Psychological Counselor Candidates Research Articles

Examination of Psychological Counselor Candidates’ Views of Using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) in Individual Psychological Counseling: A Q Methodology Approach

Individual Psychological Counseling Practicum is an applied course in which Guidance and Psychological Counseling undergraduate senior students have an opportunity to have a practical experience with an actual client in Turkey. In the course, the theoretical approaches chosen by the counselors and their views on this approach may affect their attitudes towards the practicum process and their experiences. Therefore, the current study aims to determine the opinions of guidance and psychological counseling senior students who took the course Individual Psychological Counseling Practicum about using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in individual psychological counseling with the Q-methodology approach. For this purpose, 33 senior undergraduate students participated in the current study, taking the Individual Psychological Counseling Practicum-2 course in Atatürk University. The research utilized Q-statements crafted by the researcher along with a Q-sort comprising 18 sentences ranging from -3 to +3, facilitating forced placement, as the data collection instrument. Results showed that the opinions of the counselor candidates about the use of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy were gathered in a single dimension, which indicates a positive attitude.

Association of Self-Construal with Disclosure and the Need for Affect among Psychological Counselor Candidates

This study examines whether relatedness, autonomy, and autonomous-related self-construals predict the variables of approaching and avoiding emotions through the perception of self-disclosure. In this context, a path model containing these variables was developed and tested in this study by considering theoretical explanations. Participants included students attending Aksaray University’s Guidance and Psychological Counseling Department. Taking into consideration that the individuals to whom the measurement tools would be administered were to be between 18 and 26, the maximum diversity method, one of the purposive sampling methods, was employed in the study. Data were collected “Relational, Autonomy, Autonomous-Relational Scale”, “Short Form of the Need for Affect Questionnaire” and “Opener Scale”. This study shows that relatedness, autonomy, and autonomous-related self-construals are directly related to the perception of disclosure. The results revealed that those with relatedness self-construal have the highest perception of disclosure. Autonomy self-construal came second and autonomous-related self-construal came third. In this study, it seems that individuals with relatedness self-construal perceived themselves more open in terms of sharing their feelings. This study shows that the perception of disclosure was low in autonomous-related self-construal in which individuals both perceived and assessed themselves as autonomous and interdependent with others.

Qualitative Research on Social Media Addictions of Psychological Counsellor Candidates

Social media (SM), which is frequently preferred by young people, poses a risk of addiction when used excessively and unconsciously. Having self-awareness and becoming digitally literate, unlike other university students, is essential for psychological counselor candidates (PCC) in terms of preventive counseling they will do in the institutions they will work in the future. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare young people who use social media intensively or less by examining the views of PCC with high or low levels of social media addiction (SMA). This study presents a phenomenological approach to qualitative research. The SMA Scale-Adult Form was applied to the students (total 138 students) from the Department of Psychological Counselling and Guidance at Artvin Çoruh University. Focus group interviews were conducted with 20 PCC students who got the highest (11 students) and lowest (9 students) points on the scale, and extreme case and outlier samplings were preferred from the interviews. The data collected through the interviews were analyzed using content analysis. As a result of the study, SMA and related addiction symptoms have been observed in the PCC. The opinions of the PCC with low and high SMA levels varied in terms of the frequency of SM usage, application preferences, usage purposes, emotions, and opinions on the effect of SM on professional use. The results of the study are discussed and interpreted in line with the relevant literature, and recommendations are presented.

