generally reported high levels of overall satisfaction with their work environments. Highest ranked sources of satisfaction included professional autonomy, patient care, and relationships with colleagues. Highest ranked sources of dissatisfaction included lack of time for research, salary, and patient care workload. Pediatric psychologists in private practice reported higher work satisfaction than those in other settings. Findings have implications for the work-related functioning of pediatric psychologists that should be addressed in research and professional activity.