Counseling Women with Histories of Incest

No abstract available for this article.     

Ethical Issues in Counseling Adult Survivors of Incest

Most counselors working with an adult clientele are faced with negotiating the many ethical dilemmas that occur when counseling adult survivors of child sexual abuse. In this article, the primary ethical concerns encountered in the treatment of adult survivors are addressed. Meta-ethical principles are identified for guiding ethical decision making in dealing with issues that arise in the survivor's relationships with the counselor, the abuser, and other family members.     

Immediacy in Counseling: Recognizing Clients' Unspoken Messages

This article describes how to surface immediacy issues outlined in Carkhuff's developmental helping model and engage clients in exploring the counselor-client relationship.     

Measuring Clients' Cognitive Competence in Research on Counseling

Counseling is defined as an activity concerned with the development of cognitive competence in clients. As part of the overall movement in research on counseling toward methodological pluralism and triangulation, it is suggested that researchers of counseling effects adopt methods of processing and representing clients' cognitive structures. Such methods can help to capture some of the uniquely rich personal and subjective aspects of the change process in counseling. A variety of methods for accessing and representing cognitive structures are presented, some of which are illustrated in a brief case report. The advantages and limitations of the methods presented are discussed.     

Maternal Response to Father-Daughter Incest: Experiences of Mothers Following Disclosure

This study explored the impact of the disclosure of sexual abuse of the daughter by the father or father figure on the mother. Data were collected from seven mothers aged between 31 and 48 years whose daughters had a history of sexual abuse by the biological father, stepfather or live-in boyfriend. The children's ages ranged between 5 and 11 years with disclosure having taken place in the last two years before data collection. Data were collected using an interview schedule. The results obtained from the thematic content analysis indicate that the mothers were traumatized by the disclosure of the sexual abuse. The most prevalent symptoms were anger, anxiety, guilty, depression, insomnia, headache and fatigue. It is recommended that mothers be provided with psychological intervention in order to assist them deal with the trauma associated with the disclosure of the father-daughter incest.     

A Group Design for Adult Female Survivors of Childhood Incest

This paper will describe short term groups for women sexually molested as children. The goals of such a group were to provide an atmosphere in which women could discuss the experience of sexual abuse, explore the consequences of incest, be exposed to the probably phases of recovery and discuss practical coping skills. The design of the group is detailed, as are recommendations and relevant issues for therapists. Women's responses to the group, such as increase in self-esteem, trust level, assertiveness and confrontation with the abuser, are also discussed.     

Common Themes in the Experiences of Mother-Daughter Incest Survivors: Implications for Counseling

A qualitative method was used to explore the phenomenon of mother-daughter incest. Common themes were extracted from in-depth interviews with survivors of mother-perpetrated sexual abuse, some of which parallel the experience of survivors of other forms of child sexual abuse, and some of which are more specific to mother-daughter incest. These themes are discussed in detail. Counseling implications are discussed and treatment recommendations are made for therapists working with adult survivors of maternal sexual abuse.     

Counseling the Depressed Christian Female Client

Some researchers have suggested that traditional gender-role conditioning for women might relate to depression and, furthermore, that religion has played a major role in defining and reinforcing gender roles. Depressed Christian women, consequently, make up a unique population with special counseling needs. This article addresses these women as a group and offers suggestions for counseling them.     

An Exploration of Young Clients' Experiences in Counseling With Post‐Master's Counselors

This phenomenological study adds to current literature about clients' meaningful experiences in counseling by exploring the experiences of eight young clients (ages 8–18) in individual counseling with post‐master's counselors in an outpatient setting. Interviews with these clients revealed the following six themes: (a) the process of growth, (b) having a safe place to talk, (c) counselor accepts and meets the client where they are, (d) counseling is a team effort, (e) supportive accountability from the counselor, and (f) understanding self and others. The final theme includes two subthemes: learning coping and emotion management skills, and learning better ways to communicate and behave. Findings and implications for counselors are discussed.     

Disclosure of HIV Status Among Female Youth With HIV

Minority female youth are significantly affected by the HIV epidemic. The purpose of this pilot study was to explore sexual behavior practices, disclosure of HIV status, attitudes about disclosure, and knowledge of HIV disclosure laws among female youth with HIV (YWH). Findings suggest that the majority of YWH studied have been sexually active since their HIV diagnosis, although the nature and extent of sexual activity varied. Rates of nondisclosure to sexual partners varied based on the type of question asked, but at least some of the YWH in this sample reported sexual activity with a partner who was unaware of the participant’s HIV status. YWH appear to be more likely to disclose before, as opposed to after, sexual activity. Although most YWH believe disclosure to sexual partners is important for a variety of reasons, many reasons exist for nondisclosure, including fear of rejection and limited communication skills. The majority of YWH in this sample were aware of the potential legal ramifications of nondisclosure although fear of legal repercussions was not the most important factor related to disclosure. These findings favor the implementation of HIV disclosure interventions over the enactment of HIV criminalization laws as a strategy for reducing HIV transmission.     

