Counseling Commons^™

Intervention Program To Ease The Transition Out Of High School, Marissa Sareñana

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

“At-risk” youth are more likely to drop out of school and less likely to pursue higher education than their counterparts, hindering their economic future. This project was implemented at Learning for Life Charter School (LFLCS), an alternative 7th-12th grade school for at-risk youth. The project included conducting various readiness assessments and an education intervention designed to increase seniors’ level of preparedness for life after graduation. Seniors met individually with social work interns to identify a post-graduation plan, formulating short and long term goals. Once students formulated their post-graduation plans, they were guided on the necessary requirements to transition into their …

Complex Thought For Complex Work: Preparing Cognitively Complex Counselors For Work In Diverse Settings, Alexandra C. Gantt

Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations

Counselor education researchers have explored the need for high levels of cognitive complexity (CC) in mental health counselors due to its relationship with high quality counseling skills and counselor ways of being (e.g., Castillo, 2018; McAuliffe & Lovell, 2006; Ridley et al., 2011; Welfare & Borders, 2010b). In these studies, researchers have called for continued study of means of enhancing CC in counselors in training (CITs) through andragogical efforts (e.g., Castillo, 2018; Duys & Hedstrom, 2000; Welfare & Borders, 2010a). However, we do not have an understanding of minimally acceptable CC for graduating CITs. In this study, I explored counselor …

Fostering Forgiveness Through The Reach Forgiveness Model To Dispel The Angry Black Woman Trope, Demetrius Tamantha Golden

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

For generations, the African American community has felt lingering reminders of the oppression of their ancestors. Consequently, this oppression may have inhibited forgiveness or the ability to forgive. Unforgiveness can be expressed in many forms, but most commonly as anger, bitterness, and rage. The American culture depicts the African American woman in the media as an “Angry Black Woman,” neglecting her existence as a pillar to her family and community and the stressors that accompany this role. Research is lacking around forgiveness models using the population of African American women. The purpose of this dissertation is to contribute to the …

An Analysis Of The Disenfranchised Grief Of Involuntary Childless Women, Neressa Darroux

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In society the grief associated with involuntary childlessness is often overlooked, minimized, and ignored. This qualitative phenomenological study explored the disenfranchised grief of involuntary childless women using the theoretical framework of ambiguous loss and disenfranchised grief to show how involuntary childlessness is an invisible loss that produces grief which is oftentimes invalidated. This study was guided by three research questions: (a) what is the lived experience of grief of involuntary childless women, (b) how can involuntary childless women grieve their losses in an environment where they experience disenfranchised grief, and (c) how do involuntary childless women make meaning of their …

A Project On Why Many High School And College Students Fail To Attend Church Services, John Wachori Mburu

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this research project is to establish why many of the high school and college students within the Light of Life Restoration Church in Kenya choose not to attend church services. Even after childhood training and church attendance since they were young, many students drop out of church. They get themselves involved in other activities and friends who eventually derail them to other attractions. This alarming trend has brought about the derailment from the Christian moral principles and values which have been the guiding principle of the nation. The derailment has caused lawlessness, unruliness, and all kinds of …

Time For A Change? The Lived Experiences Of Abortion Workers Who Left The Industry, Susan Marie Cole

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to gain insight and understanding into the lived experiences of those who have worked in a medical facility or freestanding clinic providing abortion services and eventually chose to leave the industry due to moral distress. Two research questions are addressed in this study: What is the lived experience of former abortion workers who left the field due to moral distress both before and after their transition from the industry? And, What were (and are) the perceived bio-psycho-social-spiritual impacts of abortion work for those who ultimately left the field due to moral distress? A …

The Effect Of Essential Life Skills On An Adolescent's Ability To Be A Productive Citizen, Emmanuel D. Williams

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This effort aimed to research the need for adolescents to obtain necessary life skills and their ability to succeed after acquiring those skills. There is an evident absence of rudimentary people skills among contemporary teenagers that causes them to miss out on otherwise achievable opportunities. They also do not appreciate the chances that their mistakes afford them. Young people know and understand the implications of their lack of life skills; however, many lack the motivation to move forward and take advantage of occasions to better themselves. To find resolutions regarding this research, this writer interviewed experts, conducted student surveys, and …

