What is a counselling professional identity?
Each counsellor will embrace values of the profession but will also develop identity through integrating theoretical ideas that are consistent with their own personal beliefs and values
What is the ladder for counselling frameworks?
Values - Epistemologies - Theories - Skills
What is profession identity for other profession?
Defined by the profession, universally fixed and the same amongst all workers. They are taught and brought into an identity
What is a framework?
A coherent statement of ideas, principles and beliefs which guide counselling practice. A tool to assist reflection and coherence (why are we responding in that way)
What are values?
Every decision we make is underpinned with what we value in life = shape everything we do in human agency, choice and autonomy. Brought upon by upbringing.
What is epistemology?
The theory of knowledge - invites counsellors to position themselves in thinking that is consistent and intentional in practice. Helps to make sense of peoples stories through a particular approach
What is the modernist approach and the theories it includes ?
Human experience and the problems people face result from deficits within themselves or environments. Counselors act as objective observers, placed as the experts. Includes psychoanalysis, behaviourism, cognitive theories, humanist and existentialism.
What are the 4 assumptions of modernist approaches?
- Clients can acknowledge what their experiencing
- Experiences can be communicated through language = counsellor gains and accurate understanding
- Counsellors can draw on universal law of human functioning to create healing intervention
- Clients have relatively stable personality + changes to this will generalise to situations outside of counselling
What are constructed and fundamental realties?
Constructed: what is invented e.g. gender roles or beauty standards
Fundamental: what is discovered e.g. women have vaginas
Both feel equally solid and real
What is the post modernist approach and the theories it includes?
Counselling theories are socially constructed in particular time, place and context. Positions client as expert and privileges their knowledge regarding problem and resolution. Includes systemic, narrative, feminist, Indigenous approaches and queer
What are the 3 assumptions of post modernism?
- Language can’t accurately represent original experiences - used instead to co-construct new meanings and shape experience
- Counsellor can’t achieve objectivity, interpretation will be based in perceptual bias (everyone sees the world differently = understanding comes from perspective)
- Focus on client capacity, resources adn generation of new meanings
What is counsellor positioning in post modernist approach?
Counsellors offer advice + allow clients to come up with answers and either the client or counsellors knowledge will be privileged.
What are the 4 types of ways the counsellor can position themselves?
- Decentred and influential: places client as expert but also uses counsellor expertise (invigorating for worker)
- Decentred and non-influenctial (invalidating for worker)
- Centred and influential (burdening for worker)
- Centred and non-influential (exhausting for worker)
