Pastoral counseling and pastoral care: is there a difference?

The author argues that there is little difference between pastoral counseling and pastoral care. Utilizing an evidence-based and narrative approach, he examines the ideas of a variety of historical and contemporary writers to illustrate this thesis. Along with historical and contemporary writings on the topic, the author includes his own clinical experiences and associations to illustrate his conviction that pastoral counseling and pastoral care are more alike than different.     

African American clergy: what are their perceptions of pastoral care and pastoral counseling?

This qualitative study explores African American clergy’s perspectives on pastoral care and pastoral counseling. Interviews were conducted with 18 African American clergy of diverse ages, locales, and educational levels who were recruited from a southern state. Two major themes emerged from the data: (a) Shepherding the Flock and (b) Distinguishable Concepts with Different Meaning and Functions. Implications for social work practice and research are addressed.     

Manpower trends: counseling or political solutions?

A review of manpower trends and political developments reveals that governmental decisions threaten to reduce job and training opportunities. Career counselors must be prepared to help clients cope with reduced opportunities. In this article the author describes several alternatives for helping clients in this situation. He maintains that political action by APGA should be one of the alternatives—perhaps the most appropriate one—if APGA is to continue its established tradition of supporting social development.     

Cross-cultural differences in tolerance for crowding: fact or fiction?

It is widely believed that cultures vary in their tolerance for crowding. There is, however, little evidence to substantiate this belief, coupled with serious shortcomings in the extant literature. Tolerance for crowding has been confused with cultural differences in personal space preferences along with perceived crowding. Furthermore, the few studies that have examined cultural variability in reactions to crowding have compared subgroup correlations, which is not equivalent to a statistical interaction. Although the authors found a statistical interaction indicating that Asian Americans and Latin Americans differ in the way they perceive crowding in comparison to their fellow Anglo-American and African American citizens, all four ethnic groups suffer similar, negative psychological distress sequelae of high-density housing. These results hold independently of household income.     

Nondiscriminatory career counseling?

Client data from nine church-related career development centers were studied with two questions in mind: (1) How well do the client assessment rating data predict the counselor recommendations given to clients? (2) Are there discriminatory effects due to referral source and/or to gender? Analyses were done separately for Professional Church Workers and Candidates. In addition to a general profile of these two client types, findings show that assessment ratings account for most of the explained variance in recommendations, and that neither client gender nor referral source is a basis for discrimination in recommendations. Counselor gender does make a difference, however, and differences between men and women counselors suggest the useful distinction between gender bias and gender effect.     

Method factors associated with assessment of child behavior: Fact or artifact?

A sample of 64 phobic children between the ages of 6 and 16, with their general population matched controls, were rated by parents on the Louisville Behavior Check List and Louisville Fear Survey and by teachers on the School Behavior Check List. The analysis of ratings by factor analysis revealed three instrument factors while a multiple discriminant analysis elicited a multidimensional phobic trait that crossed observers, situations, and instruments. The results are discussed in terms of the implications for multivariant analysis of behavior change as well as for classification of psychopathological disorders of childhood. The thesis is advanced that instrument factors elicited by factor analysis in psychotherapy change studies are statistical artifacts and that a multiple discriminant analysis is a more appropriate technique for the study of change as well as for classification.This study is one aspect of a psychotherapy research project on phobic children which was supported in part by National Institute of Mental Health Grant No. MH 13219.     

Pastoral products or pastoral care? How marketplace language affects ministry in veterans hospitals

The author describes a veterans hospital context of healthcare ministry in which marketplace terminology, adopted institutionally, also impacts the Chaplain Service. He highlights specific elements of this commercialization of pastoral care, such as computerized documentation of "spiritual products" delivered in increments of ten minute units. Noting the power of language both to describe and create realities, the author suggests likely risks accompanying benefits of healthcare chaplaincy carried out on marketplace terms.