The Effect of Distance Education on Self-efficacy towards Online Technologies and Motivation for Online Learning

This research aimed to investigate the effect of distance education during the COVID-19 pandemic on psychological counselor candidates’ self-efficacy perceptions towards online technologies and their motivation for online learning. Single group pretest-posttest model, a quantitative method, was used in the research. The study participants were third-year students at the Faculty of Education, Psychological Counseling and Guidance Department of a state university in the fall semester of 2020-2021. Demographic Information Form, Online Technologies Self-Efficacy Scale and Online Motivation Scale were used as data collection tools. As a result of the research, it was observed that the psychological counselor candidates’ self-efficacy for online technologies and online learning motivation scores were above the average. It was concluded that the distance education used during the COVID-19 pandemic caused a statistically significant difference in psychological counselor candidates’ self-efficacy towards online technologies, but did not cause a difference in their online learning motivation. There was no significant difference in self-efficacy according to gender and place of residence. However, while there was no significant difference in motivation according to gender, a significant difference was observed in regards to the place of residence in favor of citycenter. It is important to present psychological counselor candidates’ perceptions and motivations in regards to distance education, which is an ongoing process at the moment, for their professional development.

The Effect of a Group Psychoeducation Program for Improving Forgiveness on theForgiveness Levels of Psychological Counselor Candidates

The Effect of a Group Psychoeducation Program for Improving Forgiveness on theForgiveness Levels of Psychological Counselor Candidates

Effect Of A Group Leader Training Program On The Group Counseling Skills Of Psychological Counselor Candidates

It is important to encourage psychological counselor candidates to do practice, as well as provide the theoretical basis for the counseling in a group within the psychological counseling education. Otherwise, they may be reluctant to manage a psychological counseling group. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of a training program on the group counseling skills of counselor candidates. The experimental group of the research consisted of 37 group leader candidates (18 males and 19 females). Quantitative data were obtained using the Skilled Group Counseling Scale. Qualitative data were obtained from evaluation reports of the candidates at the end of the training and analyzed using the content analysis method. Quantitative findings of the research showed that, at the end of the training, all of the total and subscales scores of the Group Counseling Skills Scale of the candidates significantly meaningfully increased. Qualitative findings were grouped under 3 themes, as achievements (group counseling skills, group leader self-efficacy, and professional awareness), boosters, and difficulties.

PSİKOLOG VE PSİKOLOJİK DANIŞMANLARDA AFFETME

Bu araştırmanın amacı ruh sağlığı profesyonellerinin ve adaylarının affetme düzeylerini incelemektir. Araştırmaya, 101 psikolojik danışman adayı, 141 psikolog adayı, 115 psikolojik danışman ve 165 psikolog olmak üzere toplam 522 ruh sağlığı profesyoneli ve adayı katılmıştır. Affetme düzeyini belirlemek amacıyla Affetme Ölçeği kullanılmıştır. Tek Yönlü MANOVA sonucunda, çalışan ruh sağlığı profesyonellerinin kendini affetme düzeylerinin adaylara göre anlamlı düzeyde daha yüksek olduğu; psikolojik danışman adaylarının başkasını affetme düzeylerinin ise diğerlerine göre anlamlı ölçüde daha düşük olduğu bulunmuştur. İki Yönlü ANOVA sonuçlarına göre ise, kadın ve erkeklerin affetme düzeylerinin anlamlı ölçüde farklılık göstermediği; daha uzun süre mesleki deneyimi olan ruh sağlığı profesyonellerinin affetme düzeylerinin anlamlı ölçüde daha yüksek olduğu belirlenmiştir. Lisans eğitimi gören psikolog adaylarının ve psikolojik danışman adaylarının başkasını affetme düzeylerinde ortaya çıkan farklılık, meslek çalışanlarında görülmemiştir. Elde edilen bulgular ilgili alanyazın ışığında tartışılmıştır.

