Psychiatric Technicians
Health ScienceO*NET 29-2053.00United States
Care for individuals with mental or emotional conditions or disabilities, following the instructions of physicians or other health practitioners. Monitor patients' physical and emotional well-being and report to medical staff.
- Median annual earnings
- $45,137
- Projected change
- +23%
- Typical education
- Some college
- Employment
- 168.5K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
40.1% of the workforce
Growing to 207.29K by 2035
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These courses and certificates are connected through catalog career relationships and Lightcast skill tags.
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The work
What psychiatric technicians do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Provide nursing, psychiatric, or personal care to patients with cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disabilities.
- Encourage patients to develop work skills and to participate in social, recreational, or other therapeutic activities that enhance interpersonal skills or develop social relationships.
- Restrain violent, potentially violent, or suicidal patients by verbal or physical means as required.
- Lead prescribed individual or group therapy sessions as part of specific therapeutic procedures.
- Monitor patients' physical and emotional well-being and report unusual behavior or physical ailments to medical staff.
- Observe and influence patients' behavior, communicating and interacting with them and teaching, counseling, or befriending them.
- Take and record measures of patients' physical condition, using devices such as thermometers or blood pressure gauges.
- Aid patients in performing tasks, such as bathing or keeping beds, clothing, or living areas clean.
- Collaborate with or assist doctors, psychologists, or rehabilitation therapists in working with patients with cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disabilities to treat, rehabilitate, and return patients to the community.
- Develop or teach strategies to promote client wellness and independence.
- Train or instruct new employees on procedures to follow with psychiatric patients.
- Escort patients to medical appointments.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $34,968
- 25th percentile
- $38,347
- 50th percentile
- $45,137
- 75th percentile
- $50,221
- 90th percentile
- $60,914
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $45,137 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
+23%much faster than average
2025168,503 jobs
2035 projected207,290 jobs
38,787 more positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- Some college
- 40.1%
- Bachelor's degree
- 29.8%
- High school diploma or less
- 19.8%
- Certificate
- 5%
- Associate degree
- 3.2%
- Master's or Professional degree
- 2.1%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Service Orientation
- Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Learning Strategies
- Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
- Negotiation
- Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
- Systems Evaluation
- Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Behavioral Health Technicians8,838 postings
- 02Mental Health Technicians5,260 postings
- 03Psychiatric Technicians1,729 postings
- 04Rehabilitation Technicians1,694 postings
- 05Behavioral Health Specialists578 postings
- 06Licensed Psychiatric Technicians291 postings
- 07Mental Health Workers265 postings
- 08Behavioral Health Registered Nurses240 postings
- 09Mental Health Specialists221 postings
- 10Environmental Health and Safety Technicians164 postings
- 11Egress Technicians158 postings
- 12Rehabilitation Therapy Technicians156 postings
- 13Recovery Specialists155 postings
- 14Psychiatric/Behavioral Health Nurses148 postings
- 15Psychiatric/Mental Health Registered Nurses129 postings
- 16Patient Care Technicians108 postings
- 17Mental Health Directors103 postings
- 18Licensed Vocational Nurses/Licensed Psychiatric Technicians102 postings
- 19Recovery Technicians98 postings
- 20Behavioral Health Professionals97 postings
Top employers
- 01Uhs794 postings
- 02Amergis586 postings
- 03Universal Health Services530 postings
- 04LifePoint Health342 postings
- 05HCA Healthcare324 postings
- 06Avera Health267 postings
- 07Oceans Healthcare245 postings
- 08Ambulatory Surgical Center Of Aiken238 postings
- 09Telecare205 postings
- 10Amfm Incorporated155 postings
- 11Pyramid Healthcare155 postings
- 12Newport Healthcare Center131 postings
- 13PAM Health126 postings
- 14Avenues Recovery118 postings
- 15AdventHealth115 postings
- 16Adventist Health112 postings
- 17Mercyhealth109 postings
- 18Clarvida107 postings
- 19Atrium Health104 postings
- 20BAYADA Home Health Care103 postings
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