Counselor Identity Development Research Articles

Practicum Student Counselor Identity Development Through the COVID-19 Pandemic

Practicum Student Counselor Identity Development Through the COVID-19 Pandemic

Power Within the Counselor Identity Development of African American Women in Pastoral Counseling

This study explored experiences of power among 11 African American female pastoral counselors‐in‐training. Limited research exists within the field of pastoral counseling regarding the dynamics of power within the development of minority counselors‐in‐training. Experiences of power such as microaggressions and empowerment were evidenced in the art created by participants during their qualitative interviews. Use of a heuristic arts‐based research design resulted in 6 final essences (major themes): symbolic analysis of the journey of identity development, empowerment, powerlessness, ownership of power, integration, and pervasive spirituality. Practical implications for counselor educators and pastoral counseling programs are provided.

Growing Leaders: The Parallels of Professional Identity and Leadership Identity Development in Counselors

ABSTRACTWithin the counseling profession, an increase in counselor professional identity development research has been reported. Leadership skills have been assumed to be part of a counselor’s identity; however, leadership identity development of counselors has not received significant attention in the literature. In this article, parallels between professional identity and leadership identity of counselors are explored, and recommendations for supporting this development are provided.

The Impact of Transformational Learning Experiences on Personal and Professional Counselor-in-Training Identity Development

Transformational learning experiences for counselor training can be described as experiential activities that facilitate the ability to express feelings and meanings related to life issues. The authors investigated the impact of a 2-day seminar using transformational learning experiences on the personal and professional identity development of counselors-in-training. Quantitative results indicate that participants' self-reported professional performance scores were not significantly different following the training. However, in the qualitative inquiry, participants noted that through the transformational learning experiences, they became aware of past and present challenges, the need for change, the impact of processing within a group, and the application of transformational activities in clinical practices. Such findings indicate how transformational learning experiences-particularly through the use of reflective journaling-might influence personal identity development among counselors-in-training.Keywords: personal identity development, professional identity development, transformational learning, counselor-in-trainingThe promotion of professionalism is a significant component of counselor training and is recognized by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) as a core curriculum requirement for graduate counseling programs (CACREP, 2009). Professionalism includes knowledge and understanding of professional organizations, legal and ethical standards, the role of counselors, professional competencies, and personal and professional growth. Development in this area includes both personal and professional growth and is often referred to as counselor development (Gazzola & Theriault, 2007; Rabinor, 2004; Skovholt & Ronnestad, 1996; Thompson, 2004) or counselor professional identity (Auxier, Hughes, & Kline, 2003; Cashwell, Kleist, & Scofield, 2009; Nugent & Jones, 2009; O'Bryne & Rosenberg, 1998; Reisetter et al, 2004).Independently, professional development encompasses the acquisition of skills and knowledge, and is concerned with the doing needs (Donati & Watts, 2005, p. 476), and personal development includes the needs (p. 476), like authenticity, interpersonal engagement, intimacy and self-evaluation. As dependent concepts, one can imagine the significance each has for counselor identity. A counselor lacking skills and knowledge will function quite differently than a skilled practitioner with years of experience and knowledge. Concurrently, counselors must attend to their own form of personal development (Skovholt & Ronnestad, 1996). Wilkins (1997) went so far as to suggest that personal development embraces everything else that facilitates being a practicing counselor. For example, personal development might include ways in which the counselor maintains a balanced lifestyle, or ways the counselor manages the stress brought on by difficult clients. A counselor lacking in personal well-being might not be considered fit to practice.Many counselors view counselor identity development as a process (Auxier et al, 2003; Brott & Myers, 1999) that results in congruency between personal and professional worldviews (Reisetter et al., 2004), or consider it an equal combination of professional (e.g., roles, decisions, ethics) and personal selves (e.g., values, morals, perceptions; Auxier et al, 2003). This view suggests that personal and professional development are not mutually exclusive and are just as much interrelated as dependent concepts.Research on counselor professional identity development has examined areas such as personal or professional fit (Woodside, Oberman, Cole, & Carruth, 2007), critical incidents experienced by counselorsin-training (CITs; Howard, Inman, & Altman, 2006), career concerns of CITs (Busacca & Wester, 2006), evaluation of personal and professional development (Donati & Watt, 2005; Hensley, Smith, & Thompson, 2003; Lamadue & Duffey, 1999), and ways for counselor educators to address problematic behavior of trainees (Bhat, 2005; Gaubatz & Vera, 2002; McAdams & Foster, 2007; McAdams, Foster, & Ward, 2007). …

A Phenomenological Study: The Experience of Live Supervision during a Pre-practicum Counseling Techniques Course

The experiences of live supervision for three, master’s level, pre-practicum counseling students were explored using a phenomenological methodology. Using semi-structured interviews, this study resulted in a thick description of the experience of live supervision capturing participants’ thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. Data revealed that live supervision during pre-practicum is a multifaceted experience comprised of numerous roles that not only contribute to counselor skill development, but counselor identity development. Participants’ stories reflected the benefit and impact that live supervision provides in the educational context.

Counselor Identity Development: Toward a Model for the Formation of Professional Identity

The purpose of this examination is to identify how counselor educators can assist students in developing professional identity. We propose that this process consists of three learning domains: knowledge, skill, and attitudes. Focusing on the attitudinal, we suggest use of the Context-Phase-Stage-Style (CPSS) model. We propose several practical methods counselor educators can use to attend to the development of professional attitudes among counselors-in-training, using the CPSS model, including mentoring and specific pedagogical techniques.

From Counselor-In-Training to Professional School Counselor: Understanding Professional Identity Development

Professional identity development of counselors is ever evolving throughout counselors’ training and careers. Professional school counselors may experience some role confusion if they do not adhere to national and state models that promote them as leaders, advocates, collaborators, and researchers. In this article, the development of professional identity in counselors will be reviewed and serve as the foundation for school counselors’ professional identity as it evolves in the unique setting of schools.

Using Psychodrama Techniques to Promote Counselor Identity Development in Group Supervision

The authors briefly introduce the concepts, techniques, and theory of identity development associated with J. L. Moreno's (1946, 1969, 1993) Psychodrama. Based upon Loganbill, Hardy, and Delworth's (1982) model, counselor identity development is conceptualized as consisting of seven developmental themes or vectors (e.g., issues of awareness and effective use of emotions in counseling, issues of professional ethics in counseling practice, etc.). Development along these seven psychosocial vectors may be regarded as resembling the process of role repertoire expansion described in Moreno's (1993) identity development theory. The authors present four representative psychodrama activities that have been used with supervisees in group supervision.

Professional Counselor Identity Development: A Qualitative Study of Hispanic Student Interns

In this qualitative study, 8 Hispanic counseling student interns who were enrolled in a regional university told the story of their professional identity development. Qualitative analysis of the transcripts of audiotaped semistructured interviews revealed 7 general themes: (a) knowledge, (b) personal growth, (c) experience, (d) relationships, (e) accomplishment, (f) costs, and (g) perceptions of the counseling profession. Results may provide counselor educators with direction in facilitating the socialization of Hispanic graduate counseling students into the counseling profession.