Last class and questions

Last class for EDCO 215 today. My group did a presentation on multicultural counseling, we discussed our genograms, and got back our journals. Dr. Beach, still pregnant (due next week) said we'd done a good job and that she looked forward to seeing us in the future.
I'm having my end of class scruples, which are not positive,
I've demonstrated that I can do post-graduate work (at San Jose State, not Stanford or UC). I definitely passed, and probably got an A. Our group presentation,(which was cobbled together at the last minute), got 40/40. Dr Beach has a reputation of being one of the most demanding lecturers in the department.
I took time to get these results, time, which I might not have in the future.
I have a lot to learn about counseling (a life-long goal)
Was it worth the time and money $$$ to learn this about myself? (Yes and I've got an in to the Counseling Education department, if I want to pursue this.)
Is it worth the time and money to get this degree which, at the most will lead to another part-time job paying about as much as I get now? (on the other hand, this could be training for a job that hasn't yet been developed/invented.)
The M.A. in Counseling Education is designed for teachers who are working full-time to complete within 2 years. (Is this why it didn't seem too difficult?)
This was an introductory class;there are practicum classes, which might be worth taking to see how I go.
I'd like to feel that any further study has a practical, not a theoretical outcome. I enjoy studying

Wrapping up

It's time to end this portion of LaSeal Djonz's blog written as her journal for EDCO 215. Months ago I was concerned about whether I could go back to university and do postgraduate work. This course was doable, despite my fears and concerns about the research project proposal. I did spend more time than I would have liked (just about everything else was on hold) working on the project. I've learned not to be overwhelmed by the big picture, but to take one step at a time. This class has been both a good review of counseling theories and an introduction to areas of counseling.
What to do next? I need to get more involved as a volunteer in different areas of counseling, with supervision. I need to be able to work within a group discussing my fears and concerns. I have a lot to learn, but this is an area where I can use what I've learned in helping others. It's been a step forward and an interesting learning experience.

Talking with Trudi

I've known Trudi for several years and recently chatted with her about her work. Since leaving county social services, she has been a volunteer child advocate and now coordinates the Listening Post, a drop-by counseling program at San Jose State, where I volunteer once a week as a listener. She didn't choose to be a social worker; it was chosen for her. She was an English major, a new faculty wife in a Texas University town; the family needed more income, her in-laws suggested social work and urged her to take the state civil service exam. She passed, and with her husband's family influence, got a job (without any training) as a nursing home social worker. She later applied for opening in the adoption unit and was successful. She received excellent on-the-job training and supervision and found she enjoyed working with foster, adoptive and birth parents. After her divorce she moved to California, studied for a social work degree at SJSU, and continued her work in adoptions for Santa Clara county social services. She became an advocate for birth parents when she realized that no one was giving them a voice in the court system. She felt that she was making a difference working within the system, though not "for the system." She worked with school counselors and teachers and found them the best sources of information on children's welfare; a teacher the only person at the time who had an ongoing interest a child's welfare. She has found that her writing skills as an English major were an asset in compiling and documenting records for court appearances. What advice does she have for people considering a career in counseling? Volunteer in some capacity in an agency where you have an interest, so you can find out what it's like, if it's an area you'll want to pursue.

Multicultural counseling group presentation preparation

Multicultural counseling appears to be another integrative approach to counseling. The chapter on multicultural counseling in the textbook comes before the chapters on counseling theories. I now see that the textbook emphasizes developing an eclectic, individual approach; every chapter beyond chapter 6 addresses diversity issues. I'm one of a small group of three doing a presentation on the last day of class. Appropriately,in our planning meetings we're experiencing multicultural issues in communication; we come from different backgrounds, and there may some linguistic issues in understanding.
Even though the chapter repeats some information, there seems a lot to pack into an hour. We met today and worked out an outline. I'm taking the last section (not intentionally), and will probably focus on multicultural competency. Evaluating counseling theories sounds redundant -- like applying theory to theories, though I can see the connection: if we are to be grounded in counseling theories, especially one counseling theory (as suggested in the section on developing an individual approach), we need to know how to assess these for appropriateness, This chapter is also a reminder that counseling is not following a formula, but adapting knowledge and skills to help clients.

School Counseling

I don't remember much about school counselors when I was in elementary school. (I do remember taking I.Q. tests.) From reading the historical section on Nystul's chapter on school counseling, I can understand why he summarizes the chapter beginning "School counseling is a dynamic and challenging field." There have been developments, changes, standards, models and a lot of legislative and bureaucratic issues. School counseling is changing direction in almost the same way as library work, becoming more proactive (rather than reactive) in involvement and image building activities.
I don't have any experience with school counseling and will need to do some internships or volunteer work to learn more before deciding whether to pursue this path.

Interview with Ellen S.

Ellen S. has worked as a social worker and school counselor. I asked her some questions about her experience.

What made you decide to be a counselor/social worker?
Near the end of my sophomore year of college I went to a Methodist church conference on church related vocation; during that week-end that I thought I would like to work for the church as a social worker. When I finished my BA I realized that I needed to speak Spanish to do Social Work in Calif. so I taught in Mexico for a year. After that year that I went to Florida and got my MSW.

How long did (many years) you work?
I worked 3 years in the welfare department with families with unemployed fathers. (one year before my MSW and two years after.) Three years at the regional center with families with disabled children of all ages. Nineteen years with the county office of education first as a social worker(after I got my Pupil Personnel Services Credential) with families whose children were in special education and then as a school counselor in alternative schools, in community schools and at boys ranches with junior high and high school students who had been removed from their school districts or had been in Juvenile Hall.

