The Training Counselor: An Emerging Professional

Purpose Counselling is one of the eight pillars of clinical practice for speech-language pathologists, but training varies across programmes and practising speech-language pathologists feel unprepared to deliver counselling in clinical practice. This study examined the perspectives of speech-language pathologists working in rehabilitation contexts within the US. Method An online survey was distributed to speech-language pathologists working in rehabilitation contexts, eliciting 93 respondents. Quantitative data were characterised using descriptive statistics. Result Only 47% of respondents had taken a counselling course as a graduate student of which 82% were within a speech-language pathology graduate program and 19% were outside of their graduate training program. Forty-two percent who had not taken a course indicated that counselling was embedded in other graduate coursework. Sixty-six percent of respondents had not taken continuing education or additional training in counselling as a practising speech-language pathologists. Across all training, 75% of respondents had no hands-on training or practise in counselling. Most respondents had no training in specific counselling techniques. Conclusion Because only half of rehabilitation speech-language pathologists report taking coursework in counselling within their graduate training, their readiness for implementing counselling in practice is suspect. Limited access to professional development training in counselling further limits this capacity. More consistent counselling training within graduate programmes and continuing education is necessary.

While there is considerable literature available on pastors and the ministry and much writing concerning therapists and secular counseling as well as pastoral counseling, very little has been written concerning counseling by pastors without professional counseling training. This neglected area of research is unfortunate considering many pastors are considered or required to be counselors by their churches and denominations. In addition, there is minimal training in pastoral counseling in most seminaries, leaving many pastors to assume a role for which they may be unprepared. This exploratory study used a self-report instrument specifically developed for this research endeavor to collect information about the counseling methods, ethics, and referral habits of 248 West Virginia Baptist ministers. Ministers who were formally trained in counseling theory and technique were compared to ministers who were not formally trained in counseling. The study revealed significant differences. Ministers without formal counseling training placed a greater emphasis on the use of the Bible and prayer, were more hesitant to refer their counselees, differed in their type of counseling methods, and differed on the types of clients they would counsel, as compared to those ministers with formal counseling training. The implications suggest many ministers assume a role for which they may be unprepared and may benefit from the incorporation of counseling education into their pastoral training.

In addition to the normal developmental tasks, racial and ethnic minority youth may experience other unique challenges that are related to their social, cultural, and structural positions in the US. Specifically, African American adolescents are at increased risk for dropping out of schools and engaging in health risk behaviors due to contextual stressors such as poverty, neighborhood disorder, community violence, and racial discrimination. Group counseling is a developmentally appropriate approach for working with adolescents; however, the counselor training concerning culture-specific considerations for working with African American adolescents in group settings was rarely explored. Therefore, this article aims to serve as a fundamental conceptual framework for working with African American adolescents in groups across different settings by addressing the appropriateness of group counseling for African American adolescents; reflecting on the current counselor preparation and training in group work with African American adolescents; discussing the development, culture, stressors, and strengths of African American adolescents; and providing implications and practical suggestions.

This study examined the relationship between counseling trainees’ professional identity development and their social justice engagement. Data collected from counseling master’s students in CACREP-accredited programs were analyzed using hierarchical multiple regression. Results indicated that counseling trainees’ professional identity predicted their social justice engagement. Recommendations for developing counseling trainees’ professional identity and counseling competencies are suggested.

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the personal and professional factors that predict trainees’ self-perceived readiness to work with child and adolescent clients utilizing a newly developed measure, the Assessment of Youth Counseling Competency Indicators (AYCCI). Participants included 205 master’s-level counselors-in-training (CITs) from various counselor education programs across the United States. Through an electronic survey, participants were asked to complete a demographic form and the AYCCI. Using exploratory factor analysis, the researcher examined the internal structure of the AYCCI. Results of the principal components analysis with promax rotation yielded a 65-item measure with four factors that could explain 52.61% of the variance. Then, the researcher conducted a series of hierarchical linear regressions to explore the specific trainee- and training-factors that could predict CITs’ subscale and total scores on the AYCCI while controlling for potential confounding variables. Overall, the control variables revealed a statistically significant relationship with the dependent variables across all RQs. The two strongest controls were CITs’ number of completed credit hours and CITs’ previous/current youth work experience. On average, CITs’ focus area demonstrated a statistically significant relationship with the dependent variables across all RQs, with Youth Specialty as the dominant predictor. Similarly, the number of youth counseling courses CITs completed demonstrated a strong predictive relationship with self-reported AYCCI scores. Lastly, the program variables, delivery type and accreditation status, did not yield a statistically significant result and were not noteworthy predictors of participants’ scores. Implications for counselor education and areas for future research are also discussed.