Sense Of Purpose, Self-Efficacy And Problem-Focused Coping As Predictors Of Mental Health Clinician Burnout, Launa Ashley Duffy

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Burnout has been an area of interest in research since the 1970s. However, the World Health Organization (2019) only recently determined the state of being occupationally burned out was indeed worthy of differential criteria. Research on the impact a sense of purpose has on a mental health professionals’ experience of burnout promises to deliver a new understanding of this syndrome. Some studies have stressed that due to the many positive results observed when an individual has a sense of purpose, a sense of purpose can only reduce the presence of burnout. However, a sense of purpose can also influence factors …

The Lived Experiences Of Traditionally Aged College Women In Abusive Relationships, Kelly Gentry

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) has been well established in the literature, but most of the research is focused on the rates, risk factors, and consequences of IPV among adults (Hamby, 2014; Jennings et al., 2017). However, IPV is most common among women (ages 18-24), which is also the age of the traditionally aged college student. This qualitative study explored the experiences of 12 women who were abused by an intimate partner during their college years. The goal was to understand the unique experiences of college women who experience IPV; Hearing directly from survivors allows for capturing a …

Exploring Higher Weight Women's Experiences Of Provider Weight Stigma, Meredith W. Moore

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study is to explore the phenomena of weight stigma as experienced by higher weight women in mental health treatment who also engage in restrictive eating behaviors. Women in larger bodies who are emotionally or behaviorally restrictive in their eating behaviors face a unique set of challenges and barriers. These include challenges due the disordered eating behaviors themselves, along with barriers related to weight stigma perpetuated by the mental health providers treating them (Harrop, 2019). Distinct hurdles to proper treatment including delay of diagnosis, longer duration of symptoms, and increased distress related to eating and body …

Lived Experiences Of Parents With Transgender And Gender Expansive Children, Mary Kathryn Brammer

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

Parents of transgender and gender expansive (TGE) children can be recognized as a marginalized community often not represented or visible in the context of Westernized society. They experience significant challenges that impact their job as primary caregivers and burden their ability to raise healthy and happy TGE people. This research, guided by Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis methodology and Queer theory, aimed to discern parents of TGE children’s subjective and collective experience raising a TGE child in New Mexico, understand how they experience a support group each participant has attended at least one time, and recognize the significance of these experiences for …

Children Of Divorce Parents Group Manual, Sheyenne Hokit

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Divorce is something that is, unfortunately, becoming a commonality for a lot of children, and due to the complexity of divorce, many children struggle when trying to understand divorce and how it affects them. Some effects of divorce are various emotional and behavioral issues such as increased anger and decreased emotion regulation. Social, health, and academic concerns were also found. Counseling interventions like narrative therapy, emotion-focused family therapy, emotion-focused therapy, and play therapy were found to be effective with this population (Hirschfeld & Wittenborn, 2016, Thomas & Gibbons, 2009). The identified interventions provide peer-based social support, education on the misconceptions …

College Students’ Psychological Well-Being During The Covid-19 Pandemic: An Investigation Based On Students’ Gender And Education Level, Muh. Farozin, Diana Septi Purnama, Budi Astuti, Arif Budi Prasetya, Anifa Tuzzuhroh Nurbaiti

Jurnal Kajian Bimbingan dan Konseling

This study aims to determine the level of psychological well-being based on gender and level of education being pursued during the Covid-19 pandemic. Participants are students from various faculties and postgraduate programs from diploma, undergraduate, professional education, masters and doctoral education levels in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The instrument used is the Ryff Psychological Well-Being Scale which has been adapted by Engger with a content validity value of CVR equal to 1 which is in the good category and reliability is 0.935 in the good category. The data analysis used was Mann-Whitney non-parametric statistics for the different test of psychological well-being based …

Single Session Counseling Integrated With Expressive Art To Improve Students' Internet Altruistic Behavior, Ganjar Suargani, Mulawarman Mulawarman, Awalya Awalya