What was a typical day like?
One thing about social work and school counseling is that there is no typical day! The kinds of things I did were: collect intake information on each student, help make educational plans and timelines for return to the district schools, help form Individual Education plans for special ed students, work with parents, some group work with students, contacts with district personnel, daily contact with teachers about student progress etc. I made referrals to other counseling or agencies as needed by the families or students. On occasion I would do in-service trainings for staff. I had clients who died, a few needed to be referred to protective service and there were some crises on campus that brought the police.

What do you wish you'd learned in graduate school before you became a counselor? More about how to work with difficult people: clients or other professionals. Organizational theory especially related to disfunctional organizations (which is actually "by definition" in my experience.)

What was your most rewarding experience as a counselor? Group work with parents of pre-school developmentally delayed students (physical, mental and emotional delays.)I enjoyed working with the school counselors in the districts where my students would go after they left the ranch or community schools. I always liked working with other professionals like the teachers, resource specialist, psychologists and the families to plan what was best for the student. And of course having success with a student was rewarding.

What was your least rewarding experience? Working with management or principals who didn't seem to get the details of counseling or social work in a school setting. I worked at many locations part time and each principal wanted me to give my full attention to their school.

What advice do you have for someone starting out in the field and interested in counseling as a profession? Don't burn any bridges. Keep the communication open with students, families and professionals. Return phone calls promptly. Make sure that you do on-going study in your field. Be a team member, always open to improving your skills. And most important of all: take care of yourself so you can be centered and strong as needed to serve others.

Nearing the end -- Career counseling

Two weeks to go until the end of class, but one week to complete this journal. The last week my group gives presentations. We're not very organized group and I'm still trying to work out what multicultural counseling means. We'll get through with it all but I'm not quite on track with interviews and comments.

This week the subject was career counseling. As an opening exercise we got into groups according descriptions (which we learned later were based on Holland's Vocational Interest Types) and were asked to plan a party. Then each group talked about our plans to the class -- and looked at the descriptions again.

I was piqued by Super's Career Development Theory when I was reading the textbook. Ivan and I got to talk about the Maintenance Stage. All Nystul has to say about this stage is: "Super's fourth stage is the maintenance stage, which spans from 44 to 64 years of age. This is a time for the individual to enjoy the security of seniority while attempting to maintain status as a current and productive professional. The major developmental task is preservation of achieved status. "

Super's theory may be the basis for career development through life stages, but it's outdated in this part of the world. Super's assumption seems to be that full-time, long-term careers are the norm. His ladder of growth, exploration, establishment, maintenance and decline (with a dip)needs to be replaced by a series of cycles, maybe incorporated into a spiral.

It's interesting that one of the trends is to incorporate career counseling into personal counseling, seeing career counseling as "interrelated with a person's overall psychosocial functioning" (Nystul p. 338)

The presentation didn't cover computer counseling software; it's interesting that such programs are now part of the database packages marketed to libraries. Career search and job skills have been emphasized in library programs in the past years. A former business librarian was told, when she publicized the library's programs at a job fair and attempted to form partnerships with community job search organizations that "we study for two years to be qualified as career counselors" This story may be exaggerated in the telling. I wonder if this person was a graduate of the Educational Counseling program -- or does it show that job counselors themselves feel insecure?

Stress and performance -- the home stretch

Thursday I went to Stanford University to be screened to participate as a volunteer research subject in a study on the relationship between excess body fat and risk for weight-related health problems such as diabetes. The screening was a glucose tolerance test. I had to fast for twelve hours, then my blood levels were monitored before and after taking a glucose drink. In all the screening lasted four hours. They provided a box lunch and I took the bus back and went to work. I'm a blood donor and have had basic fasting tests. I hadn't realized the session would take four hours, but I took along plenty of things to read, including my textbook.

I wasn't feeling the brightest during or after the screening. It didn't help that things were disorganized at work and a message I'd left hadn't been received. A colleague who has a family history of diabetes told me that such tests often take a toll on the body and mind. Maybe I'm crazy to participate, but it seemed like an opportunity to learn my risks for diabetes and heart disease.

I also hadn't realized the extent to which the situation of the coming year's city budget is affecting morale. Last year colleagues who had ten years service were given layoff notices. I have some seniority and expect to keep my job, though may change. Whatever happens, many of my colleagues will get notices on Wednesday, there will be reorganization (I may get moved to another library), and certainly there will be salary reductions.

Too make things worse, I have plants to transplant into the garden, a messy house and possible guests coming this weekend. Keep on, Keep on going.

Group Counseling

Daisy, Ivan and Roberto did a super presentation on group counseling. The opening activity was a lot of fun; Our instructions were to make an outline of your hand on a piece of paper, cut it out and answer the following questions per finger. Favorite food, birthplace, favorite hobby, what you are in this program, something unique about yourself. Then we each got up and spoke about our choices and stuck the cutout on the blackboard. Roberto drew lines showing connections.
Group counseling was defined as "the creation, maintenance and termination of a therapeutic interaction between members for the purpose of psychological growth and integration"
The presentation covered the distinction between group counseling and family counseling and group counseling and individual counseling. Advantages and disadvantages of group counseling were discussed and the types of groups, group counseling process and stages were also covered, as well as common mistakes and effective group leader qualities.
Somewhere from the back of my memory came the "storming, norming, forming and ending" phases from a workshop or lecture I'd attended. I also thought about the dynamics of some of my book discussion groups -- A book discussion group is not exactly a therapeutic group. My work as leader of the book discussion group is mainly to keep the group on track, make sure that members have a chance to talk (or not to talk if they choose), and to keep one or two vocal members from monopolizing the conversation. The best discussion is when the leader lets the conversation flow, with little interference. I have a lot to learn.

