Key Philosophies and Professional Identity

Key Philosophies of the Counseling Profession

The key philosophies of counseling are based on three main components: wellness, resilience and prevention. Wellness is the healthy balance or completeness between the mind, body and spirit in a state of well-being. Resilience will then identify the process in which this state of well-being was achieved. The continuous effort to maintain this state of well-being will conclude the prevention phase. The wellness model cannot only be a useful tool to use for client treatments but also for practitioners to assess their own state of well-being. The wellness model is a combined effort to assess emotional, intellectual, physical, social, occupational, and spiritual well-being as a whole. This will help the counselor identify what areas need more focus and improvement. Although the wellness model can be useful, it also raises some concerns from a global stand point. Research is inconclusive in regards to the structure of wellness across cultures and of different faiths. According to Myers and Sweeney (2008), the wellness model may be immature yet still holds enough evidence to use as a foundation in practice.

Roles and Characteristics

Counseling is a profession in which counselors play a specific role and possess certain characteristics to provide guidance to those individuals in need. Although counseling is unified in many ways, the variations from counselor to counselor shows there are different roles and characteristics one must retain to achieve a high level of success within their patients. The role of an addiction counselor is to find the root of the addiction and assist the patient into sobriety. As described by Astramovich and Hoskins (2013), addiction counselors should be skilled at identifying the appropriate intervention methods for their unique client population to promote best outcomes. For a patient to maintain sobriety after discharge, it is crucial for a counselor to identify what needs the patient may have after treatment. An effective addiction counselor requires an abundance of empathy, patience, compassion and commitment. Recovery can be a long-drawn out process with many "bumps" in the road and may also bring out a patient's bad side; therefore patience is a must. Employment counselors on the other hand provide a much different role to counsel clients. These counselors advise and support people who are planning their career/life. Due to the recent high levels of unemployment rates, counselors have been given new opportunities to assume new responsibilities and expand their roles (Neault & Mondair, 2011). Aside from assisting an unemployed jobseeker, there has been a recent need to support work environments where diversity is welcomed and supported. A competent employment counselor will be able to motivate and inspire as well as being dedicated to the success of their client. As counselors expand their role outside of the traditional job seeker, it becomes crucial to be educated on employment laws and regulations.

Counseling Associations

Aside from possessing the appropriate characteristic traits, it is also necessary for a counselor to be involved in a professional counseling association as this will aide in professional development. The Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC) is an organization of professionals who focus on addiction counseling. The NAADAC prides itself on four main roles: professional development, public engagement, professional services and to communicate its mission. The organization will aide in professional development by providing the most current education and training to ensure counselors are adopting the newest evidence based practices in their work (Tuohy, C., n.d. para. 2). NAADAC also provides mentorship and a career path, which are always essential for continued growth. While the NAADAC is directed towards addiction professionals; The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) supports school counselors. The ASCA also provides assistance in professional development as well as mentorship for its members. By providing annual conferences, webinars, specialist training to one-day workshops, the ASCA is committed to the professional development of its members (n.d. para 2). Both of these organizations provide publications that administer the latest knowledge regarding the organization and profession. Although a membership fee is required for both of these associations, the benefits make it well worth it.

Licensure

Obtaining a licensure will expand a counselor's opportunities