2 3 TPC Digest TPC Digest Read full article and references: Waalkes, P. L., DeCino, D. A., Jorgensen, M. F., & Somerville, T. (2022). Counselor educators’ experiences of dissertation-chairing relationship dynamics. The Professional Counselor, 12(2), 123–137. doi: 10.15241/plw.12.2.123 | TPC Digest According to the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), doctoral students must develop research skills and complete counseling-focused dissertation research. Research mentorship is often important to counselor education doctoral students’ development as researchers. One of the central research mentoring relationships in doctoral programs is the dissertation-chairing relationship. Supportive research mentoring relationships in counselor education are invaluable to students and are necessary to successful dissertation chairing. In fact, a meaningful connection between students and their dissertation chairperson predicts students’ successful completion of their dissertations and positive dissertation experiences. Yet, doctoral students can struggle with isolation, motivation, time management, self-regulation, and self-efficacy. Doctoral students in counselor education have reported negative experiences when their dissertation chairs were unenthusiastic, unsupportive, and unavailable, and when their guidance was not concrete. In contrast, doctoral students in counselor education value when faculty take time with them, express genuine caring, offer guidance, communicate clearly and authentically, validate and believe in them, and celebrate their efforts and achievements. In fact, beginning counselor educators have reported faculty mentoring, care, and support were the most valuable components of their doctoral training. Therefore, in this study, we interviewed 15 counselor educators to help promote intentional and supportive dissertationchairing relationships by examining counselor educators’ experiences of relationship dynamics with doctoral students. Counselor educators experienced relationships characterized by expansive connections, growth in student autonomy, authenticity, safety and trust, and adaptation to student needs. Expansive connections mean that chairing relationships defy compartmentalized definitions and can have wide-ranging and mutually beneficial impacts that extend beyond the dissertation project. Growth in student autonomy refers to the importance of using the dissertation relationship to help students take initiative and learn to conduct research on their own. Authenticity includes how counselor educators value genuine conversations with students, in which there is a mutuality in sharing vulnerable parts of themselves. In terms of safety and trust, counselor educators believed mutual trust deepened their connections and helped students feel like their chairperson would help them grow without leaving them floundering. In adaptation to student needs, counselor educators believed in assessing their students’ personalities and tailoring their approaches to meet unique student needs with a mix of support and challenge. Our findings provide counselor educators with examples of how empathy and encouragement may help doctoral students overcome insecurities and how authentic and honest conversations may help doctoral students overcome roadblocks. Doctoral students can apply these findings by identifying their needs in a chairing relationship and learning more about faculty members who might help meet their needs when choosing a chair. Counselor educators can initiate authentic conversations that help set expectations and broach culture, possibly rooted in relational–cultural theory. Counselor education programs can apply these findings by building structures to help facilitate safe and trusting relationships between doctoral students and counselor educators, including methods that counselor educators and students can utilize to build relationships before engaging in dissertation chairing. Phillip L. Waalkes, PhD, NCC, ACS, is an assistant professor at the University of Missouri – St. Louis. Daniel A. DeCino, PhD, NCC, LPC, is an assistant professor at the University of South Dakota. Maribeth F. Jorgensen, PhD, NCC, LPC, LMHC, LIMHP, is an assistant professor at Central Washington University. Tiffany Somerville, MS, is a doctoral student at the University of Missouri – Saint Louis. Correspondence may be addressed to Phillip L. Waalkes, 415 Marillac Hall, 1 University Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63121, waalkesp@umsl.edu. Phillip L. Waalkes, Daniel A. DeCino, Maribeth F. Jorgensen, Tiffany Somerville Counselor Educators’ Experiences of Dissertation-Chairing Relationship Dynamics | TPC Digest
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