Problem Statement: The counseling profession requires specific education and training to equip counselor trainees with necessary knowledge and skills. Therefore, they are required not only to acquire theoretical knowledge but also to integrate it into practice. Especially, the integration of theoretical knowledge into practice is optimally possible with practicum. Although practicum provides a context such integration, it also leads to some negative thoughts and feelings among trainees. Experiencing anxiety and other feelings of incompetence impedes their professional development. Therefore, the critical task is to enable them to cope with negative feelings and experiences such as anxiety during their training process. In this context, taking account trainees’ experiences and feelings as counselors during the formal education process makes important contributions to their personal and professional development. Purpose of Study: To support the development of counselor trainees and make their educational and training processes fully functional, understanding the nature and antecedents of these negative experiences and feelings becomes critical. This study was conducted to understand the counselor trainees’ predictions about their experiences as counselors during practicum course and to reveal the sources of feelings related to these predictions. Methods: This research was a qualitative study based on focus group interviews. The researcher and two research assistants conducted interviews with two groups consisting of a total of 13 trainees taking an Individual Counseling Practicum Course. Open-ended questions were

A major concern many counselor trainees face when preparing to see their first couple-client is that of confidence because they have had little to no experience in interacting in a professional capacity with couples. Many beginning counselors experience anxiety, which can inhibit their effectiveness with clients (Scanlon & Baille, 1994). Introducing counselor trainees to a relatively non-threatening interaction with couples might reduce the initial anxiety that characterizes the neophyte counselor venturing into new clinical territory. The interaction may also enhance feelings of warmth and closeness of the couples. John Gottman's Oral History Interview (Gottman, 1999) was the protocol used in the interaction between trainee and couple. An instrument developed for this study to measure couple counseling confidence, the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger, 1983), and the Personal Assessment of Intimacy in Relationships (Schaefer & Olson, 1981) were used to assess levels of counselor confidence, counselor anxiety, and couple intimacy, respectively. The confidence instrument and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory were administered to 37 students who were enrolled in four graduate level introductory couple counseling classes and who interviewed couples, as well as to 34 counselor-trainees who were enrolled in five graduate level counseling courses other than couple counseling and who did not interview couples. Analyses of the quantitative data revealed no statistically significant differences in confidence between trainees who interviewed a couple and trainees who did not interview a couple. Analyses of qualitative data suggested there were differences. The Personal Assessment of Intimacy in Relationships was administered to 67 individual couple participants who were interviewed by counselor trainees, and 35 individual couple participants who were not interviewed by counselor-trainees. Analyses of the quantitative data revealed no statistically significant differences in couples who participated in the Oral History Interview and those who did not. Analyses of qualitative data suggested there were differences. Regarding both counselor confidence and couple intimacy, future research using a larger sample size and more refined quantitative methods appears warranted.

The goal of this research was to evaluate the personal health behaviors of physicians in training and attending physicians in association with patient-related lifestyle counseling. Physicians at a major teaching hospital were surveyed regarding their personal lifestyle behavior, perceived confidence, and frequency of counseling patients regarding lifestyle behaviors. One hundred eighty-three total responses were received. Trainees were more likely to consume fast food and less likely to consume fruits and vegetables than attendings. Attending physicians were more likely to exercise 4 or more days per week and more than 150 minutes per week. Attending physicians were more likely to counsel their patients regarding a healthy diet (70.7% vs 36.3%, P<.0001) and regular exercise (69.1% vs 38.2%, P<.0001) compared with trainees. Few trainees or attendings were confident in their ability to change patients' behaviors. Predictors of confidence in counseling for exercise included the provider's own exercise time of > 150 minutes per week, being overweight, and reported adequate training in counseling. Only adequate training in counseling was a predictor of strong self-efficacy for counseling in diet. Many physicians lack confidence in their ability to counsel patients regarding lifestyle. Personal behaviors including regular exercise and better training in counseling techniques may improve patient counseling.