Our closing group exercise was to practice -- I had the role of leader in a drug abuse group -- members couldn't stop laughing. It wasn't easy to keep a straight face!

Sara Grace Vann -- Guest speaker

Sara Grace Vann, a counselor at Woodside High School was the guest speaker in EDCO 215 this week. She's had experience as a counselor in elementary, middle and high schools. In her high school there are several school counselors (I didn't write down the number), every student has a guidance counselor (Sarah has a load of over 300). Her work as a counselor involves meeting with students and parents, working with teachers, working with special education students, ensuring that students meet graduation requirements, writing college references, arranging for mandatory tutorials for students receiving Fs. She also refers to students to appropriate agencies for counseling. She enjoys her work, but wishes that she had more training in special education and school budgets and grant writing. She recommends people wanting to do school counseling get experience in reading transcripts, classroom management and scheduling.
I asked her what a typical day was like. She said there wasn't a typical day, but went on to describe her counseling activities at the beginning, middle and end of the school year (getting to know the incoming freshmen, writing college references for senior students)She works with a group of counselors and interns and doesn't do yard duty!
Sara Grace stayed and participated in the Group Counseling presentation and seemed to enjoy it.
I'm finishing this a week later and wishing that I'd organized my notes better.

Danger to self: on the front line with an ER Psychiatrist/Paul R. Linde

I heard Paul Linde interviewed on Michale Krasny's Forum earlier this year. He's Clinical Professor of Psychiatry in the School of Medicine, UCSF and a good writer in the genre of medical writing.
It begins with:
"I love my job when I'm not there. I'm a doctor in the psych emergency room at SFGH. One reason I work there is that when I'm not there, I'm not there. I have a decent shot at separating out my job's trauma and drama from the rest of my life. But in my workplace there's nowhere to hide." pxiii

He describes this work as "part-memoir, part primer and part commentary" pxx, though his interest is in documenting his experiences and those of his patients.

I don't expect to ever work in a psych ER, but Linde's work chronicles his education and learning experiences in psychiatry and psychotherapy.

The chapter entitled "The Psychodynamo: Learning to listen with a professional ear" has applications for counseling. His mentor helps him generate the following list of queries and questions for a therapy evaluation:

Describe someone important in your life
Describe one of the happiest, or best, moments of your life.
Describe one of the saddest, or worst, moments of your life.
Any recurrent dreams? What do you make of them?
How would you like to be? What would it feel like to be that way? What would be good about it? What would be bad about it?
p62-23

A the end of the chapter he lists in brief Ten Pearls of psychotherapy (in no particular order)

Be present
Create a safe environment
Help the patient discover his or her own tools of self-examination
Provide an emotional container
It's not logical. It's psychological.
Reveal things about your self only if doing so will help the patient. Don't do it to meet your own needs.
Follow the affect.
Take the middle path--don't be overly gratifying and solicitous, or overly detached and aloof.
It's okay to make errors of the head, but not errors of the heart.
Go where the patient leads you.
p.87

The epilogue also has an section to ponder.

"While I cannot fail to recognize and address painful emotions in my patients and my self, it is also my task to seek energetic joy and humor in the moment, to experience the buzz of empathy. This is the reward found in the work.
...Empathy causes a rush. It's addictive. Recent advances in the neurosciences confirm that the experience of deep empathy, with its associated glow of euphoria, shares some final common neurobiological pleasure pathways with narcotics, alcohol and cigarettes. In other words, empathy is addictive and pleasurable." p234

That sounds like it's possible to be an empathy junkie, though Linde goes on to talk about being present in the moment

The final two paragraphs:
"I discovered this: My heart, and not my words, provides the first and strongest line of defense when protecting myself in my work as a psychiatrist. In a seemingly paradoxical way, my best self-protection derives from actually opening my heart and laying its contents bare.
I experienced a measure of serenity and acceptance when I finally felt free enough to admit to myself that, while my head works pretty well, my real strength as a physician comes from the heart. " p237

Child and Adolescent Counseling

I felt we barely skimmed the surface -- there's a lot to learn here, and in this introductory class we can't learn everything. Fortunately we're not expected (yet) to submit answers to questions comparing theories or elaborate on treatment for problems such as suicide and childhood depression. Everything comes and goes too quickly and all I can say now is that I'm aware of complexity, some theories, some treatments.

Strategies with underachieving students --Guest Speaker

Charles Bowman's (this week's guest speaker) style was confrontational, belligerent and definitely off-putting, but I can see how this style might be effective in his work as a counselor for underachieving boys. Bowman made the distinction between learners and students, pointing out that learners rarely come for counseling; it's mostly (male) detached and underachieving students who are sent to counseling. Bowman's general advice to the beginning counselor is to do less, listen more. His question for the resistant student is "How much does it suck to come here?" He also had a question for the counselor to ask himself/herself: " Do I have a client?.. Does the client want to change?, pointing out that sometimes it has to get worse to get better, i.e. the client has to hit rock bottom before he/she is ready to to pull himself/herself out. Focus attention on people who want to change, check in on those who don't. Is the problem "in the room?" (What is the real problem and does the client acknowledge it.) One way to get the problem "in the room' is to involve relatives, friends, peers.
Bowman listed 5 most common errors that beginning counselors make:
5)Counselor believes student's side of the story (Counselor becomes "true believer").
4)Counselor gets emotionally invested in student's problems (personalization)
3)Counselor invests more energy in student's problems that student does, leading to dependence (Bowman's theorem: Make sure student invests more energy in their own problems.
2)Codependency (Bowman call's this the Woman's Curse since females are socialized to be helpers , to define themselves through others).
1)Counselor becomes student savior -- remember the counselor's job is not to solve problems, but to give the student skills to solve problems).
Charles Bowman went on to talk more about gender socialization and learning styles, Childhood development and adolescent relational patterns and fostering the change process. He had some good points to ponder.

