Bibliotherapy: Does It Work?

Bibliotherapy continues to be used by counselors as an adjunctive technique in their professional work. This article updates the research literature and reports conflicting responses to the question, “Does bibliotherapy work?”     

A Survey of Counselor Educators' Ethical Concerns

This survey examined counselor educators' ethical concerns. Responding to a series of vignettes, respondents considered unethical those behaviors that are self-serving (e.g., dating a client or a student and not fulfilling work responsibilities) while perceiving ethical those practices that raise the question of dual relationship. Respondents were also in favor of allowing students with serious mental health problems to become counselors as long as their problems are under control. A significant gender difference was observed in their response to one vignette. The majority of respondents expressed satisfaction with the current ethical standards of the American Counseling Association, although slightly over half indicated that ethical standards specifically applicable to counselor education would be helpful.     

A Criterion-Related Validity Study of the OASIS-2 Interest Schedule

A total of 36 rising high school seniors who were participating in a summer program designed to encourage interest in attending college were administered the Self-Directed Search (SDS) and OASIS-2 Interest Schedule. Correlational analyses identified statistically significant relationships between SDS and OASIS-2 scales. In most cases, scales one would expect to find related to one another correlated significantly and at a level many would consider to be acceptable for establishing criterion-related validity. Implications of the results for those practitioners using the OASIS-2 Interest Schedule are discussed.     

Counseling Counselors: A Survey of Values

This study surveyed counselors' rates of involvement in counseling, explored whether counselors value seeing therapists of a similar theoretical orientation to their own, and examined which characteristics were important in choosing one's therapist. Of 2,000 randomly selected ACA members, with a 38% return rate, 80% were found to have attended counseling, with women seeking counseling at significantly higher rates than men. Having been in counseling varied as a function of division affiliation as well as counselor's theoretical orientation. Finally, this study also explored the characteristics deemed important in choosing one's counselor and the values counselors hold regarding involvement in their own therapy.