Jurnal Kajian Bimbingan dan Konseling

The internet is one of the means to obtain information, interact, and even provide help to others. To be able to give voluntary help based on empathy, one must have internet altruistic abilities. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of single-session counseling with expressive art integration to improve students’ altruistic behavior on the internet. This study used a randomized pretest-posttest control group design. The intervention in the experimental group used a single session counseling strategy that was integrated with expressive art. The control group was given an intervention in the form of individual counseling without using a single session …

Development Of Instrumen Eksplorasi Karier Anne Roe (Iekar) For Junior High School Students, Dhanang Suwidagdho, Edi Purwanta

Jurnal Kajian Bimbingan dan Konseling

This study aims to develop a career exploration instrument based on Anne Roe’s classification to help junior high school students explore their career options. The development method uses the Syaiffudin Azwar instrument development model with 8 stages, namely the identification of measuring objectives; measuring domain restrictions; operationalization of aspects; writing and reviewing items; language test; field tests; item selection and; final compilation. The field test was carried out on 306 junior high school students in the Godean area, Yogyakarta. The results of the CFA test show that all instrument items that make up the 8 career groups obtained fit results …

Impact Of Cyber Relational Addiction On Undergraduates’ Interpersonal Relationship In Nigeria, Mulikat Ladi Abdulqadir Mustapha, Michael Ajokpaniovo, Faith Elizabeth Olaoye

Jurnal Kajian Bimbingan dan Konseling

The upsurge in the use of cyberspace in recent years has led to pathological use for some individuals especially in the area of cyber relational addiction. This study aimed to investigate the influence of cyber relational addiction on interpersonal relationships and how variables of age, religion, levels of study, and gender of respondents moderate the influence of cyber relational addiction on their interpersonal relationships. This study employed a descriptive survey research design and administered a self-designed questionnaire on 420 randomly selected undergraduates from seven faculties at the University of Ilorin. A research question was answered in this study, while the …

Smartphone Addiction Among Adolescence Students: Its Implication Toward Family Communication, Learning, Guidance And Counselling, Adi Atmoko, Indah Kartika Sari, Augusto Da Costa, Nugraheni Warih Utami, Eny Tri Wahyuni

Jurnal Kajian Bimbingan dan Konseling

The symptoms of smartphone addiction have been extensively observed in adolescent students. This study aims to investigate the effects of smartphone addiction on students’ communication with their families, their learning, as well as guidance and counseling processes. The causal correlational design was applied, involving 103 participants selected total samplings of eighth-graders junior high school students. The data was garnered through the smartphone addiction scale and family communication scale. Both of those scales had item validity of 0.3, with Alpha Cronbach reliability of 0.937 and 0.850, respectively. The obtained data were analyzed using regression. The analysis results suggest that smartphone addiction …

Counseling Experiences In Physically Disabled Individuals, Leah Schulze

Honors Projects

This pilot study covers the effects that counseling has on the physically disabled community. 5 individuals were interviewed on a mid-sized college campus about their experiences.

Autism: A Qualitative Content Analysis Of Counseling Journals, 1986-2021, Danielle Weller

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Abstract

This qualitative content analysis (QCA) examined three American Counseling Association (ACA) journals and how Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is covered in them: Journal of Counseling Development (JCD), Journal of Multicultural Counseling Development (JMCD), and Counselor Education and Supervision (CES). Within the three listed journals, there were a total of 4,749 articles published from the years 1986 to 2021, with a total of 6 articles found related to ASD. Throughout the QCA process, four themes were established: Diagnosing Autism Spectrum Disorder, Considerations for Counseling Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder, Treatment for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, and Neurofeedback in Counseling. …

Sorrow, Healing, And Hope: A Braided Narrative, Abigail Maggi

Honors Projects

This project is a creative nonfiction essay about sadness. In the form of a braided essay, I weave personal narrative with insight and guidance from therapists, psychologists, and friends. In this essay, I share my experience of sadness and how I have processed my emotions during challenging times. The essay is split into three sections – sadness, feeling a little better, and hope – to share my story, the skills I learned that helped me move through sadness, and my decision to choose hope despite and amidst the struggles.

