Counseling for Wellness With Older Adults

Resulting from the assumption that older adulthood is a time of decline, there is a dearth of research on the application of wellness counseling with older adults. This article reviews the literature on wellness and older adults, synthesizes wellness with adult development theory, and describes wellness counseling with older adults.     

20/20: A Vision for the Future of Counseling: The New Consensus Definition of Counseling

With the promulgation of the 20/20: A Vision for the Future of Counseling consensus definition of counseling, there is finally profession‐wide clarity as to what it means to engage in professional counseling. This article describes the development and discusses the implications of the definition: “Counseling is a professional relationship that empowers diverse individuals, families, and groups to accomplish mental health, wellness, education, and career goals.” This consensus definition has been endorsed by 29 major counseling organizations.     

Gender and Wellness: A Multidimensional Systems Model for Counseling

An expanded view of health is advocated for assessment and treatment of individual clients in helping them achieve and maintain their maximum potential for high-level wellness. In addition, moderating variables, such as culture, age, and gender differences, have an impact on every dimension of health and wellness. In this article a multidimensional systems model for wellness is described, and gender differences along those dimensions are reviewed. Application of the model and implications for counseling are discussed. Finally, two illustrative case examples, one man and one woman, are described.     

Counseling for Spiritual Wellness: Theory and Practice

Spiritual wellness is an emerging area of interest in counseling. It still lacks clarity, however, in definition and application. To increase familiarity with and encourage counselor intervention regarding the spiritual dimension, the authors of this article attempt to define more clearly the concept of spiritual health and to describe ways to use techniques for the enhancement of spiritual wellness and the advancement of spiritual development.     

Assessing Adolescent and Adult Attachment: A Review of Current Self-Report Measures

Increased interest in attachment theory among counseling researchers and practitioners has led to the development of several measures of attachment-related constructs. Following a brief overview of the theoretical foundations of attachment theory as conceptualized by Ainsworth (1989) and Bowlby (1988), the authors of this article review four self-report measures of adolescent and adult attachment. Many considerations for the selection and use of these instruments in future counseling research and assessment are discussed.     

Forgive and Forget? Forgiveness,Personality, and Wellness Among Counselors‐in‐Training

Forgiveness as a method of addressing “wounds” has been linked to enduring aspects of personality and improved physical and mental health outcomes. The aim of this study was to understand the effects of forgiveness on counseling students’ overall wellness. Counseling students (N= 115) from 5 universities completed self‐report measures of forgiveness, wellness, and personality. Results indicate that, when personality factors are controlled, forgiveness contributes a significant proportion (10%) of the variance in wellness for counseling students. Implications for counselor training and counseling are discussed.     

EcoWellness: The Missing Factor in Holistic Wellness Models

A growing body of multidisciplinary literature has delineated the benefits that natural environments have on physical and mental health. Current wellness models in counseling do not specifically address the impact of nature on wellness or how the natural world can be integrated into counseling. The concept of EcoWellness is presented as the missing link in wellness models and counseling. Integrating EcoWellness in counseling provides new and potentially powerful interventions to enhance wellness across the life span.     

The Effectiveness of Individual Wellness Counseling on the Wellness of Law Enforcement Officers

The purpose of this exploratory study was to determine the effectiveness of wellness counseling on increasing wellness among law enforcement officers. The study also examined whether position in the Transtheoretical Model (J. O. Prochaska & C. C. DiClemente, 1982) and self‐efficacy influenced the effectiveness of counseling on wellness. These findings indicate that counseling may increase wellness among law enforcement officers.     

The Wheel of Wellness Counseling for Wellness: A Holistic Model for Treatment Planning

A holistic model of wellness and prevention over the life span was presented by T. J. Sweeney and J. M. Witmer (1991) and J. M. Witmer and T. J. Sweeney (1992). Recent advances in research and theory related to wellness support modifications of the original model. The foundation for the model is examined, research related to each component is explored, and implications for use of the model as a basis for counseling interventions are presented.     

Moving From Classical Test Theory to the Evaluation of Usefulness: A Theoretical and Practical Examination of Alternative Approaches to the Development of Career Tools for Job Seekers

This article critiques the common use of principles of classical test theory (CTT) as the key means of assessing the effectiveness of career instruments for employment counseling. The authors argue that excessive reliance on CTT has hindered the development of career assessment tools that better meet the diverse and changing needs of those seeking guidance in their career choice. The authors argue for an alternative paradigm based on notions of usefulness. A computerized career tool is evaluated to illustrate the limitations of CTT and the benefit of alternative methodologies for the assessment of instruments designed to provide effective career guidance.     