Five Love Languages

Dr Beach mentioned Gary Chapman's book Five Love Languages. Library Journal sent me Love as a Way of Life to review several years ago, and I went on to read the Five Languages of Love. Chapman gives I remember taking the quiz, but couldn't find the results.
I logged on to www.5lovelanguages.com, took the assessment and got Dr, Djonz to take it too.

LaSeal
Love Language Scores:
9 Words of Affirmation
6 Quality Time
1 Receiving Gifts
4 Acts of Service
10 Physical Touch

Dr Djonz
8 Words of Affirmation
9 Quality Time
2 Receiving Gifts
7 Acts of Service
4 Physical Touch

I have touch as the highest score; Dr. Djonz has Quality time. We both have Words of Affirmation as our second, both lowest on receiving gifts, He values acts of service more than I do. We should be ok as long as we talk to each other, but I must remember that he needs my undivided attention -- difficult for me because I multitask at home.

Marriage and family counseling

Marriage and family counseling seems out of place in this Introduction to (Educational) Counseling and Guidance class, but this is an introduction -- and couples and relationships are part of counseling and guidance.
My experience has been with counseling individuals, so group counseling is a new learning experience.
My own experience of couples counseling didn't seem helpful at the time. Looking back, I had unrealistic expectations, Dr. Djonz was reluctant, and after a few years off and on, the counselor told us to work things out ourselves -- which we have.
Recently I've been rereading "The Silicon Syndromw: How to Survive a High Tech Relationship" by Jean Hollands (1983, which a friend gave me a few years after we married. A long time ago, but some things haven't changed.

Research Paper Proposal returned

My research paper proposal was returned on Monday. I got 46/50, not bad, actually, very good. So what was the fuss about? My inner voice says it wasn't a real research project, but a proposal, an exercise in writing. Okay, I got through it, I finished it, I'm doing university graduate work. This was an project that I didn't have to get everything right. If this was to continue as my research in this course (which it may), I'd be taking two more classes with Dr. Beach and I expect that we would be examining everything in fine detail.
When I studied at Sydney University we didn't get rubrics with details on how papers and work are graded. According to the rubric that Dr. Beach provided, I got maximum points (excellent) for abstract, problem/purpose statement, intervention and research design, discussion and project evaluation, APA general(fewer than 10 errors), In-text citations, references, transitions, "I" use, 15-20 pages.
I got competent for literature review and below standard for use of theory (I'll need to discuss that last one with Dr. Beach -- she asked if she missed it and I think she did -- unless she doesn't accept the intergroup contact theory as a theoretical framework for this purpose.)

Communication Style Assessment

I've been reading Shawn Kent Hayashi's book Conversations for Change. In her book she gives a link to her website and encourages readers to take her Talent Mastery Assessment (gives the password in her book.) I took it and found some interesting insights. For example, my ideal work environment features:

• Little conflict between people.
• A stable and predictable environment.
• Needs an opportunity to deal with people with whom a long-standing relationship has been established.

• Projects that produce tangible results.
• An environment that allows time to change.
• Environment where she can be a part of the team, but removed
• from office politics.
• Private office or work area.
• Data to analyze.
• Limited contact with people.
  

And I'm thinking of becoming a counselor!
This also shows why my volunteer (drop in and telephone) counseling work has been both challenging and rewarding.

Admittedly this page of the assessment is prefaced by;
"This section identifies the ideal work environment based on Lucille's basic style. People with limited flexibility will find themselves uncomfortable working in any job not described in this section. People with flexibility use intelligence to modify their behavior and can be comfortable in many environments. Use this section to identify specific duties and responsibilities that Lucille enjoys and also those that create frustration."

Also (from the General Characteristics section)
"Lucille usually is considerate, compassionate and accepting of others; however, on some occasions can become stubborn ... She is somewhat reserved with those she doesn't trust or know. After trust has been established, she may be open and candid. She tends to be possessive of information; that is, she doesn't voluntarily share information with others outside of her team ... Communication is accomplished best by well-defined avenues. Lucille can be outgoing at times. Basically introverted, she will "engage" in social conversation when the occasion warrants. "

Maybe there's hope!

Books and websites

Over the years I've enjoyed the Writers and Readers ".. for Beginners" documentary comic books. They're sometimes hard to locate, since there have been publisher changes, reissues and other trans-Atlantic, not to mention sometimes language translation issues. These past few weeks I've dipped into Adler for Beginners and Gestalt for Beginners to supplement reading from my counseling textbook.

From my own bookshelves I've taken Charles Hampden- Turner's "Maps of the Mind: Charts and concepts of the mind and its labyrinths. I don't completely understand all the diagrams and summaries, but it's a good reference, even if needs updating.

Good review website: Prentice Hall Companion Website: Counseling and Psychotherapy: Theories and Inventions. This website supplements the textbook by Capuzzi and Gross -- lists of key concepts, key people and short online quizzes.
http://wps.prenhall.com/chet_capuzzi_counseling_3/

The Social Work Podcasts have good summaries of counseling theories
http://www.socialworkpodcast.com/socialworkpodcast.xml

Two books I'm reading from my list of books to read:
Once was lost by Sara Zarr
Composing a Further Life by Catherine Bateson

The more things change...

"The more things change, the more they remain the same." Albert Ellis' REBT seems very much like reframing. Cognitive therapy takes lot from client-centered therapy. The way that the class and Nystul's textbook is structured shows how different modes draw on what came before.

