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…

A major survey of career and employment counseling in Canada was completed in 1993, with over 1600 counselors, department heads and managers of counseling centers, and regional directors working in career and employment counseling centers being polled. Survey results indicated: (1) there is a strong need for evaluation in all aspects of career…

This digest focuses on issues of importance to the supervision of marriage and family counselors. A brief overview notes that the defining hallmark of marriage and family supervision has been a systemic orientation. Other distinguishing features include a reliance on live forms of supervision, and the viewing of ethical issues within larger…

School counselors are beginning to find family counseling an effective and needed skill. Moreover, family counseling represents a distinctive alternative for resolving persistent problems in the schools. Re-training opportunities for school counselors wanting to engage in family counseling have been limited. With appropriate training,…

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…

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…

While there is general consensus on the importance of good academic advising to student success and support for the American College Testing Program's developmental concept of advising, there is less agreement on the most effective model for delivery. Research suggests that both faculty-oriented advising and professional counselor-oriented systems…

Substance abuse is a major social problem and concern for counselors. It is the most prevalent mind disorder encompassing some 40% of the diagnoses in the DSM-IV, the number one continuing health problem, and the number one prison problem in the United States. Yet, school, rehabilitation, and mental health counselor education programs do not…

This digest focuses on issues of group supervision of counselors and counselor trainees. It begins by describing the merits of group supervision, noting that group supervision is unique in that growth is aided by the interactions occurring between group members. Collaborative learning is identified as a pivotal benefit of group supervision, with…

Peer counseling is defined and the rationale for using peer counselors is given in this factsheet. A discussion of the history and research on peer counseling is followed by a list of successful peer counseling program foundations. Other sections discuss the operating components of selection, training, supervision, and evaluation. The professional…

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…

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…

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…

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…