Framework and roles of Psychology and Guidance Services
Summary of the legal, technical and ethical framework of school Psychology and Guidance Services and of their main roles.
What Psychology and Guidance Services are
In the public school system, Psychology and Guidance Services are specialised educational support units, integrated into the school network and established by Decree-Law No. 190/91, working across pre-school, basic and secondary education, in coordination with other educational support resources, to promote student development, learning quality, inclusion, wellbeing, and informed educational and vocational pathways.
Legal, technical and ethical framework
In public education, the work of Psychology and Guidance Services is framed by an articulated set of legal provisions, guidance documents and ethical references that define their mission, their place within school organisation, and the principles guiding psychological intervention in educational settings.
- Decree-Law No. 190/91 of 17 May, establishing Psychology and Guidance Services.
- Decree-Law No. 54/2018 of 6 July, on inclusive education.
- Decree-Law No. 55/2018 of 6 July, on curriculum and assessment.
- Profile of Students Leaving Compulsory Schooling.
- Reference Framework for Psychologists’ Intervention in School Contexts (2024), approved by the Directorate-General for Education.
- Code of Ethics of the Portuguese Psychologists’ Association, framing professional practice from an ethical and deontological perspective.
Main roles
Under Decree-Law No. 190/91, these services support students individually or in groups throughout the educational process; support interpersonal relationships within the school and between school and community; and support students in educational and career planning. The Reference Framework for Psychologists’ Intervention in School Contexts (2024) organises this work into three broad domains:
For the purposes of this platform, this functional profile is the relevant inclusion criterion: the focus is on psychologists whose work in the AE/ENA fits these domains, regardless of the structure where they are formally placed.
- Psychological Support and Counselling: assessment and psychological intervention with students, aimed at promoting development, preventing difficulties, and responding to emotional, behavioural, relational and learning difficulties.
- Development of the Educational Community’s Relational System: intervention on school contexts, relationships and dynamics, focusing on wellbeing, inclusion, participation, risk prevention and collaborative work with teachers, families and other educational agents.
- Vocational Development: support for students’ vocational development, including interest exploration, decision-making, educational and training pathway planning, and management of transitions throughout schooling.
Intervention model
The framework places psychologists’ work in school contexts within a multi-tiered system of support. In this model, three levels of intervention are identified, together with a cross-cutting dimension of collaborative and consultative work on educational contexts.
- Universal intervention: aimed at all children and young people, classes or school contexts, with a preventive and promotive purpose.
- Selective or targeted intervention: aimed at groups or students at increased risk, often in small-group formats.
- Indicated or intensive intervention: aimed at severe or persistent situations, requiring more individualised responses.
- Collaborative and consultative work: includes coordination with teachers, school leadership, multidisciplinary teams, families and community resources.