Three Approaches to Psychotherapy

I watched the Gloria ‘Three Approaches to Psychotherapy’, films for the first time and wonder how I would have reacted if I'd seen the films when I was studying psychology at Sydney University. The films demonstrate the different approaches of client-centered, gestalt and rational-emotive therapies as practiced by their 'originators -- Carl Rogers, Fritz Perls and Albert Ellis. I was certainly aware of these approaches. I wrote a paper on Prescott Lecky's theory of self-consistency and how it related to Carl Rogers' self theory,. Gestalt therapy was in vogue, though I thought it rather scary, and Albert Ellis' RET seemed a good way to justify any behavior; after all Ellis wrote Sex without guilt. The obvious question is "Was Gloria influenced by the therapy that went before?" Certainly, all three therapists stepped in and demonstrated their mode of therapy from the start. Different issues were brought up, but Gloria's divorce, dating issues and relationship with her daughter came through. I wonder about the order of the interviews. Would Gloria have continued if Perls or Ellis had been first?

Can you learn to be empathetic?

Can you learn to be empathetic or is empathy a quality that you either have or don't have? Empathy isn't a word that most people use every day; it was a new word for me, as I remember, when I trained for telephone counseling. My opinion is that empathy can be learned, but not taught. Indeed, trying to teach empathy can be counterproductive. Perhaps an environment can be set up where empathy is likely to be fostered (lots of group activities, discussion ), but nobody is going to become empathetic if it's something that is forced on them at the wrong time. Empathy is something that is realized by asking yourself "how is this person like me?" or "how is this person's situation similar to a situation I've experienced?" and not jumping to conclusions.
But this sounds a little like the Stanislavski acting method. Interesting thought: Are actors trained in the Stanislavski method more empathetic?

Thus far along the path

I'll turn my paper in on Monday. At the moment it's mostly finished and laid out according to APA 6. I'm at home and Dr. Djonz is now reading my paper --which may be a mistake. There's always going to be room for improvement."It's not a research paper " the voice within me says. Okay, let's call it a baseline for further improvement. This week during a slow time at the reference desk I spoke with Frank who's studying online with Walden University working on a PhD. It's his second year and he's just spent a week working on a paper on qualitative methods. He agreed that thinking about the project of a PhD is overwhelming, but manageable when taken as a series of small steps. He felt he was struggling at first, but he can see now how far he's progressed. Sometimes taking the big picture can be daunting, so take it step by step (puzzle piece by puzzle piece?

Does personality change? Me and the Myers -Briggs

A few months ago Essie my supervisor had everyone in the department take a short online Myers-Briggs inventory and report the results back to her. Like a number of others in the department, I turned out to be an ISFJ (Introvert Sensing Feeling Judging). Essie remarked that everyone in the department was an introvert (except Able who, like Essie is an extrovert). It surprised me that I shared the same type ISFJ with two of my colleagues whom I think of as different types from myself. I've taken the Myers-Briggs a number of times and I usually end up INFJ (substitute Sensing for Intuitive) , though sometimes I've been an INTJ (substitute Thinking for Feeling) -- even once an INFP! (Substitute Perceiving for Judging). So what made the change from INFJ to ISFJ? , or rather from intuitive to sensing? Does this reflect the shift in library priorities from intuitive reference work to sensing programming ?
Years ago when I first took the Myers Briggs it was explained to me that, in a relationship over time, you develop qualities that compensate for your partners' deficits -- or qualities that make it easier to work with the person. Maybe that's right. Essie says she's taken the test at home and she's come out a different type from work. Another explanation for my variance is that I may have fairly even scores, which, for one reason or another tip one way depending on time and circumstance.
Is personality fixed and determined in childhood, or does one change? I believe to the extent of introversion-extroversion one stays the same throughout life, but it can vary in degree. Environment and life situation affect the other axes over time.There are things that one can do to change some aspects of personality, like become more comfortable with groups of people or learn to be more analytical, which could help also.
I expect that next time I take the Myers--Briggs I'll again turn out INFJ -- but won't be surprised if I vary one way or the other around the F/T or T/J axes. I seriously doubt that I'll end up as an extrovert!

Ups and downs

I'm on a cycle that I need to break. When I'm at class on Monday, I feel that's where I should be and find the topics interesting, though basic (which is what an introductory class should be). This high continues for a few days. Towards the end of the week I feel that things are not working out -- especially with the research project, that I should be working at a higher level, that I won't make it -- of course I try to work harder, but inevitably harder is not smarter. To give myself credit, I've been able to accomplish things slowly, though not at the rate and level I expected. I now have a draft of a paper and in the next few days I'll be working on the introduction, discussion and abstract.
What's going on? I've asked myself this question again and again. Is there some childhood event that has kept me stuck at this stage? I don't feel this way about crochet -- but then crochet has never been the way I might earn my living or help people (other than providing nice gifts.)
Associated with this is a wish for recognition -- in times like this that I need to know that I have friends even if only "in the cloud" (online) -- and so I ask for prayer, and wonder if this shows that my faith is small..
Who or what am I serving by continuing this behavior? Let me be open to finding out. Trudi, one of my friends said that this might be a gift to myself.

Research proposal: Starting over?

What was I doing? Last week I spent almost 18 hours reading and summarizing research relating to my assignment, or so I thought. Now, after re-reading the sample paper, I realize that taking notes online, paraphrasing sections and stringing them together do not a research paper make. I have a deficit in this area -- well I knew it wasn't going to be easy, but somehow I thought I was (bouyed by prayer and good wishes) going to work through this dispassionately and get a sensible paper out. Now I realize that this paper won't get many marks, but I need to persevere nonetheless if I'm going to get any credit for this. Two weeks and I need to submit the paper in APA 6 format. Yes, it's a learning exercise but I'm a slow learner and I don't like admitting it.Panic again. Okay, step by step, but I'm behind in writing a research paper. Yes, this is to be expected after not taking classes for almost threescore years.