Psikolojik Danışman Adaylarının Kariyer Kararı Yetkinlik ve Mesleki Sonuç Beklentilerinin Geliştirilmesi

Bu araştırmada, Sosyal Bilişsel Kariyer Kuramı temelinde geliştirilen psikoeğitim programının psikolojik danışman adaylarının kariyer kararı yetkinlik ve mesleki sonuç beklentileri üzerindeki etkisi incelenmiştir. Araştırma, yarı deneysel desende gerçekleştirilmiş olup, çalışma grubunu rehberlik ve psikolojik danışmanlık anabilim dalında öğrenim gören 54 üniversite öğrencisi (27 deney, 27 kontrol grubu) oluşturmuştur. Deney grubuna araştırma kapsamında geliştirilen psikoeğitim programı uygulanırken, kontrol grubuna yönelik herhangi bir uygulama yapılmamıştır. Deney gruplarında psikoeğitim programı iki ayrı grup halinde araştırmacılar tarafından uygulanmış, uygulamanın etkililiğini belirlemeye yönelik veriler Kariyer Kararı Yetkinlik Beklentisi Ölçeği Kısa Formu ve Mesleki Sonuç Beklentisi Ölçeği aracılığı ile elde edilmiştir. Elde edilen verilerin analizinde ilişkisiz gruplar t-testi, kovaryans analizi, çok değişkenli varyans analizi ve çok değişkenli kovaryans analizi kullanılmıştır. Analiz sonucunda kariyer kararı yetkinlik beklentisi ve mesleki sonuç beklentisinin ön-test puanlarına göre düzeltilmiş son test puanlarının deney grubu lehine farklılaştığı bulunmuştur. Bu bulgular psikoeğitim programının psikolojik danışman adaylarının kariyer kararı yetkinlik beklentisi ve mesleki sonuç beklentisini artırmada etkili olduğunu göstermiştir.

Conflict Activity Styles of Psychological Counsellor Candidates: A Study of Based on Forgiveness and Psychological Well-Being

The purpose of this study is to assess the conflict activity styles of psychological counselor candidates in terms of psychological well-being and forgiveness. The sample of the study consists of a total of 410 individuals, 281 females and 129 males, who are studying at the department of psychological counseling and guidance at 4 different universities located at İstanbul during the 2019-2020 academic year. The study data were collected by “Personal information form”, “Conflict activity styles scale”, “Forgivingness scale” and “Psychological well-being scale”. The data was analyzed with SPSS-21 statistic software program. The first step of the data analysis included the assessment of the relationship between the variables with Pearson correlation analysis, which then followed by hierarchical multiple regression analysis in order to evaluate the psychological well-being and forgivingness as mutual predictors of conflict styles. The obtained results showed that there is a significant correlation between the psychological counselor candidates’ conflict style scores and their psychological well-being and forgivingness scores. Additionally, it was found that these two variables, though in different percentages, are predictor variables of conflict activity styles of psychological counselors. The data were discussed considering the literature to lead variety of suggestions which would serve both the researchers and field practitioners.

Investigation of the Relationships among Psychological Counselor Candidates' Counseling Self-Efficacy, Multicultural Competence, Gender Roles, and Mindfulness

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between counseling self-efficacy, multicultural competence, gender roles and mindfulness of counselor candidates. Participants of this study were 431 senior students studying in the Guidance and Psychological Counseling Undergraduate Programs of 14 different Turkish universities. According to the results, psychological counselor candidates’ gender roles and mindfulness significantly predicted their counseling self-efficacy through the mediation of multicultural competence. The authors discuss implications of these findings.

The Effectiveness of the Dealing with Homophobia Psycho-Education Program on Psychological Counselor Candidates

The aim of this research is to investigate the effect of the Dealing with Homophobia Psycho-Education Program on homophobia levels of psychological counselor candidates. This research was conducted with a mixed model and utilized quantitative and qualitative methods. 2 (experimental and control groups) x 3 (pre-test, post-test, follow-up) research design which is a type of quasi-experimental design was used and content analysis was applied to the data obtained via interviews. The study was conducted with a total of 24 psychological counselor candidates, 12 in the experimental group and, 12 in the control group. The Homophobia Scale was used to determine the homophobia levels of psychological counselor candidates. The Dealing with Homophobia Psycho-Education Program was developed by the researcher. In order to determine the effectiveness of the program, The Two-Way Analysis of Variance with Repeated Measures was used. As a result of the research, it was determined that the Dealing with Homophobia Psycho-Education Program is effective in decreasing the levels of homophobia of the psychological counselor candidates. Also, according to the participant's views, it was determined that the psycho-education program was effective in decreasing homophobia and caused changes in attitudes. The importance and necessity of using the program on psychological counselor education are discussed.