This study was a correlational research aiming to investigate the relationship between role conflict and role ambiguity, and counseling competencies among trainee counselors in the supervision process. Next, this study also seeks to examine the influence of both factors towards the study's dependent variables. For the respondents, 217 trainee counselors and 67 supervisor lecturers from nine public universities in Malaysia were involved. Two instruments were used to measure the variables in this study namely The Role Conflict and Role Ambiguity Inventory (RCRAI) and Counseling Competencies Scale (CCS). RCRAI was administered to measure the role conflict and role ambiguity among trainee counselors, while CCS functions to assist the supervisors in evaluating the counselors' competencies. Based on the study findings, there was a significant correlation between role conflict and role ambiguity with counseling competencies r =.170, p<.05; and r =-.542, p<.05, respectively. For the multiple regression analyses, it is reported that the model was a significant predictor of counseling competencies, R 2 = 2.95, F(2, 201) = 41.994, p< .000. The model also indicates that only role ambiguity had contributed significantly (= -.434, p<.05), while role conflict had not ( =-.046, p>.05). All these findings provide future research directions to improve the level of competencies among the trainee counselor in the supervision process. For this purpose, the study implications on counselor competencies in the supervision as well as on the relationship between both the supervisor and trainee are discussed.

Background: WHO and UNICEF advocate exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of baby’s life and continue with complementary foods for up to two years, supporting the 2030 SDGs target for optimal health during the first 1000 days. The success of exclusive breastfeeding is still limited in some areas; therefore, it is necessary to establish breastfeeding support groups. Effective breastfeeding also requires educational interventions that change attitudes, knowledge, and skills in breastfeeding support groups. This study aims to determine the effect of breastfeeding counseling training on the knowledge, attitude, and skills of breastfeeding support groups.Method: The study was conducted in three villages in the work area of the Pesantren (Islamic Boarding House) II Public Health Center Kediri: Jamsaren, Tosaren, and Pakunden villages. The study was administered from January to February 2020. The sample was taken with Purposive Sampling, and the number of samples was 60, varying from pregnant women, nursing mothers, husband/family, cadres, and midwives. This study used a quasi-experiment with one group pre-test-post-test design where all respondents did a pre-test, got lactation counseling training, and then took a post-test. The questionnaire evaluated knowledge, attitudes, and skills, and assessed by modifying lactation counseling training observation sheets from WHO.Result: This study exercised a quasi-experimental model with one group pre-test-post-test design. Data were analyzed univariately, while comparative testing was carried out bivariate using the Wilcoxon test, and the Mann-Whitney. Wilcoxon's analysis showed that breastfeeding counseling training had an influence on the knowledge (p=0.000), attitudes (p=0.001), and skills (p=0,000) of the breastfeeding support group. Breastfeeding counseling training is effective in increasing knowledge, attitudes, and skills. It was expected that the Health Department and Public Health Center implement it regularly with wider coverage and automatically create a new breastfeeding support group.

Counselor education programs have a responsibility to ensure that individuals are competently trained, demonstrate understanding of ethical guidelines, and are free of observable psychological issues that may affect their ability to provide adequate counseling services. Counselor trainees who do not reach or maintain these professional standards may exhibit problems of professional competence (PPC). This position paper provides a review of the issues related to PPC among counselor trainees. It offers guidelines to counselor education programs for developing PPC policies and procedures. Future directions for research and training practice are discussed.

ABSTRACTThis study examined the professional identity development of English‐as‐an‐additional‐language counselor trainees (EAL CTs) and its relationship with foreign language anxiety (FLA), acculturation, and language proficiency. Findings revealed that professional identity was positively associated with mainstream acculturation, heritage acculturation, and language proficiency but negatively associated with FLA. Language proficiency mediated the relationship between mainstream acculturation and professional identity, highlighting the foundational role of language proficiency. These results emphasize the importance of fostering bicultural competence, addressing FLA, and providing language support in counselor training programs to enhance EAL CTs’ professional development.

Physiological stress reactions to verbally-presented situations involving work with disabled clients or non-disabled clients with various presenting problems were examined in 42 counselors in training. Counselors in training were found to experience significant stress above baseline measures, toward all client groups with no significant differences in stress responses to disabled and non-disabled clients. Within groups, significantly more stress was measured only in response to cerebral palsied versus epilepic clients. Results suggest that beginning counselors experience a high stress level in relation to working with any type of client, and that the level of physiological reaction to clients will vary across individual counselors.

Using a hermeneutic approach to inquiry, the author interviewed 8 counsellors in training to gain an understanding of the question, “How do counsellors in training develop, and how do they make sense of what they are doing/what is happening to them?” Their accounts were integrated into a single emerging story that captures their experience and the meaning they attached to their counsellor education experiences. Organized temporally, this story of counsellor development was divided into four phases: foreshadowings, opening chapters, denouement, and final chapter (conclusions). Finally, implications for counsellor education practice are discussed.

In this constructivist-grounded theory study, 18 Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) school counselors in training (SCITs) were interviewed to explore their leadership identity development. The emergent theoretical model includes a 3 × 3 × 4 rectangular prism illustrating a complex synergy of three identity development processes: school counselor, leader, and anti-racist.