We Are Therefore I Am: A Psycho-Cosmos Counseling Model for Black Africans

This article explores the concepts of corporate personality, rituals and religion as they impact counseling indigenous black African people in their home settings or in Western contexts. It discusses the predominantly “I” focus of Western methods of counseling and psychotherapies and regards it as ineffective when compared to the “we” concept of indigenous African cultures. The authors examine the roles of healers, diviners, and counselors, and the influence of culture, religion, and rituals in the healing (therapeutic) process. A psycho-cosmos model of counseling is proposed that places counseling involvement in a larger context and includes some suggestions for practitioners.     

Reflections on the History of South African Student Counseling Services: Achievements,Challenges, and a Way Forward

Student counseling services are a recognizable feature of higher education institutions locally and abroad. This article reviews the sociohistorical development and evolution of student counseling services in South African institutions of higher learning, with an emphasis on systemic influences, achievements, and contemporary challenges. This article considers the progress that has been made thus far with respect to the development of the service within higher education, while also attending to issues that require continued reflection and investigation. These include the current status and position of the service in South African higher education, the evolving roles of student counselors, as well as their relationship with institutional stakeholders and the broader South African community. In so doing, this article hopes to augment existing historical perspectives on student counseling by encouraging a critical reappraisal of student counseling’s past, its present, and its future in a dynamic South African and global context.     

Ethnicity Constructed and Reconstructed: the role of Sikh women in cultural elaboration and educational decision‐making in Britain

The paper deals with the increased consciousness of the British Sikhs of their ethnicity as defined through their religious and cultural values—which have gone through a process of effervescence with increased settlement in Britain and especially after the army action at the Golden Temple in Amritsar in 1984. The thrust of the paper is that the construction of Sikh identities is not based on a single premise and a simple process, but that identities are formulated continuously in a process of negotiation with a number of economic and political forces that shift over time and space. In particular, the focus is on the role of Sikh women in the re‐establishment of sikh cultural and religious values, and in the elaboration of certain facets of them on the British scene, as a result of Sikh women's entry into the waged labour market and increased command over economic resources since migration. The paper explores Sikh educational beliefs which have their roots in an egalitarian religious background that exercised a considerable impact in shaping them. They do not remain static but change in response to the socio‐economic forces in which they are situated, in concert with the cultural patterns from which they emanate, and which further interact with the structural forces operative in the British economy and society.     

Counseling across cultural borders in South Africa

Within a counseling context, cognisance should be taken of differences in language and culture codes, problem presentation and interpretation, counseling expectations, problem solving methods, and views on the world, reality and self. In South Africa as elsewhere in the world, political activism and the disruption of individual life styles have direct implications for the life and world view of the Blacks, and therefore also for the counseling process itself. Rightfully or not, White counselors are often perceived as symbols of the Establishment, and the Black client is likely to impute all the negative experiences of oppression to the counselor.The effectiveness of cross-cultural counseling is most likely to be enhanced when the counselor can relate to the outlook on life of the client, using counseling modalities and defining goals consistent with the life experiences and cultural values of the client. In this regard the White counselor might very well make a detailed analysis of the philosophy, function and methods of the very influential indigeous mental health practitioners (witch doctors) within the Black system. The accommodation of these concepts within acknowledged Western psychological approaches, seems feasible.     

A Phenomenological Exploration of Bhutanese Counselors’ Experiences with Western Counseling

Bhutan has recently invited the profession of counseling to aid in responding to growing mental health problems, social and family issues, and school and career guidance needs. This study is a phenomenological investigation of the experiences of Bhutanese counselors with Western counseling in order to understand the cultural fit between Bhutan and Western counseling orientations. Eleven participants were interviewed and four themes identified: conceptualization of counseling, Bhutanese culture, Bhutanese counseling, and the relationship between Western counseling and Bhutan. Suggestions are made for a potential model of Bhutanese counseling, counselor training, ongoing Western contributions, and the further development of the counseling profession.     