Psikolojik Danışman Adaylarına Göre Etkili Psikolojik Danışmanın Özellikleri ve Psikolojik Danışman Eğitiminin Etkisi

Purpose of this study is to investigate the views of psychological counselor candidates, on the characteristics of effective psychological counselor, changes that their psychological counseling education has made in them, and in their opinion, how psychological counseling education should be. The study was conducted in qualitative research method, and data was collected via three open-ended questions from a total of 196 undergraduate students 169 female (86%) and 27 male (14%) of Psychological Counseling and Guidance programs from two state universities. Data obtained were analyzed by content analysis. According to the findings, psychological counselor candidates indicated that the characteristics an effective psychological counselor should have are having good communication skills and having the necessary conditions for good communication; willing to be with people and to help them; self-awareness and resilient; objectivity and openness to new things; professional attitude, ethics, and attitude towards life. Participants summarized the changes that they experienced due to their education as the increase of personal qualities such as knowing one’s self more and changing it, knowing others better and understanding them better, and some professional qualities as starting to have better communication. For a more effective psychological counseling education, psychological counselor candidates suggested that increasing practicum classes and supervision, rearranging the courses and years in terms of number, term, and methodology, and improving the academic staff-student relations. Findings were discussed according to literature.

Views of Psychological Counselor Candidates Participating in Social Skills Training

Sosyal beceri eğitimine katılan psikolojik danışman adaylarının görüşlerinin incelendiği bu araştırmada nitel araştırma desenlerinden biri olan “durum çalışması” kullanılmıştır. Araştırma Mustafa Kemal Üniversitesi Eğitim Fakültesi Rehberlik ve Psikolojik Danışmanlık lisans eğitimine devam eden öğrencilerden seçilen katılımcılarla yapılmıştır. Araştırmada veri toplama aracı olarak araştırmacılar tarafından hazırlanan “Oturum Sonu Değerlendirme Formu” ve “Genel Değerlendirme Formu” kullanılmıştır. Elde edilen veriler içerik analizi ile çözümlenmiştir. Katılımcıların görüşleri elde edilen kazanım, yaşanan duygular, yaşanan farkındalıklar, yaşanan zorluklar, becerinin işlevselliği, eğitim program ve sürece ilişkin değerlendirmeler, becerinin geliştirilmesi için programa yönelik öneri şeklinde kategorilere ayrılarak sunulmuştur. Araştırma sonuçları, sosyal beceri eğitiminin katılımcıların gelişimlerine katkı sağladığını göstermektedir.

Investigation of Psychological Counselor Candidates’ Psychological Counseling Self-Efficacy in terms of Some Descriptive Variables

Bu araştırmanın amacı, psikolojik danışman adaylarının psikolojik danışma özyeterliklerinin çeşitli betimsel özellikleri açısından incelenmesidir. Araştırmaya Türkiye’de 14 farklı devlet üniversitesi psikolojik danışmanlık ve rehberlik programının son sınıfında öğrenim gören 431 psikolojik danışman adayı katılmıştır. Çalışma grubunun %71’i (N=306) kadın ve %29’u (N=125) erkektir. Katılımcıların yaş ortalaması 22.16, yaş standart sapması .99’dur. Araştırma verilerinin toplanmasında Psikolojik Danışma Özyeterlik Ölçeği ve araştırmacılar tarafından oluşturulan kişisel bilgi formu kullanılmıştır. Araştırmada tek yönlü varyans analizi (ANOVA) ve bağımsız örneklem t-testi kullanılmıştır. Verilerin analizi için IBM SPSS Statistic 22 paket programı kullanılmıştır. Araştırmanın bulgularına göre, psikolojik danışman adaylarının psikolojik danışma özyeterlikleri psikolojik danışma uygulaması öncesi aldıkları mesleki derslere ve psikolojik danışma uygulamalarına ilişkin değerlendirmelerine göre farklılaşmaktadır. Kültüre duyarlı psikolojik danışma dersi almış olanların psikolojik danışma özyeterlikleri, dersi almayanlarınkinden anlamlı düzeyde yüksek bulunmuştur. Psikolojik danışman adaylarının aldıkları mesleki dersler, psikolojik danışma uygulamaları ve kültüre duyarlı psikolojik danışma dersini almaları psikolojik danışma özyeterliklerinin artmasına katkı sağladığı sonucuna ulaşılmıştır.

