What is a psychologist?
A person who holds either a Ph.D. (Doctorate of Philosophy) in psychology, an Ed.D. (Doctorate of Education) in psychology, or a Psy.D. (Doctorate of Psychology).

Can psychologists read people's mind?
No, we can not.

Do psychologists treat mental disorder and abnormal behavior?
Some do. Some don't. For example, as a social psychologist, I study how normal people's think and behave in social situations. Often it is just average folks in an everyday situation, such as in a work group, at a party, or with a date.

What about those psychologists that do treat people with mental disorders or psychological problems.
They are called clinical or counseling psychologists. To be a practicing clinical or counseling psychologist, one needs a doctoral degree plus proper licensing. Information about psychology licensure is available online.

Are there also psychiatrists?
Yes, psychiatrists also treat the mentally ill. But they are not psychologists. They are medical doctors (M.D.). Like your family doctor, they obtained their MD by going to medical schools, in stead of graduate schools. The difference is that after medical school, they have done a 3-year residency in psychiatry, where they learnt to diagnose and treat mental illness, often by using medicine.

How about people with Master's degrees in psychology? Can they be called psychologists.
The title "Psychologists" are usually reserved for individuals with doctoral degrees. People with Master's degrees in clinical or counseling psychology can become "counselors" and "therapists".

Tell me again, what do psychologists do?
Majority of them do one of or a combination of the following three: research, teaching, and treating patients. But given the shear number of the sub-fields psychologists can specialize in (Currently, there are 53 divisions in the American Psychological Association.), Expect to find a few psychologists everywhere you look -- sports, criminal justice, the FBI, the CIA, marketing, business management, public opinion surveying, policy making, zoos and animal training, hostage negotiation... The list goes on.