Sexual Harassment: A Female Counseling Student's Experience

A counseling student describes her experience as a target of long-term, systematic harassment in the form of sexual seduction. The harassing professor was the student's practicum supervisor. The author recounts the effects of experiencing the harassment, confronting her harasser, and enduring an investigation. The events of the case demonstrate that sexualization of the professor-student relationship has a powerful potential to destroy trust, a fundamental element in the student's future profession. They also demonstrate that taking action can empower a student to resolve the experience for herself, gain strength from her actions, and move forward with her life.     

Use of Morita Therapy in Shyness Counseling in the West: Promoting Clients' Self-Acceptance and Action Taking

The author discusses the practical application of Morita therapy philosophy and techniques in shyness counseling in the West. Shy clients in Morita therapy are encouraged to recognize the self-actualizing meaning of social anxiety instead of regarding it as abnormal and becoming preoccupied with attempts to control anxiety symptoms. They are challenged to reevaluate their maladaptive cognitive processing of shyness and their unproductive behavioral passivity. The didactic, confrontational, and supportive messages used in Morita-based counseling are presented. Cross-cultural issues are discussed, and the positive reinterpretation technique and the behavioral instructional method are illustrated.     

Personality Traits of Female Psychotherapy Patients With a History of Incest: A Research Note

Rorschachs were administered to 17 female psychotherapy patients having a history of incest, as well as 17 matched control patients without such a history. Based on a review of the literature it was anticipated that the incest subjects would show evidence of difficulty in maintaining healthy interpersonal relationships, poor self-esteem, defective superego formation, sexual difficulties, and anger. Expectations receiving support included interpersonal problems, poor Self-esteem, and anger.     

Counseling Career-Plateaued Workers During Times of Social Change

This article encourages employment counselors to help employed and unemployed career-plateaued workers regain a sense of personal investment, motivation, and productivity.     

Counseling Depressed Female Religious Professionals: Nuns and Clergywomen

Stress, strain, depression, and coping resources in nuns and clergywomen were studied to better understand women religious professionals and to thus provide more appropriate counseling for them. Responses of 254 well-matched female religious professionals were analyzed with t tests and ANOV As. Nuns had less stress (perceived pressure) and strain (actual wear and tear), less depression, and better coping resources than clergywomen. Female Reform rabbis experienced the most stress, strain, and possible depression, with the lowest coping resources. Yet, traditionalism in women's role within ecclesia does not explain why nuns are becoming more activist and feminist and leaving orders in growing numbers. Perhaps clergywomen are in a serious battle for the survival of female religious professionals and experiencing stress, strain, and depression on the road to victory over prejudice and injustice toward female believers.     

Pretherapy Information,Counselor Influence,and Value Similarity: Impact on Female Clients' Reactions

This study examined the effects of pretherapy information, participants' views on premarital sex, and counselor influence attempts on female participants reactions to a female counselor. These results are discussed in relation to previous research.     

Counseling Directory and Consumer's Guide: Implementing Professional Disclosure and Consumer Protection

The publication of a “counseling directory” and “consumer's guide” is a new approach that can be used to respond to the current professional issues of professional disclosure and consumer protection. In a recent project in Benton County, Oregon, a directory and guide were published and distributed. This article reviews and evaluates that project. The purposes, format, and content of both the directory and guide are summarized. It is hoped that this article will stimulate interest in this approach and that the information provided will be used for similar projects in other communities.     

Forming a Consortium: A Design for Interagency Collaboration in the Delivery of Service Following the Disclosure of Incest

A central issue in the treatment of intrafamilial sexual abuse is the "secondary trauma" experienced by both the victimized child and her family when the wider system of regulatory and treatment agencies present redundant, incongruent, or conflicting perspectives and demands. This article describes an attempt to effect second-order change through formation of a consortium of regulatory and treatment agencies to develop a consistent and coordinated response to the disclosure of sexual abuse. Feminist, social constructionist, and organizational development ideas are used to develop principles of intersubjectivity, collaboration and a "both-and" stance, which have guided both the clinical and wider systems work.