The Uniqueness of Similarities: Parallels of Milton H. Erickson and Carl Rogers

The philosophy and values of Carl Rogers hold a central position in the counseling profession. Today the writings and work of Milton H. Erickson are beginning to have a similar influence. Erickson's strategies and techniques have been explored from many theoretical frames of reference, but little attention has been paid to his values regarding the human condition. It is these value assumptions of Rogers and Erickson that will be examined in this article.     

THE POLITICAL NATURE OF DOCTRINE: A CRITIQUE OF LINDBECK IN LIGHT OF RECENT SCHOLARSHIP

This article argues that the power of religion to shape experience presupposes the mobilization of religious identity through social opposition. This thesis is developed through a critique of George Lindbeck's The Nature of Doctrine. The article first examines Lindbeck's thesis that religion shapes experience in light of Talal Asad's critique of Geertz's concept of religion. It argues that in order to understand how ‘religion’ shapes experience we must look outside the immanent sphere of cultural‐religious meaning that Lindbeck, following Geertz, identifies with ‘religion’. Religious authority ultimately derives from the recognition of a social group. Next, looking at the nature of doctrine in light of Kathryn Tanner's thesis that Christian identity is essentially relational, it argues that church doctrines function to mobilize group identity through social opposition. In this respect they resemble the mobilizing slogans of political discourse more than, as Lindbeck's theory proposes, the grammatical rules governing Wittgensteinian language games.     

COMPARATIVE THEOLOGY AFTER LIBERALISM

This article first identifies two reasons for the current marginality of the theological sub‐discipline of “comparative theology.” The first is an awareness of the imperialistic character of the universalist (inclusivist and pluralist) theologies of the recent past. The second is the assumption that Christianity's relations with other religious are extrinsic to Christian identity. Drawing on Kathryn Tanner's critique of postliberalism, it argues that interreligious comparison is integral to a theology that recognizes the essentially relational nature of Christian identity. This recognition implies a continuous revision of Christian identity that checks the tendency to essentialize and thereby exclude religious “others.”     

Hypnocounseling: Ericksonian Hypnosis for Counselors

Milton H. Erickson provided a wealth of therapeutic interventions that could be invaluable to counselors. The author describes hypnocounseling as an eclectic foundation, whereby Ericksonian hypnotic language patterns can be adapted by most counselors to their primary orientations and techniques.     

Individual Reactions to Interviewer Behaviors

This study suggests that interviewer behaviors do not have a consistently strong impact on applicants' attitudes toward organizations or willingness to accept job offers.     

Campus Career Guidance: Assessment and a Model

This article reports a model for assessment of the needs and resources for career guidance on the college campus and the results of one such assessment. Students' need for career guidance was assessed by opinion polls on campus. Resources available on campus were assessed by structured interviews with all department chairpersons and deans. Graduates' views of the usefulness of college education as career preparation were obtained through mailed questionnaires. Results indicate that (a) family and personal friends have the greatest influence on career choice, (b) university departments supply very limited resources for aid in career choice, and (c) most graduates view their college major as a necessary or desirable prerequisite for their current employment. Recommendations are made for action that counseling centers, college divisions, and departments can take to improve career guidance resources on campus.