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open access

Graduate Counseling Students’ Preferences for Counselor Educators’ Teaching Dispositions, Orientations, and Behaviors: a Q Methodology Inquiry

Description: Teaching is a central role of counselor educators. However, teaching in counselor education lacks guiding standards or best practice recommendations. Existing scholarly dialogue predominantly features the perspectives of educators and addresses content knowledge, techniques, activities, and assignments for courses across the curriculum with relatively less emphasis on foundations of teaching. The purpose of this study was to develop greater understanding of counselor educator dispositions, ori… more
Date: August 2015
Creator: Hurt, Kara Marie
open access

Group Activity Play Therapy for Preadolescents: Effects on Low Self-Esteem

Description: Research shows that preadolescent females are more prone to negative self-perceptions than their male counterparts which places them at greater risk of developing mental health problems stemming from low self-image. The purpose of this randomized, controlled outcome study was to examine the effectiveness of group activity play therapy (GAPT) compared to an evidenced based social skills/self-esteem group. Participants were 29 fourth and fifth grade girls in two Title I schools in the southwest U… more
Date: August 2016
Creator: Yousef, Dina K.
open access

Human-Animal Relational Theory: A Constructivist-Grounded Theory Investigation

Description: Constructs of human-animal relational theory (HART) were investigated to determine how those constructs manifested in animal-assisted therapy in counseling (AAT-C) from the perspectives of 6 participants (2 counselors, females, ages 28 and 32, both non-Hispanic and White; 2 clients, male and female, ages 55 and 23, respectively, both non-Hispanic and White; and, 2 therapy animals, canines, Labrador retriever and spaniel mix, ages 4 and 5, respectively). Using constructivist-grounded theory, a r… more
Date: December 2016
Creator: Otting, Tiffany L.
open access

Impact of an Online Education Program on Counselors' Knowledge and Attitudes about Near-Death Experiences

Description: An estimated 15 million people in the US have had a near‐death experience (NDE), an experience of usually lucid consciousness during a close brush with death. Following an NDE, experiencers (NDErs) sometimes feel challenged and seek counseling to integrate the experience into their subsequent lives. They have reported psychologically harmful experiences disclosing their NDEs to healthcare professionals, including counselors. Counselors' knowledge and attitude about NDEs appear to be critical va… more
Date: May 2017
Creator: Loseu, Saharnaz
open access

Impact of Child-centered Group Play Therapy on Social-emotional Assets of Kindergarten Children

Description: Early childhood is a critical period during which children develop social-emotional competence that will affect future success. Developing social-emotional assets is of importance for kindergarten children because of their concurrent cognitive and social changes as well as the experience of transitioning from home to school environment. A growing number of schools have adopted social-emotional learning (SEL) programming to focus on fostering children’s prosocial behaviors through direct instr… more
Date: August 2015
Creator: Cheng, Yi-Ju
open access

The Impact of Child Teacher Relationship Training for Early Childhood Educators: The Role of the Relationship

Description: In this qualitative study, I explored the lived experiences of eight early childhood educators implementing a play-based teacher professional development intervention, child teacher relationship training (CTRT), in an affluent Christian based preschool. Through the building of relationships, CTRT provided the teachers a person-centered approach to develop skills to establish relationships and to attend to the intentional emotional and relational development of young children. The research ques… more
Date: August 2019
Creator: Miller, Leah Fowlkes
open access

The Impact of Family Resilience Factors and Parent Gender on Stress Among Parents of Children with Autism

Description: Parents of children with autism experience high degrees of stress. Research pertaining to the reduction of parental stress in families with a child with autism is needed. In this study, the relationship between family resilience, parent gender, and parental stress was examined. Seventy-one parents of young children with autism were surveyed. Regression and correlational analyses were performed. Results indicated that the vast majority of respondents reported significantly high levels of str… more
Date: August 2016
Creator: Cheatham, Kelly L.
open access

The Impact of Kinder Training on Early Elementary School Children’s On-task Behavior: a Single Case Design

Description: Teachers appear to feel challenged by children’s off-task behavior in the classroom. Children’s off-task behavior can result in reduced academic engagement, increased teaching stress, and strained teacher-child relationships. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of kinder training on young children’s on-task behavior in the classroom. This study utilized an experimental single-case methodology and a multiple baseline across subjects design. Three elementary school teachers co… more
Date: August 2015
Creator: Chen, Szu-Yu
open access