The Predictive Role of Homophobia and Unconditional Self-Acceptance on Respect of Differences in Psychological Counselor Candidates

<p style="text-align:justify">This research was conducted to investigate the predictive role of homophobia and unconditional self-acceptance on respect of differences in psychological counselor candidates. Participants were 239 psychological counselor candidates. The Respect of Differences Scale, the Homophobia Scale, and the Unconditional Self-Acceptance Scale were used to collect the data. Path analysis was used to determine the influences of variables on respect of differences. The independent sample t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to determine differences between participants in terms of gender and grade. The results of the analysis indicated that homophobia and unconditional self-acceptance are predictors of respect of differences, and place of living and traditionally have an indirect effect on respect of differences. In addition, female participants reported a higher level of respect of differences than male participants. Similarly, first year college students reported a higher level of respect of differences than fourth year college students.</p>

The Effect of Solution-Focused Group Counseling with Psychological Counselor Candidates on Solution-Focused Tendency and Satisfaction with Life

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of solution-focused brief group psychological counseling (SFBGC) on Guidance and Psychological Counseling students’ solution-focused tendencies and satisfaction with life. The study employed a pretest posttest follow-up test design, a quasi-experimental design. The study sample consisted of students majoring in Guidance and Psychological Counseling in Aksaray University’s Faculty of Education during the 2016-2017 academic year. “Solution-Focused Inventory (SFI)” developed by Grant et al. (2012) and translated into Turkish by Karahan-Sanal and Hamarta (2015) was used to measure the study’s dependent variables. Afterwards, “Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS)”, developed by Diener et al. (1985) and adapted to Turkish by Koker (1991) was administered. The data were analyzed with SPSS 18 package program. Mann-Whitney U Test was used to reveal the difference between the pretest, posttest and follow-up test scores of the experimental and control groups, and Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test was utilised to reveal the differences within the groups for repeated measurements. As a result, at the end of a six week (SFBGC), experimental group’s Satisfaction with Life and Solution-Focused Inventory scores increased from pretest to posttest. At the end of the follow-up sessions, the change in the scores continued similarly. According to the results, the program is effective.

Psikolojik Danışman Adaylarının Koşulsuz Kendini Kabul Düzeyleri

Bireyin zekice, doğru ve yetkin davranıp davranmadığı ve başkaları tarafından onaylanıp onaylanmadığına aldırmadan kendini tam ve koşulsuz olarak kabul etmesi olarak tanımlanabilen koşulsuz kendini kabul, psikolojik danışmanların sahip olması gereken özelliklerden bir tanesidir. Bireylerin kendini koşulsuz kabulü diğerlerini de eleştirisiz ve önyargısız kabul etmeyi içerir. Bu nedenle bu araştırmada psikolojik danışman adaylarının koşulsuz kendini kabul düzeylerini ve cinsiyet, sınıf düzeyi ve algılanan aile tutumu değişkenlerine göre farklılaşıp farklılaşmadıklarını belirlemek amaçlanmıştır. Araştırmanın örneklemi 183 psikolojik danışma ve rehberlik bölümü öğrencisinden oluşmaktadır. Araştırma genel tarama modeline göre yürütülmüş ve betimleyici analizlerle birlikte t-testi, ANOVA ve Tukey’s B testi kullanılmıştır. Sonuçta araştırmaya katılan bireylerin koşulsuz kendini kabul düzeylerinin orta düzeyde olduğu, elde edilen puanların cinsiyet ve anne-baba tutumuna göre farklılaşmazken, sınıf düzeyine göre farklılaştığı görülmüştür. Bu farklılık 1 ve 2. sınıf öğrencileri arasında, 2. sınıf lehine bulunmuştur.