Meanwhile I'm fascinated by these assumptions of Adlerian Therapy (Sadhu & Aspy 1997) p. 80

1. Counseling involves teaching clients better ways to meet the challenge of life tasks.
2. Past experiences influence people, but do not mold them.
3. Clients have the capacity to influence and create events.
4. The critical issue for clients is what they make of their endowments.
5. Clients create a unique lifestyle that helps them explain their patterns of behavior.

There's enough in the above to get me sidetracked.

Today's work?

I spent most of today reading articles and making notes. Though I may have a high level of cognition (a word I use after hours of reading psychology and sociology articles) , I feel I have a low literacy level of putting my thoughts on paper (on computer screen?) and writing them down coherently. I feel I should have been at this stage two or three weeks ago, rather than now. This may be expected -- it's been many years since I was last at university. I'm learning there's a lot more to learn, that I have far to go, not that I didn't know that. But this is where I am now.

Reading Steele's book Whistling Vivaldi I was most impressed with his experiments on stereotype threat and anxiety at Stanford. Reframing a potential stressful interracial interaction as a learning situation lessened stereotype threat. Or, participants became less anxious when an exercise on race relations was presented as an opportunity for learning rather than as a examination. So see this assignment as a learning exercise. Whether or not I pass or decide to go on to further study I will have learned skills that I can apply to my volunteer counseling and library work as well as to living generally.

During a break from assignment preparation, I read the chapter in Nystul's book on Classical Theories. I've read works and articles about Freud and Jung, but wasn't familiar with Adler. ; from Nystul's description Adler's work has influenced a number of counseling theories -- STEP, strengths, positive psychology to name a few. I'm interested in reading more about his theories. Note to myself : After the paper is finished, look for an introductory book on Adlerian psychology.

Counseling as an art and science:notes on the class so far

Counseling as an art and a science is the textbook's theme; each chapter begins with a short discussion of how this applies to the chapter's subject and Dr. Beach reviews this at the beginning of each class. I haven't paid this subject much attention, but I now realize that it's important to think not either or, but both and.
Last night's chapter review led to a realization that Nystul is building his ideas consistently, introducing new ideas necessary for the understanding of the next chapter in the previous chapter. I've purposely tried not to skip ahead in the book, except for looking for references to topics that might be helpful for my research paper.
I'm still anxious about this project, though I'm taking things little by little -- last night I discussed my topic and thoughts so far with Dr. Beach and the class and felt that so far I was on the right track -- though I might be a bit behind and there's still a ways to go. The challenge now is to make good use of my time. I have a problem statement and a purpose statement, I've found references, I've drafted an intervention. My next steps are to craft a literature review from points in articles that look promising. I've crafted over 100 short book reviews for Library Journal, so I'll try approaching each section as a short review writing exercise . I remember how nervous and anxious I was during training for telephone counseling many years ago, and how worried I was in advance of leading book reviews the first few times. If I could manage the anxiety then, I should be able to get to a point eventually where writing papers won't be as stressful. There's always room for improvement. This is a learning exercise. Ahead are days of writing. Go to it!

On Listening

To listen is to continually give up all expectation and to give our attention, completely and freshly, to what is before us, not really knowing what we will hear or what that will mean.

~ Mark Nepo

Practice
If I am filled with expectation or dread, if I am "listening for" something, if I anticipate or presume to know what someone is going to say, I am not really listening.Today I empty myself sufficiently to be able to truly listen.

Forwarded from the Seasons for Nonviolence email http://www.seasonsfornonviolence.com/

Very apt, I couldn't have said this better.

What can hinder me from being an effective counselor?: Journal entry

I believe an effective counselor is a good listener. My experience, so far, has been with listening and brief counseling sessions. Here are some hindrances I've found:.

• Fear of saying or doing the wrong thing. Associated with this is the need to feel that I'm doing things right. Counseling is an art and a science. Guidelines and procedures are important tools, that every counseling situation is individual and unique.

• The need to be needed and accomplish something worthwhile in the counseling session. I call this the “big people helper desire”. This usually indicates that I'm focused on myself and my own needs and not the client's.

• Breaking into the conversation when I think I have some insight that needs to be shared. I may think I know what the client's problem is, but if that thought comes, I recognizet I'm not focusing on the client. If I think I have the solution to the issue and I'm the only one who can provide this, then I'm enmeshed and have forgotten I'm only one part in the process and solution.

• Wanting to get more information on the client's issue, to see all aspects. I've thought of this as having only a piece of the puzzle and wanting to get the whole picture. This desire can get in the way of listening fully to the client and being sensitive to his or her needs. It's okay to ask questions for qualification, but if I'm asking a lot of questions in a counseling session, I'm on the wrong track.

In the end, these concerns come down to “it's not about me” -- it's the client.

