As counselors know, the ethical and legal requirement of the “duty to warn” has been adopted as a standard of care across many helping professions. It probably represents one of the most universal elements of counseling ethics regardless of cultural or national identity. Based on the Hippocratic notion of “first,
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Through a Glass Darkly: Unequal opportunity and invisible scholars
One of the criticisms I have noted during my regular overseas travels is that a number of cultures view Americans as overly idealistic. A steady diet of fairy tale conclusions, Hollywood films and “reality” TV seem to set many Americans up for serial disappointment. I’ve lost track of the number
The good in “Good Will Hunting”
Every once in awhile, a movie comes along that really seems to “get it,” portraying mental health struggles or the counselor-client relationship in an authentic, meaningful way. For Ryan Thomas Neace, that movie is Good Will Hunting. The 1997 film portrays the back-and-forth between a therapist, played by Robin Williams,
Exploring the impact of war
A small town celebrates a homecoming. Parties are given in honor of the combat veteran who has returned home triumphantly. Families and loved ones are reunited, and community leaders show honor to the warrior by offering laud in public ceremonies. All appears to be whole again. But as the dust settles and
Group Process from a Diversity Lens: Who’s going to stand up?
The final vignette of this series reflects an actual situation that occurred in my diversity workshop. I am including my thoughts/rationale and the intervention I used during the situation, as well as questions for other group facilitators to consider, possible group/dyad exercises and a summary that helps to place the
All in the family
When Russian author Leo Tolstoy wrote in his novel Anna Karenina, “Each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way,” he was definitely on to something. A dysfunctional family environment has myriad effects on its members — effects that are intricately woven by factors such as personalities, communication abilities, attachment
What counselors need to know about schizophrenia
The adjective “schizophrenic” needs to be removed from counselors’ vocabulary, says Elizabeth Prosek, a counselor and assistant professor at the University of North Texas (UNT). Schizophrenia has a great deal of stigma and negative connotations associated with it, and referring to clients in the first person can lessen these, she
Connecting with clients
Modern counseling models and techniques are as varied and diverse as the counselors and clients who use them. Most counselors have a particular theory, method or school of thought that they embrace, whether it is cognitive behavior therapy, solution-focused therapy, strength-based, holistic health, person-centered, Adlerian or other. Yet all of
The complicated mourner
The first time I met Cynthia (not her real name) was in my office. She was in her late 20s and came to me because of a fear of driving. Initially, I believed her case would require cognitive behavioral work, and having received advanced training in rational emotive behavior therapy,
College disorientation
Jane (name changed) came to the counseling center at Georgia Regents University (GRU) just one month after school started. A first-year student whose home was approximately a three-hour drive from the university, this was her first time being away from her parents. Her transition to college raised a number of different