Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Qualitative Investigation Of Clinical Mental Health Counselors' Group Practicum Training Experiences, Brittany L. Pollard-Kosidowski, Monica E. Kaule, Heather Uphold, Chad Losinger, Adam F. Stephens

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

The authors of this study used inductive content analysis to qualitatively explore the group practicum training experiences of clinical mental health counselors who graduated from one CACREP-accredited program. Fifteen participants shared about their firsthand experiences in a required group practicum course and described the ways in which the experience impacted their competence and self-efficacy as counseling professionals and group workers. Five resulting themes highlight the significance and value of practical training experiences dedicated solely to group facilitation. Implications for counselor educators and program accreditors are provided, along with recommendations for future research.

Integrated Behavioral Health Training In Counselor Education: A Call To Action, Nicholas Schmoyer, Lisa Corbin, Lauren Robins

The Journal of Integrated Primary Care

The American healthcare system is beginning to adopt an integrated behavioral health model as a way to meet the ever-changing and holistic needs of patients by creating opportunities for collaboration among medical and behavioral health professionals. Professional counselors play a vital role in integrative behavioral health through their meaningful participation on interdisciplinary healthcare teams. Professional counselors are key to any interdisciplinary team because they embrace a biopsychosocial wellness perspective and have undergone clinical and academic training. However, many counseling programs do not specifically educate or train counselors in how to work in integrated care settings. As such, counselor educators must …

Training Counselors Using Virtual Reality, Courtney M. Holmes, Fatima Tariq, Karena Heyward, Denise Hall

Journal of Technology in Counselor Education and Supervision

Virtual reality (VR) has the potential to expand experiential learning opportunities in counselor education. This article discusses how semi- and immersive VR can provide students a diverse range of experiences to increase both counseling skill and empathy development for clients with a myriad of identities, diagnoses, and presenting counseling issues. Suggestions and implications for counselor education are discussed.

Practice Makes Progress: Using The Lifespan Course As An Example For Role-Play Implementation, Emily Horton, Ed Jacobs

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

This conceptual article addresses specific clinical and practical implications for the utilization of role-play in the human growth and development course. Specific approaches to integrating role-play into the human growth and development course, including what we coin as Structured Role-Play, Semi-Structured Role-Play, and Unstructured Role-Play implementation strategies, are discussed at length. Sample vignettes and experiential activities for each developmental stage are provided. Finally, we address ethical considerations regarding role-play implementation.

Dietetic Student Involvement In A Sports Nutrition Education Program For University Athletes, Taylor Paeth, Diana Cuy Castellanos, Rebecca Gonter-Dray, Karyn Catrine

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of a sports nutrition counseling experiential learning opportunity on self-efficacy and nutrition counseling skills in the undergraduate dietetic students and dietary goal adherence in collegiate athlete clients after receiving the student-led nutrition counseling intervention. Methods: This mixed methods design, using a thematic analysis and pre- and post-testing, was implemented at a mid-sized university in the Midwestern United States. There were fifteen undergraduate dietetic students and nine collegiate athletes. Results: Counseling confidence in the dietetic students improved significantly from session one to session three (p < 0.001). Conclusions and Implications: Similar …

A Qualitative Exploration Of Counseling Interns’ Experiences And Perceptions Of Moonlight, Joshua Elliott

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

The purpose of this article is to present the findings produced from a basic qualitative study designed to explore the experiences and perceptions of mental health counseling interns exposed to the popular film, Moonlight. Data collection included a focus group interview, completed written reflections, and member checking activities. Implications for counselor education, suggestions for integrating Moonlight into curriculum, limitations, and directions for future research are examined.

Experiential Learning Of School Counselors-In-Training To Work With English Learners, Qi Shi, Cielo Cournoyer, Ashlei Randolph, Matthew Scheffenacker, Jasmine Brown

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

While the need for school counselors to support ELs is prominent, school counselors believed they were not well prepared to effectively work with EL students. To inform and strengthen our practice, we engaged in a practitioner inquiry study to understand the lived experiences of school counselors-in-training (SCITs) in an experiential learning activity to work with English Learners. Three themes emerged from the qualitative analysis of classroom observations, SCITs’ reflection journal entries, and transcripts of a focus group: (a) SCITs’ perceived challenges, (b) strategies used to overcome challenges and (c) how this experiential training benefited their future work as a school …

A Qualitative Exploration Of Using Experiential Groups To Train Future Group Counselors, Brittany L. Pollard-Kosidowski, Joel F. Diambra, Julia R. Bettge, Chris K. Burd

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

As counselors routinely provide both individual and group-based services, it is important to prepare trainees to effectively utilize both approaches. One popular method for engaging students in group work training requires them to participate in experiential small groups. Although this requirement meets CACREP’s (2015) standard that students engage in 10 hours of group membership, less specific focus is placed on engaging students in active group facilitation training. This study analyzes qualitative interviews with seven counseling graduates who participated in experiential small groups during their training. Five emergent themes provide insight for counselor educators and accreditors into students’ group training …