The cultural milieu of counseling

This article explores the mono-cultural milieu of counseling. There are four primary contributors to the cultural domination of counseling by the Western culture. They are as follows: (1) the deep historical and philosophical roots of counseling in Western culture; (2) the dominant theories, practices and approaches of counseling make the assumption that counseling will take place within a Western culture; (3) the bulk of research and literature pertaining to counseling concentrates on counseling within the West; (4) the emulation by non-Western nations of Western models of counseling. The concept of cultural dissonance is given to help in the understanding of the relation of culture to a counseling relationship at a given time between counselor and client.     

哲学咨商方法的比较——以瑞比的哲学咨商法与儒家哲学启发的咨商历程为例

加拿大学者瑞比创制的"自由交谈"等四阶段哲学咨商方法,与儒家哲学"克胜收摄"的启发式咨商方法,两者虽然具有中西哲学起始点与展现场域的差异,但是在助人工具、咨商方法和历程等方面亦有其功能之相通互补之处。比较和分析这两种哲学咨商方法,开展哲学咨商实务的个案成效差异之验证性探究,不仅有助于我们理解中西哲学各自的助人精髓,更利于我们汲取中西哲学咨商方法的精华,推进当代哲学咨商工作的发展。     

British Asian women and the costs of higher education in England

This article will examine Asian women’s experiences of financial support in higher education. The article is based on 30 in-depth interviews with Asian women who were studying at a ‘new’ (post-1992) university in the South East of England. Women identified themselves as Muslim, Hindu and Sikh. The findings reveal that women’s religious and cultural background affects their attitudes towards financial support whilst at university. Through their participation in higher education, women are able to use their social and ethnic capital to enable them to receive financial and other kinds of support necessary for their success in higher education.     

A Retrospective Study of South Asian Further Education College Students and their Experiences of Secondary School

This paper evaluates the results from a survey of further education college students and the processes of their secondary schooling. Postal survey responses from 109 randomly sampled college students (aged 16-19) from three colleges in the city of Birmingham provide the empirical base for the current research. The objectives of the study are to retrospectively analyse the secondary school experiences of South Asian college students currently in further education, probing key educational processes by ethnicity and gender. Respondents revealed their approaches towards education in general, teachers, religion and culture and parents. The broad conclusion suggests that respondents had managed to develop mixed 'educational identities', encompassing elements of the home as well as the school, aimed at permitting the effective transition from further into higher education. Differences were found between Hindu, Sikh and Muslim respondents and between genders.     

Counseling for Peace in the Midst of War: Counselors from Northern Uganda Share Their Views

This paper describes the way that counselors in northern Uganda are working to promote healing and build peace in a region plagued by war since 1986. In this area where the entire community is affected by the armed conflict, the counselors work as part of a community program. This paper attempts to describe (1) the background and nature of the northern Uganda conflict, (2) how counseling was established as part of a network of community helpers, (3) the complexity of counseling in the context of conflict, (4) how counseling is contributing to building long-term peace in the area, and (5) the challenges faced by counselors and their implications for others working in areas of armed conflict.     

高校网络心理咨询的服务形式探析

如何有效地开展网络心理咨询是当前许多高校心理健康教育工作者面临的一大难题。文章结合中南林业科技大学开展网络心理咨询的经验,阐述实时网络咨询、校园BBS咨询、留言本咨询、电子邮件咨询这四种主要服务形式的优势和具体操作办法,并针对开展过程中出现的问题提出应对措施。     

Teaching culture-specific counseling using microtraining technology

Counseling theory tends to be White, Western and male in origin and orientation. Culture-specific counseling is proposed as an alternative to cross-cultural and multicultural approaches. In the culture-specific approach, we start with the culture and its peoples and search out natural helping styles. Rather than transforming Western theory to fit a new culture, the effort is to focus on the specifics and needs of that culture. This preliminary study applies anthropological constructs and the methods of microtraining seeking to discover a more culturally sensitive approach to conceptualization of counseling theory, training in counseling skills and knowledge, and in the use of evaluative research techniques. This paper presents the concepts of culture-specific counseling with a case example from the African-Igbo culture.     

