In 2002, the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) presented the ASCA National Model for school counseling programs as a framework for implementing best practices in training counselors to deliver effective evidence-based approaches for K-12 students. Without a unifying theory of practice, school counselors are often uncertain about how to…

Two focus groups, consisting of six participants each, were conducted to explore the training needs of therapists when working with clients reporting anomalous experiences (AEs). AEs are those that "depart from our own familiar personal experiences or from the more usual, ordinary, and expected experiences of a given culture and time"…

Increasing demands upon the time of the professional school counselor combined with the call by the American School Counselor Association to provide direct services to students may lead many in the profession to wonder from what theoretical standpoint(s) they can best meet these lofty goals. I propose a two phase approach combining person-centered…

Three psychotherapy theories are summarized and critiqued for their applicability to counseling psychology. The lack of attention to psychodynamic and experiential theories in the special section and the lack of theorizing by counseling psychologists in general are lamented. A plea is made for encouraging counseling psychologists to construct more…

In this reaction, we employ a critical lens as we evaluate three approaches to counseling intervention. In consideration of the assertion of the lead article's authors that these approaches are novel and because of our fervent belief in the importance of establishing clear operationalizations, developing cogent theory to guide practice, and…

The common factors debate conducted on the pages of this and other major family therapy journals has evolved toward a preliminary consensus that the therapist plays a crucial role in activating and effectively bundling common and model-specific factors in the delivery of successful treatment. However, Blow, Sprenkle, and Davis (2007) remain…

Freedom is presented as an overarching paradigm that may align and bring together the counseling profession's diverse counseling theories and open a doorway to a new generation of counseling techniques. Freedom is defined and discussed in terms of its 4 modalities: freedom from, freedom to, freedom with, and freedom for. The long-standing problem…

The hallmark feature of fairness in relationships in Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy's contextual therapy theory has largely remained untested among couples in therapy. "Fairness" here refers to the broad concept of "give and take," which is influenced by experiences of trustworthiness, loyalty conflicts, and a sense of entitlement or…

This paper is a review of current practice in narrative therapy with a focus on how it is attractive and useful for therapists who wish to work for social justice. The authors describe narrative therapy's roots in poststructuralist philosophy and social science. They illustrate its major theoretical constructs, including the "narrative metaphor,"…

This article provides an overview of the major contribution that presents three emerging approaches to counseling: narrative therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, and acceptance and commitment therapy. The three theoretical systems were chosen because they are current, for the most part not addressed in the mainstream counseling psychology…

The past decade has brought with it a greatly increased awareness about the impact of trauma on children, which has, in turn, led to a focus on the treatment of trauma-related conditions. Much of the recent literature describes different approaches to therapy. However, there are a few consistent propositions arising from the research and clinical…

Presents perspective of therapy that re-visions clients' pathology into desire for initiatory experience. Takes symbolic perspective of clients' presenting problems to provide meaning to symptoms and eliminate constraints of diagnoses and/or treatments. Lays developmental foundation to support clinical application of perspective in symbolic…

The effectiveness of journaling as a therapeutic and teaching tool is well documented. However, specific examples of school counselors utilizing journaling as a therapeutic tool are sparse. Existing school counseling literature was reviewed and journaling as an educational and therapeutic tool was explored and related to the school counseling…

Notes that feminist psychospiritual model of therapy can be used in working with clients who value spiritual dimension. Presents history, philosophy, and work of Women for a New World, multidisciplinary team of women representing psychology, religious education, and arts. Uses examples from developmental history of retreat-workshop paradigm and…

Presents primary source documentation highlighting the similarities between Alfred Adler's social interest construct and the counselor-oriented core conditions of Carl Rogers. Implications of the similarities are discussed. (Author)