Experiential And Transformative Learning For School Counselors: Impacts Of Counseling First-Generation, Low-Income, College-Bound Students, Alyson M. Pompeo-Fargnoli, Nicole Pulliam, Amanda Lapa, Jennifer Dutil

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

Through the use of interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), this study examined the impacts of counseling first-generation, low-income college-bound students by way of a school counselor experiential learning program at one small, private university in the eastern United States. This study explored experiential learning, including from a transformative learning perspective, as well as its overall impact on school counseling student preparation. Themes that emerged indicated that school counseling graduate student interns, when placed in a culturally diverse experiential learning setting, have the potential to increase their counselor competencies including multicultural competencies, and to have a transformative learning experience. These impacts were …

Experiential Learning In School Counselor Preparation: Supporting Professional Skill Development, Jennifer S. Barna

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

Professional standards require school counselor educators to prepare students to competently perform the many necessary skills of a school counselor. Integration of experiential learning activities into existing pre-fieldwork school counseling courses supports both skill development and standard compliance. A framework for planning, implementing, and evaluating this classroom pedagogy is detailed.

Master’S-Level Counseling Students’ Experience Of Expressive Arts Techniques In A Cacrep Multicultural Counseling Course, Cameron Houin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Counseling governing bodies have defined what should be prioritized in multicultural counseling courses, including students’ multicultural knowledge and awareness; however, best practice regarding how to teach these multicultural concepts has largely been left up to the counselor educator. Counselor educators have begun implementing expressive arts techniques in the classroom, but very little literature exists related to using such techniques in a multicultural course in a manner that positively influence counseling students’ multicultural competency.

The purpose of this study was to explore master’s-level counseling students’ experience of expressive arts techniques utilized during their multicultural counseling course. Ten student participants took part …

Exploring The Professional Identity Development Of Counselors-In-Training Through Experiential Small Groups, Amanda Christine Dediego

Doctoral Dissertations

The concept of professional identity of counselors is a recent area of focus within the counseling profession. The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs standards for counselor education programs of all specialties reflect the trend towards establishing a strong professional identity for counselors. One factor shown to be influential in professional identity development has been experiential learning opportunities, which allow counselors-in-training to develop an individual professional identity through application of educational content in real-world scenarios. The literature suggests experiential learning is a pivotal opportunity for professional identity development for entry-level counseling students. One opportunity for experiential learning, …

Applying John Dewey's Theory Of Education To Infuse Experiential Learning In An Introduction To Human Services Course, Michael T. Kalkbrenner, Radha J. Horton-Parker

Counseling & Human Services Faculty Publications

Teaching an introductory human services course is challenging, as educators must provide an overview of effective practice in a highly diverse field. Researchers conducted a review of all of the prior editions of the Journal of Human Services (JHS) to identify previous research on experiential learning strategies in human services education. This brief note examines the pedagogical practice of experiential learning and the application of John Dewey's theory for successfully training students in an Introduction to Human Services course.

“It Got The Ball Rolling”: A Qualitative Exploration Of Counseling Students’ Small Group Experiences During Group Work Training, Brittany Lynn Pollard

Doctoral Dissertations

Because the counseling profession often involves responsibilities associated with providing both individual and group-based client services, it is important that counselors-in-training are instructed in ways that prepare them to be effective in facilitating both therapeutic modalities. Researchers noted that group therapy constitutes an equally effective, if not at times more effective, approach to treating a range of client issues (Corey, 2015; Gladding, 2012; Ward, 2004; Yalom & Leszcz, 2005). The ways in which counseling students are currently trained in group work frequently involve experiential methods (Guth & McDonnell, 2004), one of which is the increasingly popular requirement of small group …

An Ecological Approach To Experiential Learning In An Inner-City Context, Pauline Garcia-Reid, Robert Reid, Bradley Forenza

Department of Family Science and Human Development Scholarship and Creative Works

In‐depth, qualitative interviewing was employed to describe processes and competencies experienced by family science interns, who practiced in a high‐risk ecological context. Twenty interns from a 3‐year period were recruited. All had interned on the same federally funded, HIV/substance abuse prevention grant in the same focal city. Within this sample, it was determined that experiential learning—vis‐à‐vis the internship—facilitated both intrapersonal processes and ecological competencies for family science interns, who may otherwise have lacked this knowledge when assuming professional roles. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.

An Ecological Approach To Experiential Learning In An Inner-City Context, Pauline Garcia-Reid, Robert Reid, Bradley Forenza

Department of Family Science and Human Development Scholarship and Creative Works

In-depth, qualitative interviewing was employed to describe processes and competencies experienced by family science interns, who practiced in a high-risk ecological context. Twenty interns from a 3-year period were recruited. All had interned on the same federally funded, HIV/substance abuse prevention grant in the same focal city. Within this sample, it was determined that experiential learning-vis-à-vis the internship-facilitated both intrapersonal processes and ecological competencies for family science interns, who may otherwise have lacked this knowledge when assuming professional roles. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.