The Impact of Psychotherapeutic Reiki on Anxiety and Mindfulness: A Single-Case Design

Description: Reiki healing is one of several complementary and integrative therapies becoming increasingly prevalent in mental health counseling. It has been identified in the medical field for its usefulness in treating anxiety, depression, distress, and pain but has rarely been studied for its counseling impact on client wellness. I conducted single-case research to explore psychotherapeutic Reiki's (PR's) influence on adult clients' anxiety symptoms and perceived sense of mindfulness and provided analysi… more
Date: December 2016
Creator: Webster, Lindsay
open access

Individual and Group Child-Centered Play Therapy: Impact on Social-Emotional Competencies

Description: A randomized controlled trial study was conducted to test the effectiveness of 16 sessions of the modalities of individual and group child-centered play therapy (CCPT) on improving social-emotional assets, including self-regulation/responsibility, social competence, and empathy. Participants were 56 students in four urban elementary schools in north central Texas, referred by teachers for disruptive or problematic behavior: 10 female and 46 male; ages 5 to 10 years with mean age 7.12; and 21 i… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Blalock, Sarah M.
open access

Intensive Short-term Child Centered Play Therapy and Externalizing Behaviors in Children

Description: Play therapists use children’s natural symbolic play as a method of mental health treatment (Landreth, 2012). Meta-analysis research has demonstrated the effectiveness of treating children with play therapy (Bratton, Ray, Rhine, & Jones, 2005), and child-centered play therapy (CCPT) has proven to be an effective treatment for children with externalizing behaviors such as aggression and other disruptive behavior (Bratton & Ray, 2000; Bratton et al., 2005). Some studies have demonstrated the ef… more
Date: August 2015
Creator: Ritzi, Rochelle M.
open access

An Investigation of the Perceptions of Christian Seminary Counseling Students Regarding Play Therapy

Description: The threefold purpose of this study was to assess the extent to which counseling seminary students' beliefs corresponded to the tenets of child-centered play therapy, the amount of training seminary counseling students received in the area of child counseling and play therapy, and the applicability of child-centered play therapy courses in seminary counselor education programs. The researcher pursued this purpose through administration of a survey instrument she developed. The instrument cons… more
Date: August 2010
Creator: Thacker, Andi
open access

Latino Students’ School Counseling Needs: an Exploratory Needs Assessment

Description: The purpose of this study was to examine Latino/a student preferences for school counselor activities. The primary focus of research was to determine what school counseling activities Latino/a students perceived as important and which school counseling activities Latino/a high school students perceived as satisfying. The researcher pursued this purpose through administration of a survey instrument developed by the researcher. The instrument consisted of 14 demographic items and 42 5-point Li… more
Date: August 2012
Creator: Morganfield, Maggie Garris
open access

Licensed Professional Counselors’ Attitudes Toward People with Schizophrenia: Predictors of Interest in Providing Interventions

Description: For individuals with schizophrenia and their caregivers, psychosocial interventions have been shown to significantly improve recovery and reduce relapse rates. Although this population is underserved and stigmatized, counselors have been excluded from most research into attitudes toward and interventions for these families. Using a stratified random sample survey design, researchers explored the relationships between participating U.S. Licensed Professional Counselors’ attitudes towards, reco… more
Date: August 2012
Creator: Hoy, Kathleen Elaine
open access

Master Therapists' Decision Making Process Concerning Adolescent Confidentiality: A Grounded Theory Approach

Description: Ethical codes and laws provide counselors with guidance for how to approach confidentiality, but there is a gap in the literature surrounding counselors' process of decision-making when managing confidentiality with adolescent clients. This study explored the decision-making process of master therapists concerning adolescent clients. I conducted semi-structured interviews with peer identified master therapist (N=10), all of whom were licensed professional counselors with 15 or more years of c… more
Date: May 2016
Creator: Michero, Emily
open access

A Mixed-Methods Approach to the Experiences of Non-Offending Parents of Children who have Experienced Sexual Abuse Participating in Child Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT)

Description: When a child has been sexually abused, the non-offending parent and child may benefit from an intervention aimed at enhancing the parent child relationship. This mixed-methods study examined the process of child parent relationship therapy (CPRT) with non-offending parents of children who had been sexually abused. One purpose of the present study was to examine change in parent-child relationship, child behavior, and parent empathy of non-offending parents whose children have been sexually abus… more
Date: August 2010
Creator: West, Brooke E.
open access

