Counseling Paradigms I

Course Description

This course provides an overview of major current and evolving paradigms of psychotherapy and how they influence counseling theory and practice. Students acquire core skills related to effective therapeutic communication and to the therapist’s role in promoting exploration, insight, and behavior change.

Learning Outcomes

• Apply counseling-related core concepts of influential contemporary paradigms such as analytical, experiential, action, and common factors approaches to individual counseling.
• Assess core paradigm components incorporated into specific contemporary psychotherapies.
• Compare and contrast components of strength-based and recovery models of mental health interventions
• Demonstrate entry-level counseling skills relevant to exploration of clients’ issues, insight, and behavior change.
• Assess core therapist concepts such as personal attitudes and skills relevant to professional development including self-reflection, openness to feedback, transference and counter-transference, psychological mindness, and personal growth.

Prerequisites

• PSY501A
• PSY501B