A Research on the Opinions Related to the Personality Traits and Affect-States of Psychological Counselor Candidates through “Draw a Picture of Cactus Test"

“Bir Kaktüs Resmi Çiz Testi” hem çocukların hem de yetişkinlerin iç dünyaları, mizaçları, duygu durumları hakkında bilgi vermeyi sağlayan yansıtıcı testlerden biridir. Bu araştırmanın amacı, psikolojik danışman adaylarının kişilik özellikleri ve duygu durumlarına ilişkin görüşlerinin “Bir Kaktüs Resmi Çiz Testi” aracılığıyla incelenmesidir. Araştırmanın katılımcılarını 2017-2018 eğitim öğretim yılında Van Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Rehberlik ve Psikolojik Danışmanlık Bölümü’nde eğitim alan 1. ve 2. sınıf öğrencilerinden 6 erkek ve 15 kadın olmak üzere toplam 21 kişi oluşturmuştur. Nitel araştırma desenine göre tasarlanan bu çalışmanın verileri, yarı yapılandırılmış görüşme tekniği aracılığıyla toplanmıştır. Araştırmadan elde edilen sonuçlara göre; kadın katılımcıların bir kısmının ve erkek katılımcıların hepsinin “yabani bir kaktüs resmi” çizdikleri, “saksı” çizmedikleri ve bu bağlamda “özgürlüklerine düşkün oldukları” söylenebilir. Nitekim saksı içindeki ve kökleri olan kaktüs resimleri, evcimen olmayla bağdaştırılırken; çöl kaktüsü, kökü olmayan ve yaban kaktüs resimleri “bağımsız olmayla” ilişkilendirilmektedir. Bu bağlamda araştırmaya katılan erkek öğrencilerin evcimen mizaç taşımadıkları söylenebilir. Yapılan bu uygulama ile bireylerin yaptıkları resimler aracılığıyla onların duygu durumları ve içsel dünyaları hakkında önemli bilgiler elde edilebileceği sonucuna varılmıştır.

The Effect of Group Supervision on the Psychological Counseling Self-Efficacy Levels of Psychological Counseling Candidates

Psychological counseling skills are the most important part of the psychological counseling profession. Psychological counseling candidates have the opportunity of performing these professional skills previously learned theoretically within the practice course of psychological counseling with another person during their undergraduate education and they receive supervision support for these practices. This study presents mixed-pattern research examining the effect of group supervision on the psychological counseling self-efficacy of psychological counselor candidates. Quantitative data were obtained from Counselor Activity Self-Efficacy Scale and qualitative data was obtained from the evaluation reports of the psychological counselor candidates. The quantitative findings show that group supervision is effective on all the subscales (exploration, insight, action, conflicts in relationships and client problems) of psychological counseling self-efficacy. The qualitative results backing up these findings prove that the responses of the participants can be divided into four categories of emotions, professional development, boosters, and difficulties. As a result, the findings of this research showed that the group supervision carried out in the individual psychological counseling course positively affected the psychological counseling self-efficacy perceptions of the psychological counselor candidates. Based on these findings, it has been suggested to take into consideration the improvement of the self-efficacy levels of psychological counselor candidates as well as the acquision of professional skills in counselor education.

The effects of assertiveness skills development program (ASDP) on the assertiveness levels of psychological counselor candidates

The effects of assertiveness skills development program (ASDP) on the assertiveness levels of psychological counselor candidates