Working alliance as a mediator and moderator between expectations for counseling success and counseling outcome among Korean clients

The study examined client’s perceptions of working alliance as a mediator and moderator between client expectations of counseling success and counseling outcome. Participants were 284 adult clients in counseling in university or community counseling centers or private practices in South Korea. Level of functioning at the start of counseling was used to control for counseling outcome. Results of structural equation modeling analyses indicated that working alliance fully mediated the relationship between client expectations of counseling success and counseling outcome. In addition, moderation of counseling expectations by working alliance on counseling outcome was supported. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Religious diversity,inter‐ethnic relations and the Catholic school: introducing the responsive approach to single faith schooling

The article offers a case study of the ways in which a Catholic primary school located in the centre of a large South‐Asian community in Leicester, UK, responded to the religious and ethnic diversity of its surroundings. The school, Our Saviour’s, engaged in shared activities with a neighbouring school which had a majority intake of Hindu, Muslim and Sikh children. Approaches to religious education at Our Saviour’s combined with weekly shared activities with the neighbouring school resulted in improved inter‐ethnic relations in the surrounding community, as children from both schools began socialising after school hours. This article draws on ethnographic research to give a case study of the ways in which Our Saviour’s employed a responsive approach to single faith schooling by engaging with religious and ethnic diversity as a means of promoting dialogue.     

Impaired graduate students: A process model of graduate program monitoring and intervention

Psychological impairment is an area of concern in training graduate students in counseling programs. This article reviews the potentially harmful consequences of impaired graduate students to graduate programs, faculty, other graduate students, and the counseling profession. The paper provides an overview of existing trends, policies, and procedures regarding student screening, remediation, and dismissal from graduate training programs within a Western framework. A process model for monitoring and intervention is presented.     

中国特色的心理咨询理论走向初探

西方的三大主要心理咨询理论-精神分析、行为主义、人本主义在创立的根本目标上基本相似，在人性观、方法论及作用等方面各有千秋。但没有一种理论是十全十美的。将各种理论兼容并蓄、扬长避短则是必然趋势。对于我们而言，只有在辩证地接受西方心理咨询理论的基础上，结合中国化的特点（如吸取儒家人生哲学和道家人生哲学思想），才能更好地探讨具有中国特色的心理咨询理论。     

西方哲学和儒学双重视野中的心理咨询实践

目前我国心理咨询实践所借助的心理咨询理论多源于西方,故受西方哲学影响甚深。其实,对于心理咨询实践中的某些根本性问题,比如对人的生命本质、人自身、身心关系等方面的认识,无论是西方哲学还是中国传统哲学之重要组成部分的儒学,皆有各自的见解和论述。儒学既尊重生命的“求强”意志,又强调“求强”之中的和谐。儒学重视人的整体存在与个体生命的具体生成过程,注重人的主动性和人对命运的自我把握。从儒学本身看,它始终认可原始的身心合一论与当代的身心交互作用论。从比较文化的视角看,西方哲学和中国儒学都与我国的心理咨询实践有内在关联性,而儒学更为贴近中国人的文化传统、生活实际和心理实际。国内心理咨询的实践既需要借鉴西方哲学思想更需要借鉴中国的儒学精髓。     

An effect of a mandatory counseling program for college students on academic probation: a preliminary study

This longitudinal study examined the effects of a mandatory counseling program for students placed on academic probation at a university in South Korea. The study compared longitudinal changes over three semesters in the grade point average (GPA) of students who were on academic probation. Two groups, 46 students with mandatory counseling and 49 students without, were used as comparison groups for testing the effects of counseling intervention on GPA improvement. The result suggested that the students who attended five or more counseling sessions beyond two mandatory sessions showed a significantly greater GPA improvement over three semesters in comparison with the students who did not receive the mandatory counseling sessions. Implications for counseling and suggestions for institutional action are discussed.     

Appropriation, Appreciation, Accommodation: Indigenous Wisdoms and Knowledges in Higher Education

This paper focuses on differences between the underlying principles of Western science and the knowledges and wisdoms of Indigenous peoples in such places as Australia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Central and South America. It notes changing phases in the approaches to Indigenous Wisdoms and knowledges, and highlights the shifts from appropriation to appreciation and then accommodation. Nevertheless, major tensions remain, both within and between Western science and Indigenous knowledges and appreciations. This creates challenges for institutions of higher education, as well as for other bodies.