HISTORICAL BACKGROUND:Recent Trends in Counseling

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Theory and Practice of Counseling - PSY632

Lesson 04

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

1950s: Mid Century Legislations

If one decade in history has to be singled out for the most profound impact on counselors, it would be

1950s (Aubery). Major highlights of this decade are given below:

· American Personnel & Guidance association was formed in 1952. It was concerned with vocational,

educational and other personnel activities.

· Division 17 of Counseling Psychology, separate from guidance, was established. Previous division

was guidance and counseling and this new division was established to distinguish it from clinical

psychology division. This separation was partly affected by Veterans Administration and was

influenced more by the desire of APA members to work with normal people.

· National Defense Education Act (NDEA) of 1958 provided funds to strengthen school guidance

programs and train school counselors.

· At that time the most popular theories were psychoanalysis and insight oriented theories, trait-

factor, and client centered theories. This decade is also important for the development of new

theories, such as Behavioral, Cognitive and Learning theories.

· Extension of the earlier Vocational Rehabilitation Legislation acts 1954 is another important feature

of this decade. Other notable legislations include the Vocational Education Act of 1963, the 1968

amendments, and subsequent amendments.

· Rehabilitation acts helped provide financial support for an extensive program to educate

rehabilitation counselors specialized in assisting the disabled. Since its inception, it has provided

training to several thousand counselors.

1960s:

· The initial focus was on counseling as a developmental profession. Gilbert Wrenn set the tone for

the decade and became one of the strongest counseling advocates. He wrote the widely influencing

book The Counselor in a Changing World and worked to resolve developmental needs.

· This impact gradually declined as the decade continued because of 3 events:

o Vietnam War

o Civil right movement

o Women's movement

· Each event pointed out needs within society and the main focus of that time was on crises

counseling and other short-term interventions.

· Powerful influences of Humanistic theories of Maslow and Jourard.

· The period after World War II also saw a rapid expansion of community mental health services.

The 1963 Community Mental Health Centers Act authorized establishment of such centers. About

two thousand centers were expected to provide 5 essential services:

o Inpatients

o Outpatient

o Partial hospitalization

o Emergency care

o Consultation

· In 1955 US Congress passed a Mental Health Study Act which opened opportunities for counselors

outside education. This study resulted in a report "Action for Mental Health" in 1961.

· Requirements of a comprehensive center:

o Diagnosis

o Rehabilitation

Theory and Practice of Counseling - PSY632

o Pre-care and aftercare

o Training

o Research & evaluation

The first decline in the number of patients in state mental hospitals was seen in 1955, despite an

increase in the number of admissions, and it was steady over the next 20 years. A minimum of 5

services were required for establishment of such centers, while 5 optional services were required to

a mandated set of 12.

The Community Mental Health Centers Amendments of 1975: Further amendments in 1978 set

new criteria for the establishment of such centre. It was essential to satisfy 6 initial services (follow

up service was added to previous 5), then over 3 years these centers could phase in gradually.

o Special services for children

o Special services for the elderly

o Preinstitutional screening & alternative treatment

o Follow-up for discharged persons

o Transitional living for discharged persons

o Alcoholism services

o Drug abuse services

In 1996, the US Congress passed the Mental Health Insurance Parity Act.

1970s:

· Diversification in counseling settings: Before this time almost all counselors had been employed in

educational settings, usually in public schools. Now they were hired in community mental health

centers. Rate of growth of school counselors declined from 6-10% (1960s) to 1-3% (1960-70s).

· Community counselor could work in any setting, e.g., in child abuse centers, hospitals,

organizations, etc.

· Consistent with this, there was an increase in counselor education programs. Counselor programs

increased from 327 in 1964 to about 475 by 1980.

· Lewis and Lewis (1977) coined the term community counselor.

· Helping-skills programs: Helping-skills programs concentrated on communication and relationship

skills, and the emphasis was humanistic and eclectic.

· Guidelines for Master's (1973) and doctorate (1978) degrees in counseling were outlined.

1980s:

· Counselor Licensure Movement was initiated for official approval of the profession and also to

maintain standards of education in graduate degree programs.

· The National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) was formed in 1983. The NBCC developed a

standardized test and defined 8 major areas of knowledge:

o Professional identity

o Social and cultural diversity

o Human growth and development

o Career development

o Helping relationships

o Group work

o Assessment

o Research and program evaluation

· By the end of the decade, there were approximately 17,000 professionals.

· By the years 2000, there were 31,342 nations (US) certified counselors.

Theory and Practice of Counseling - PSY632

By 2001, 46 US states had passed legislation to license counselors. A register was maintained of

trained counselors.

Counseling as a Recognized Field of Psychology

· Word Counseling was rarely used during early years of 20th century, as the label guidance was

broadly applied to all educational activities including educational guidance and career choices.

· In 1960 this concern was still expressed about the interchangeability of these terms.

· The reversal in that trend was noted later by Hoyt (1993) who stated that "Guidance is not a dirty

word".

· A profession is characterized by its "role statements, codes of ethics, accreditation, licensure, etc.

Perhaps the first delineation of counseling was expressed with the publication of Workbook in

Vocations by Proctor, Benefield, and Wrenn (1931).

· There was a growing awareness among APGA members that the words personnel and guidance no

longer described the work of its members. After considerable debate, American Personnel and

Guidance Association (APGA) changed its name to the American Association for Counseling and

Development (AACD).

· By 1989, over 58,000 individuals had become members of AACD, an increase of more than 18,000

members in 10 years.

· Diversification: Adult Development and Aging (ADAA, 1987) and the International Association for

Marriage and Family Counselors (IAMFC, 1990) were chartered as divisions of AACD.

1990s:

· In 1992, AACD changed its name to American Counseling Association (ACA) with 16

subdivisions. The changed name better reflected the work of the members.

· Increased attention to counseling within a pluralistic society: Multicultural issues were given due

attention in a pluralistic society.

· There was a renowned interest within counseling on addressing issues related to the whole person.

Counselors became more aware of social and environmental factors important to the development

and maintenance of mental disorders and health. There was a gradual trend that there are several

factors which are important to the development of human beings, e.g., spiritual, socio-economic,

family, etc.

Recent Trends in Counseling

In 21st century, the counseling profession is impacted by globalization and technology.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, counseling extended to various new directions:

· Outreach services for the poor & homeless

· Outplacement services or middle-aged workers and senior executives

· Prevention and early intervention programs for alcohol and drug abusers

· Emerging concerns with retirees

· Stress management

· Sports & leisure counseling

· Multi-cultural counseling

· Globalization and technology

Future Challenges to Counseling

The future challenges are not only remedial but preventive efforts are considered more important. People

still face significant societal problems that affect millions of citizens. There is a realization that only

Theory and Practice of Counseling - PSY632

treatment can not solve societal problems. Only prevention has the prospect for diminishing the number of

potential victims of nearly all those socially ill.

New trends evolve according to the needs of mankind. According to the rapidly changing societies they

need to be adopted for counseling to remain the helping profession.

· Ever-increasing AIDS epidemic

· The continuing addiction of millions to drugs & alcohol

· The alarming number of abused children & spouse

· Suicides

· Criminal activities among teenagers

· The persistent school drop-outs

· The disgraceful numbers of homeless

· The resurfacing of various forms of prejudice

· A bankruptcy of values in all areas ranging from the political to the private sector

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