This digest focuses on the effects of gender on supervision and the present status regarding gender within contemporary American culture. It presents a societal framework by reviewing three basic perspectives concerning gender differences, focused in areas of unequal distribution of power, socialization, and inherent differences. Following this is…

This digest discusses the use of peer consultation as a form of counselor supervision, proposing that peer supervision and consultation may be potentially effective approaches to increasing the frequency and/or quality of supervision available to a counselor. Peer consultation is defined as an arrangement in which peers work together for mutual…

This digest focuses on supervision issues for school counselors. It begins by addressing the need for professionally appropriate supervision to nurture school counselors' professional development. A section on the process of school counselor supervision begins by looking at clinical, developmental, and administrative supervision. The purpose of…

Online counseling is a growing means of interaction for counselors and clients. This paper presents an interview among three counselors who simultaneously describe and demonstrate skills they use in their e-mail counseling practices. The interviewer and the interviewees all have been involved in the development of online counseling. The skills…

As more and more agencies are moving toward supplying career information on the World Wide Web, it has become apparent that pre-service counselor education career development courses need to become electronically enhanced. Once this enhancement of face-to-face instruction occurs, it is tempting to move to the delivery of courses through distance…

With character education as one of the fastest growing reform movements in education today, counselor educators and counseling students need to be informed and cognizant of various character education programs. Currently, more than 30 states mandate some aspect of character education and school counselors are frequently responsible for introducing…

Play therapy is based on developmental principles and, thus, provides, through play, developmentally appropriate means of expression and communication for children. Therefore, skill in using play therapy is an essential tool for mental health professionals who work with children. Therapeutic play allows children the opportunity to express…

The time is ripe to focus on early field reports from practitioners who are using distance methodologies in career counseling. The focus is the actual establishment of a working alliance or counseling relationship through the use of technology and then the continuation of the counseling work using technology-assisted methodologies such as…

The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) is a specialized accrediting body created by the American Counseling Association (ACA) and its membership divisions to provide a nationally based standards review process for the counseling profession's graduate level preparation programs. Accreditation of…

Accreditation and licensure standards must shift radically to accommodate the use of new distance learning technologies. Furthermore, the movement from teacher-centered to learner-centered environments results in the need for the accreditation and licensure paradigms to be reevaluated in order to remain relevant; carry out their original functions…

This digest notes that there has been an increase in the number of graduate community mental health counseling programs requiring course work in abnormal behavior, psychopathology, and psychodiagnosis and that, as a result of this increase, utilization of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) also has…

This Digest states that the integration of research into counseling through an evidence-based approach actually brings the best elements of practice, clinical experience, and reliable treatment protocols together to serve the task of helping clients with the complex problems they bring to counseling. It gives several broad implications for the…

For many years, gender equity has pertained primarily to improving education and career opportunities for females. Recent studies, however, provide evidence that boys no longer hold an advantage. Based on extensive analysis of data from the National Longitudinal Study, the High School & Beyond, and the National Education Longitudinal Study, it…

Psychological services have been part of the American schooling experiences for nearly a century. The nature of school psychology services, however, has changed dramatically over the decades so that modern school psychology services differ significantly from their roots. For much of this century school psychology services have emphasized…

Certification of professional counselors is presently viewed in two realms, that of state regulation and of national voluntary credentialing. This digest considers national voluntary certification. The first national certification began in 1972; in 1983 the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) began certification for general practice…