Volume_5_Issue_1_Digest

19 TPC Digest Read full article and references: Mullen, P. R., Uwamahoro, O., Blount, A. J., & Lambie, G. W. (2015). Development of counseling students’ self-efficacy during preparation and training. The Professional Counselor , 5 , 175–184. doi:10.15241/prm.5.1.175 Patrick R. Mullen, Olivia Uwamahoro, Ashley J. Blount, Glenn W. Lambie Development of Counseling Students’ Self-Efficacy During Preparation and Training The primary goal of counselor preparation programs is to educate and train students to become competent counselors by equipping them with necessary skills, knowledge and experiences. The practice of counselor training is a complex, intentional process of reflective educational and experiential activities to promote the development of knowledge and skills. Furthermore, students training to be counselors change and gain self-awareness throughout their educational experience. Self-efficacy represents an individual’s beliefs or judgments about his or her ability to accomplish a given goal or task. Furthermore, self-efficacy is a recognized measure of development in the counseling field, has a positive influence on work-related performance, and consequently works as an outcome and developmental consideration for counselor training. In addition, there is an assortment of published research examining counseling trainees’ self-efficacy; however, limited research has examined counseling trainees’ development of self-efficacy in a longitudinal fashion based upon their experiences from start (e.g., educational courses) to finish (e.g., initial clinical experiences) in counselor preparation programs. The purpose of this longitudinal investigation was to examine the effects of a counselor preparation program on students’ development of counseling self-efficacy. In addition, this study examined the relationship between counseling students’ demographic characteristics and their reported self-efficacy at three times throughout their program. The student participants were 179 master’s-level counseling trainees in a single CACREP program in the Southeastern United States. The Counselor Self-Efficacy Scale was administered to the students at the following three points in their program: new student orientation, clinical practicum orientation and final internship group supervision meeting. Findings indicated that students’ experience in their preparation program resulted in higher levels of self-efficacy. In addition, the findings indicated that students’ self-efficacy had the largest increase between the start of the counseling program and their initial clinical experiences, rather than between their initial clinical experiences and the conclusion of the program. The results from this study demonstrate that master’s- level counseling trainees’ self-efficacy increases as a result of their experiences in their preparation program, providing further evidence for Bandura’s 1986 theory of self-efficacy. The results from this study build on existing literature by indicating that coursework has a significant impact on trainees’ self-efficacy prior to their initial clinical experiences. This investigation also identified a new finding—counseling students enter their initial clinical experiences with a high level of self-efficacy. This article discusses the implications of these findings for the field of counselor education and clinical supervision. Patrick R. Mullen, NCC, is an Assistant Professor at East Carolina University. Olivia Uwamahoro, NCC, is a doctoral candidate at the University of Central Florida. Ashley J. Blount, NCC, is a doctoral candidate at the University of Central Florida. Glenn W. Lambie, NCC, CCMHC, NCSC, is a Professor at the University of Central Florida. Correspondence can be addressed to: Patrick R. Mullen, 225A Ragsdale Bldg., Mail Stop 121, Greenville, NC 27858, mullenp14@ecu.edu .