Personal Qualities of Effective Helper

Personal Qualities of Effective Helpers

Nystul' s Helping Formula:

Personality of helper + Helping skills = Growth facilitating conditions > Specific outcomes

Nystul's 14 characteristics and how I see myself (p.10-12)

1.Encouraging. Nystul sees this as perhaps the most important quality of an effective counselor. Necessary to help clients learn to believe in their potential for growth and development. I like to think I'm an encouraging person
2.Artistic – able to creatively adjust techniques to needs of clients. “Just as true artists give something of themselves to each thing they create, counselors must give of themselves to the counseling process.” Counseling as an art and a science is Nystul's approach. Giving of self is something I haven't considered, though I recognize that the counselor contributes to the counseling process. At first it seems to be a contradiction to “It's all about the client, not about the counselor.”
3.Emotionally stable – “An inconsistent counselor will not only waste valuable time but create confusion and insecurity withing the client.” Is anyone ever emotionally stable? With maturity comes stability, but I feel stability isn't ever fully achieved. There's a warning about emotionally insecure counselors attempting to meet their needs at the expense of their clients – an important caveat, but I also have to acknowledge a need as well as a desire to help others.
4.Empathetic and caring: “Effective counselors care about people and have the desire to help those in need. They are sensitive to the emotional states of others and can communicate an understanding of their struggles with life. Clients experience a sense of support and kindness...This can help the client have the courage to face life realistically and explore new directions and possibilities. “ I can't say this any better – I see this as the most important quality in counseling.
5.Self-aware: " aware of one's own limitations .. can also help counselors monitor their needs so they can gratify those needs in a way that does not interfere in the counseling process.. requires an ongoing effort." Again this comes with maturity, but is something that is never fully realized. Self awareness is related to:
6.Self-acceptance: comfortable with themselves. I enjoy being Lucille Boone, though it's taken awhile to acknowledge this.
7. Positive self-esteem: can help counselors cope with and maintain stability. I have learned the hard way to be gentle with myself.
8.Self-realization-- “a journey into personal growth and discovery-- model for clients that one must stretch to grow. Counselors welcome life experiences and learn from them.” It's taken me a long time to see myself in that statement.
9.Self-disclosure: “counselors are constructively open with their thoughts and feelings – model openness and encourage clients to be open. “ Something I need to learn to do effectively. I usually err on the side of less is better.
10.Courageous: counselors should try to model the courage to be imperfect. Admitting that we don't have the answers and that counseling is a two way process is a beginning
11.Patient: Very important to focus on direction, not immediate results, though this could be difficult with brief therapy.
12.Nonjudgmental: Must be careful not to impose beliefs – communicate respect for clients. Some judgment is inevitable, but “judge that ye be not judged”
13.Tolerance for ambiguity: important – goes with being nonjudgmental.
14.Spirituality: I see counseling as a spiritual process – something that I do not do by myself as much as facilitate and channel from a higher power.

Research project proposal: Problem and purpose statements

This evening Dr. Beach and I met to discuss the problem and purpose statements of my research project proposal. This research project is worth 50% of my grading for the class, and my mind has gone in circles. In a previous class, she encouraged us to choose something that we were passionate about, or caught our interest. I thought about the Human Library, a program that uses the library model for cross-cultural communication. Dr. Beach was encouraging -- keep it simple. In the last week I've found review articles on prejudice and stereotype reduction, made a RefWorks citation file and downloaded a number of articles on my Nook. I've been feeling overwhelmed. I'm used to writing short reports and book reviews. Her suggestions was to see this project as a series of short items.
She mentioned that the majority of students who do this course full time, do it in two years and that this reasearch proposal is expanded as a final research project. She confirmed that the focus of EDCO 215 is practical and hands-on.
So here are my statements: I expect they will be worked over and expanded.

Problem statement: There are few places where people can intentionally meet one on one to dialogue with a person of another ethnic group, nationality, belief, race or sexual orientation.

Purpose statement:The purpose of this study is to investigate the "Human Library" as a way for individuals to explore differences between and similarities among people of different cultures, nationalities, races, sexual orientations or beliefs.

Second class: Introduction to Counseling

At this evening's EDCO 215 class, Dr. Beach very briefly categorized 6 schools of psychology: Analytical, Behavioristic, Cognitive, Humanistic, Gestalt and Multicultural therapy (MCT). I had expected a more lengthly introduction, though we'll be going over some of these at a later date. I'm surprised that MCT was considered a school -- from my reading it seems an eclectic approach. I want to read more --on Thursday this week I briefly explored narrative psychology, learned the difference between social constructionism and social constructivism and found that empirically supported research is about the same as evidence-based research.
Tonight as exercises we listed characteristics of a counselor, discussed Nystul's counseling as an art and science, had our first role play (reflective listening) and an outline of historical trends in psychology that Dr. Beach felt was important. I was paired up with Daisy who already works as a counselor in Watsonville -- this experience wasn't new for both of us, but it was the first for some in the class. I shared with Daisy about my concerns going back to school after these many years, and she was a good supportive listener.
Some pearls from Dr. Beach:
On an average counseling does work 79% (should have asked her source). Remember, it's not about me, (focus on the client) Ask a question then repeat 1 hippopotamus, 2 hippopotamus, 3 hippopotamus (wait for the counselee to respond. )

What is an intervention? Answer ?

According to Nystul 5th ed. p390, the Amercian School Counseling Association in its revised statement (1990) identifies 5 basic interventions common to all school counselors. These are: individual counseling; small-group counseling (5-8) large group guidance (9+); consultation and program coordination.
The 2009 statement doesn't list these interventions, but refers to delivery of responsive services which include :
individual or group counseling
consultation with parents, teachers and other educators
referrals to other school support services or community resources
peer helping
psycho-education
intervention and advocacy at the systemic level

Research project: What will I do?

I've just read the two examples that Dr. Beach provided -- one topic anger management, the other nutrition and now I feel anxious. The report writing style is off puting . I've spent much time trying to write simply and researchese, while, not unfamiliar, just seems verbose. To put the project in simple terms: Describe a problem and then work out a way to test a solution. My mind goes in all directions. I can identify with the adult student years ago who came up to the library reference desk and insisted I choose a topic for her. What am I passionate about? I've spent energy trying to damp down passion and live in the moment. How can I relate this project to what I know? Bibliotherapy? Relaxation? Breathing? Listening? Stress reduction techniques? -- these could be methods of intervention (solution); now I'm thinking backwards. And what do I really know of classrooms, education programs, ? I've seen my life as exceptional, in the way that my experiences differ from the average and now I'm wondering what I can give. Methods of Assessment? Statistics -- ugh?