A Phenomenological Exploration of Counselors' Experiences in Personal Therapy

Description: Professional counselors may choose to increase self-awareness and/or engage in self-care through the use of personal therapy. In particular, counselors may feel reluctant to pursue personal therapy due to stigma related to their professional identity. To date, researchers have paid limited attention to the unique concerns of counselors in personal therapy. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore counselors' experiences and decision-making in seeking personal therapy. I address… more
Date: May 2017
Creator: Bevly, Cynthia M.
open access

Pilot of a Learning Management System to Enhance Counselors' Relational Qualities Through Mindfulness-based Practices

Description: Mindfulness-based practices are associated with increased attentional qualities, improved self-focus styles, enhanced empathic understanding, and strengthened self-compassion, making these practices a viable addition to counselor training programs. However, current mindfulness training models are primarily designed for relief of psychological distress, stress reduction, and increased well-being rather than focused on enhancing therapeutic skills and require intensive time commitments that may … more
Date: May 2013
Creator: Ballinger, Julie Ann
open access

Play Therapy for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: a Single-case Design

Description: The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of child-centered play therapy (CCPT) on the social competence, empathy, and self-regulation of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The constructs of social competence, empathy, and self-regulation were measured using the Social-Emotional Assets Rating Scale (SEARS). This study utilized a single-case design; the researcher collected data throughout the duration of the study, including baseline, treatment, and follow-up phas… more
Date: August 2014
Creator: Ware, Jenifer N.
open access

A Predictive Model of Adolescent Persistence in Counseling

Description: Adolescence is a developmental period characterized by profound social and emotional changes. Counseling can serve as a protective factor for decreasing the long-term negative emotional effects. Despite this fact, counselors continue to struggle with high rates of attrition among adolescent clients. When examining trends of client persistence in counseling across the lifespan, researchers found a relationship between the presence of internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Additionally, they… more
Date: May 2015
Creator: Holm, Jessica M.
open access

The Relationship Between Professional Sexual Boundary Violation And Sex Addiction: An Exploratory Study Of Post-treatment And Retrospective Pre-treatment Dispositions

Description: In this exploratory study, 35 male professionals who had successfully completed residential sex addiction treatment were surveyed. Respondents’ median age was 47.5, and reported ethnicities were White (89%), Asian, (9%) and Hispanic (2%). Prior to intake, 17 respondents had reportedly violated sexual boundaries with patients, clients, or staff (BV group) and 18 reportedly had not (NBV group). Respondents completed a demographic information form and two validated instruments: (a) Sexual Symptom … more
Date: December 2011
Creator: Menassa, Bret Michael
open access

The Relationship of Counselor Education Program Applicants’ Cognitive Complexity to Other Admission Criteria

Description: Counselor cognitive complexity is a counselor’s ability to recognize and organize multiple characteristics that might affect client needs. I examined whether various admissions criteria–Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Verbal, Quantitative, and Analytical Writing scores; previous coursework grade point averages; and faculty co-leaders’ admissions group interview ratings–for 182 applicants to a southwestern U.S. CACREP-accredited master’s counseling program predicted cognitive complexity scores… more
Date: August 2013
Creator: De La Garza, Mario A., Jr.
open access

Relationships Among and Between Early and Late Freshmen Admission Applications and Academic Persistence

Description: This quantitative study investigated relationships among and between university early and late admitted freshmen and academic performance and persistence. The participants in this study consisted of 3,197 early freshmen applicants and 309 late freshmen applicants admitted at a large southwestern student centered public research university over the course of the year prior to the fall 2008 academic year. Significant results, using a statistical significance level of p < .05, were reported for t… more
Date: August 2010
Creator: Hale, Lynne Rochelle
open access

Resilience Among Middle School Students

Description: Resilience is the ability to survive and persevere during difficult times. Resilient people also thrive after overcoming adversity. Adolescents have many developmental tasks to overcome in their quest to becoming adults. Difficulty with these tasks can lead to academic and personal failures. Adolescents with low resilience often struggle with low self-esteem. If students are identified early as having lower levels of resilience, professional school counselors have an opportunity to provide resi… more
Date: August 2013
Creator: Donaghey, Mary V.
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