Developmental Career Assessment and Counseling: The C-DAC Model

The C-DAC model seeks to implement current development theory and to use innovative assessment measures together with improved counseling methods to improve vocational and life career counseling. At this stage, the project pays more attention to assessment, partly because if one is to counsel with career maturity in mind, one must understand the developmental status of the counselee. In career counseling, facts as well as feelings are important. Therefore, in this article the authors deal with the assessment of career development in detail, treating interests (measured by the Strong) and expressed preferences as basic status data to be viewed in the light of career maturity, the salience of life roles, and the values sought in life as moderator variables. The instruments are described and their use shown in a sample profile for assessment and checking by the reader in another readily available published source.     

Occupational Wellness: The Integration of Career Identity and Personal Identity

Historically, career and vocational counseling have served as cornerstones to the counseling profession. Still, there are several survey studies that indicate that interest in career counseling among counseling professionals has eroded. Conversely, there has been an overwhelming response from counselors to the idea of wellness. The intent of this article is to encourage practicing counselors and researchers to consider career development as a key ingredient in the conceptualization of wellness. Furthermore, it is imperative that we begin to assist clients in achieving this aspect of occupational wellness through the integration of career identity and personal identity.     

Integrating flow theory and the serious leisure perspective into mental health counseling

This article explores how flow theory and the serious leisure perspective (SLP) can be integrated into mental health counseling. Although different counseling models have acknowledged the role of leisure in the counseling process, leisure is largely an unknown and superficial concept in the mental health counseling literature. Four broad-based pragmatic ideas regarding how flow theory and the SLP can be integrated into the counseling process include mental health counselors (1) understanding the concepts of serious leisure, casual leisure, project-based leisure, flow (enjoyment), and hedonistic pleasure; (2) becoming aware of various assessment instruments that measure flow and serious leisure; (3) using the provision characteristics of entering flow into the counseling process; and (4) empowering clients to becoming community change agents through serious leisure pursuit, resulting in flow experiences.     

Best Practices for Counseling Clients Experiencing Poverty: A Grounded Theory

Poverty is a pressing sociopolitical issue in the United States and worldwide. Poverty experiences have a significant effect on one’s mental health and overall wellness. Therefore, the ability to effectively serve clients experiencing poverty is critically important to professional counselors. However, there are no empirical models for counseling clients experiencing poverty. The authors present the results of a constructivist grounded theory study in which 21 professional counselors who work with clients experiencing poverty were interviewed to identify best practices for working with this population. Five major best practices are identified: (a) awareness, (b) training, (c) knowledge, (d) skills, and (e) advocacy. Implications for professional counseling are included.     

Spiritual Wellness and Depression

With a growing appreciation for the holism of human functioning, interest in the spiritual dimension as it relates to depression has increased. In this article, I review medical wellness literature and counseling literature for insight into the nature of spirituality and propose 4 dimensions of spiritual wellness as a result of this review: a sense of meaning in life, a transcendent perspective, an intrinsic value system, and a sense of belonging to a spiritual community of shared values and support. These dimensions are examined as they relate to the clinical literature and empirical research on depression. Implications for research, counseling, and counselor education also are reviewed.     

The Impact of Wellness‐Focused Supervision on Mental Health Counseling Practicum Students

Professional counseling organizations tout the importance of wellness for counselors and counselors‐in‐training. The authors used a wellness‐focused supervision model with mental health practicum students to assess the model's degree of treatment effect at improving students' wellness over the course of the semester. Participants' demographics included three women, one man, three European Americans, and one Latino/a. Single‐case design results revealed that ongoing wellness‐focused interventions are helpful in improving participants' level of wellness; implications for practice are provided.     

Promoting Overall Health and Wellness Among Clients: The Relevance and Role of Professional Counselors

Given the rise in health care costs and the premature morbidity and mortality rates in the United States, the authors discuss the relevant constructs of wellness and holistic health as they relate and apply to the profession of counseling. Implications and application of the Indivisible Self model of wellness (J. E. Myers & T. J. Sweeney 2004) in counseling are highlighted.     

Defining the Nature of Spirituality in the Context of Maslow's and Rogers's Theories

This article discusses the presence and power of the spiritual content in the counseling process and in the attainment of optimum wellness. Spirituality and spiritual wellness are defined and the intrinsic nature of spirituality is discussed in the context of Rogers's and Maslow's self-actualization theories as well as the importance of optimum psychological wellness.     

Assessing Religion and Spirituality in Counseling: Some Reflections and Recommendations

In this article, the importance of conducting a religious and spiritual assessment in counseling is considered. Some essential dimensions of religion and spirituality to assess are described. The authors recommend assessment questions that can be asked during clinical interviews or included on written intake questionnaires. They also briefly describe a few standardized religious and spiritual assessment instruments. Finally, they offer suggestions for conducting spiritual assessments in school settings.