First class: Introduction to Counseling and Guidance

I feel hopeful. Quite a few other classmates are also Open University students. Dr. Beach also teaches the Thesis writing course for Counselor Education. She passed out the course outline (greensheet) and reviewed the projects and objectives. My impression is that this course is doable -- I'll need to put in a lot of work, but there will also be guidance --the class is listed as a seminar, not a lecture. .
The ice breaker this evening was based on the Smalley and Trent Personality Inventory. We were asked to describe ourselves according to characteristics of animal categories: Lion, Otter, Golden Labrador and Beaver. I put myself in the middle, but definitely crossing the Golden Lab/Beaver axis. I'm definitely not a Lion (leader) nor am I a Beaver. There were two columns of descriptive words for each of the four categories and I found that I seemed to choose traits in the right hand column of each category. Traits that I chose Adventurous, stong willed , independent, self-reliant, enjoys challenges (Lion traits), Likes variety, enjoys change, creative, new ideas, optimistic (Otter); Adaptable, Sympathetic, Thoughtful, Nurturing , Patient, Tolerant, Good listener (Golden Lab) and discerning, analytical, inquisitive (Beaver)

Research paper: What is an intervention?

The term intervention in the description of the Proposed Intervention Project made me anxious. I consulted two retired social workers. Both were familiar with a family intervention -- a meeting where family and friends are brought in to challenge an individual with a problem (e.g. alcohol or drug abuse) It's clear from reading the description that's not what is meant in the context of this research paper. I emailed the lecturer who sent me the same information from the syllabus.
Reading the description this evening before the class, I realized that the emphasis is on a focus of interest -- and this is a learning project, first of all.

Course Outline Concerns: EDCO 215

Looking over the course outline for EDCO 215, it seems like a class that I could learn a lot from, even if I don't take further classes. Introduction to Counseling; an Art and Science Perspective (Nystull 2010), Journal entries (which is what this blog is about) a genogram and a research paper. My classmates and I will be graded on class attendance and participation, a group presentation on a chapter from the textbook and a research paper or proposed intervention project.
The research paper counts for up to 50%.

Here's how the syllabus describes the project:


Proposed Intervention Project (Research Paper):
The primary purpose of this project will be for you to learn about research design, action research and program evaluation. You will create an intervention proposal using at least one theory of counseling. This type of project will be similar in structure to your final Thesis project, although it will be much less involved due to the obvious time limitations and scope of this class. Consider an area of interest within the field of counseling and/or education and develop the following: (put these sections in):

Abstract

A. Statement of the Problem: What is the problem, issue, or subject you wish to address?

B. Statement of Significance: Why is this issue important to address? What would be the
importance of your proposed intervention?

C. A Literature Review: This is a brief summary (3-6 pages) of the existing research on the subject you wish to address. In other words, summarize how previous research has attempted to address this problem. Be sure to use APA style in citing any/all research in your paper. (You may use sources from the Nystul text).

D. Research Design: What will be your research methodology – experimental design, qualitative or quantitative study. You will want to include demographic information regarding the population you’re interested in working with. You will need to describe the intervention in some detail and include information on how you would measure the effectiveness of your intervention (ex: pre-post testing).
E. Data Analysis: What kind of data you will need to collect for the purpose of your study. You will search online to gather information for program evaluation.

F. Intervention: Develop an intervention that will address the problem that you have identified (ex: a three day/three hour workshop for 8th graders on sexual harassment prevention/education).
You will need six to ten references on the topic. At least one should be from a research-based journal (ex: Journal of Counseling and Development). You are expected to use at least one Theory of counseling either in the Literature Review or to support your Intervention.
You will not have to formally present your Proposed Intervention Project to the class, although I may have you briefly discuss your topic in class (3-5 minutes).

G. Discussion Section: This is the conclusion of your paper where you will discuss the type of results that you might expect, potential problems with the intervention, and how your intervention would generalize in helping society at large. (you may use “I” here).

H. Project Evaluation: Most students design programs for their theses in our department. For this type of project you need to develop strategies to evaluate outcomes of your program.

Please use the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th edition) as your reference guide for completing this paper. All papers must be typed, double-spaced, and must follow APA style (including an abstract and the above mentioned sections) in order to receive full consideration. (15 pages required).

Back to Classes: almost 30 years later

Times are hard and last year my not so brilliant career went bung -- well, not quite. What I feared happened: my part-time hours at the library were reduced from 30 to 20 due to budget cuts in library services, despite my seniority. I'm still working at the library I love and doing interesting things like crocheting, volunteering at the Listening Post, growing vegetables like kohlrabi and jerusalem artichokes and loofahs (but didn't get into the SCC Master Gardeners program.) Since I've volunteered off and on for counseling projects (LifeLine, Contact, Stephen Ministry, Listening Post, the next step was to get more training. I have an overseas degrees in anthropology and linguistics and library science, but there's always been fear of issues of getting credentials accepted by the CSU system. To test the waters I've enrolled in EDCO 215: Introduction to Counseling and Guidance at SJSU's Open University program. From last semester's course description, it seems a good introduction and could count as credit if I eventually enroll in a Master's Program and go on to a new career in the helping professions.Yes, I'm anxious. I hope to always go on learning new things, but sometimes there limits as to what can be absorbed.