Psychology Aid and Technician
Federal headcount, average salary, length of service, and pay comparison for the Psychology Aid and Technician occupation series (code 181), drawn directly from the OPM FedScope dataset (March 2025).
The verdict
Psychology Aid and Technician is a smaller, specialized federal occupation: 720 employees (0.0% of the federal civilian workforce) in the Social Science, Psychology, and Welfare Group family. At an average salary of $64,300 it pays below the federal average of $109,869, and headcount declined 2.7% from the prior period.
- Employees
- 720
- Share of workforce
- 0.0%
- Avg salary
- $64,300
- Avg tenure
- 9 yrs
What the Numbers Say About Psychology Aid and Technician
As of the March 2025 reporting window, 720 people work in the Psychology Aid and Technician occupation (OPM code 181) across federal agencies, 0.0% of the 2,289,472-strong federal civilian workforce. Headcount moved down by -2.7% from the prior period, a modest but trackable signal for anyone considering this specialized federal career path.
The average salary for Psychology Aid and Technician is $64,300 per year, placing it 41.5% below the overall federal civilian average of $109,869. Salaries moved up by 2.6% from the prior period, a broad shift as locality pay tables and grade-level adjustments moved through the workforce. Average length of service in this role is 9 years, a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career.
Code 1, the Social Science, Psychology, and Welfare Group family, is where the federal government classifies Psychology Aid and Technician alongside 27 related occupations. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Psychology Aid and Technician postings should also review these sibling occupations, since federal hiring managers often cross-post positions across closely related codes when recruitment is difficult. All figures here come directly from OPM FedScope Employment Cubes, the same official source referenced in federal workforce planning, budget justifications, and GAO reports.
Within the Social Science, Psychology, and Welfare Group family, Psychology Aid and Technician ranks #15 of 28 by headcount, accounting for 0.6% of the family's combined 113,996 employees. Its average salary ranks in the bottom half (18th percentile) of pay among Social Science, Psychology, and Welfare Group occupations.
Employees
720
-2.7% from prior period
Average Salary
$64,300
+2.6%
Avg Length of Service
9 yrs
Occupation Family
Social Science, Psychology, and Welfare Group
Salary Context
How Psychology Aid and Technician pay compares to the federal average of $109,869
Occupation Average
$64,300
Federal Average
$109,869
vs. Federal Avg
-41.5%
Where Psychology Aid and Technician ranks on federal pay
Its average salary of $64,300 is higher than 21% of federal occupation series (134 of 634). The highlighted bar marks where Psychology Aid and Technician sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 634 federal occupation series; Psychology Aid and Technician ranks higher than 21%.
Related Occupations in Social Science, Psychology, and Welfare Group
10 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Social Insurance Administration | 26,336 | $102,350 | 17.1 yrs |
| Social Work | 23,864 | $107,137 | 8.4 yrs |
| Social Science | 15,599 | $104,809 | 9.9 yrs |
| Intelligence | 14,757 | $136,580 | 11.6 yrs |
| Psychology | 11,079 | $138,990 | 9 yrs |
| Economist | 4,888 | $151,094 | 12.6 yrs |
| Foreign Affairs | 3,843 | $148,817 | 12 yrs |
| Health Insurance Administration | 2,878 | $145,397 | 14.2 yrs |
| Archeology | 1,719 | $92,825 | 10 yrs |
| Social Science Aid and Technician | 1,628 | $66,133 | 9.3 yrs |
Frequently Asked Questions
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Data Source: U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) FedScope Employment Cubes, March 2025. Federal civilian non-seasonal full-time and part-time employees. Data does not include military personnel, postal workers, or intelligence agency staff. Last updated: 2026-03-10.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
PlainGovJobs is rendered directly from OPM FedScope federal-workforce data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on OPM FedScope occupation-level employment records. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.