A Constructivist Grounded Theory Of Spiritual Competencies Development In Counseling Supervision, Emmanuel Javert Nnadozie

Dissertations

Developing religious and spiritual competencies is paramount in the training of counselors to become effective in addressing clients’ religious and spiritual issues in counseling. Clinical supervision in practicum and internship courses is key to the development of these competencies, but questions as to how best they might be infused in counselor training remained. The purpose of the study was to create an explanatory theory of the process of the development of religious and spiritual competencies in clinical supervision. Utilizing grounded theory, experts in the field of supervision and spirituality were interviewed. The ways paradigm was used as a sensitizing concept …

Bisexual+ Women Of Color And Microaffirmations, Zori Paul

Dissertations

In the last decade, there has been an interest in exploring affirming identity factors for bisexual+ (bisexual, pansexual, queer, fluid, etc.) individuals that would promote positive mental wellbeing. However, there is a dearth in the current research that focuses on bisexual+ women of color and affirming factors unique to their intersecting racial/ethnic, sexual, and gender identities. By understanding what potential affirming factors, including bisexual microaffirmations, protect bisexual+ women of color from binegativity (bisexual specific discrimination), mental health professionals can provide and advocate for bisexual+ specific affirming care. This dissertation contains three studies: the first study explores how the experiences of …

Sexual Minority Thriving: Bouncing Beyond Adversity, Debra Crawford

Dissertations

Sexual minority individuals continue to face prejudice and discrimination due to their sexual minority identity. However, despite these negative experiences, many sexual minority individuals display resilience and thrive. Most of the literature on sexual minorities focuses on negative aspects of identifying as a sexual minority, rather than the positive qualities that these individuals possess that allow them to persevere. In a sample of 303 sexual minorities, this dissertation contained two studies. Study one investigated if posttraumatic growth mediated the relationship between resilience and thriving and if identity pride and existential anxiety moderated the relationship between resilience and thriving in a …

Affirmative Counseling With Lgbqqia Individuals: A Training And Resource Manual For Mental Health Counselors, Tena Prestidge

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

This article is a review of literature related to issues associated with working with LGBQQIA clients. Although not an exhaustive review, the literature provides evidence of the need for additional training to improve the confidence and competence of counselors working with this population. Further, information is provided on what makes a counselor competent to work with LGBQQIA clients and evidence-based practices that have been shown to be effective in working with them. Following this review, a training and education manual is presented to help fill the need of additional training related to working with this population.

Addressing Mental Health Concerns Among International Students During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Daniel Kimonyi

Liberty University Research Week

Doctoral

Theoretical Proposal

Understanding Factors Associated With Clinician Confidence To Identify And Treat Ptsd And Complex Ptsd, Parad Meier

Counseling and Psychology Dissertations

ABSTRACT

This dissertation explores mental health clinicians’ experiences and self-identified confidence to identify and treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and Complex PTSD. PTSD is a highly prevalent mental health condition that impacts an estimated 24.4 million individuals in the United States (PTSD United, 2019). Complex PTSD has just emerged for the first time with official diagnostic criteria in the publication of the ICD-11 in 2019 for use beginning in January 2022 (WHO, 2019). There is very little existing research that considers the experience or confidence of clinicians who work with clients who have PTSD and Complex PTSD, which is troubling …

Equine Assisted Psychoptherapies In The Threatment Of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder In Combat Exposed Military Veterans And Service Members: A Literature Review, Cherry Nelson

Liberty University Research Week

Doctoral

Theoretical Proposal

Childhood Sexual Abuse: The Impact Of A Dismissive Caregiver Response Following Child Disclosure, Denise Moore, Carl Wilson

Liberty University Research Week

Doctoral

Theoretical Proposal

Managing Depression In The Workplace Using Ecotherapy And Psychotherapy, Benjamin Mello

Liberty University Research Week

Undergraduate

Theoretical Proposal

Communication Barriers Among People With Invisible Disabilities: Impacts In Counselor Education: A Literature Review, Lisa Marie Ansell, Cornelius Anyanwu

Liberty University Research Week

Doctoral

Theoretical Proposal