The Impact of Transformational Learning Experiences on Personal and Professional Counselor-in-Training Identity Development

Feb 9, 2015 | Article, Volume 5 - Issue 1

Michelle Kelley Shuler, Elizabeth A. Keller-Dupree

Transformational learning experiences for counselor training can be described as experiential activities that facilitate the ability to express feelings and meanings related to life issues. The authors investigated the impact of a 2-day seminar using transformational learning experiences on the personal and professional identity development of counselors-in-training. Quantitative results indicate that participants’ self-reported professional performance scores were not significantly different following the training. However, in the qualitative inquiry, participants noted that through the transformational learning experiences, they became aware of past and present challenges, the need for change, the impact of processing within a group, and the application of transformational activities in clinical practices. Such findings indicate how transformational learning experiences—particularly through the use of reflective journaling—might influence personal identity development among counselors-in-training. 

Keywords: personal identity development, professional identity development, transformational learning, counselor-in-training

The promotion of professionalism is a significant component of counselor training and is recognized by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) as a core curriculum requirement for graduate counseling programs (CACREP, 2009). Professionalism includes knowledge and understanding of professional organizations, legal and ethical standards, the role of counselors, professional competencies, and personal and professional growth. Development in this area includes both personal and professional growth and is often referred to as counselor development (Gazzola & Theriault, 2007; Rabinor, 2004; Skovholt & Rønnestad, 1996; Thompson, 2004) or counselor professional identity (Auxier, Hughes, & Kline, 2003; Cashwell, Kleist, & Scofield, 2009; Nugent & Jones, 2009; O’Bryne & Rosenberg, 1998; Reisetter et al., 2004).

Independently, professional development encompasses the acquisition of skills and knowledge, and is “concerned with the doing needs” (Donati & Watts, 2005, p. 476), and personal development includes the “being needs” (p. 476), like authenticity, interpersonal engagement, intimacy and self-evaluation. As dependent concepts, one can imagine the significance each has for counselor identity. A counselor lacking skills and knowledge will function quite differently than a skilled practitioner with years of experience and knowledge. Concurrently, counselors must attend to their own form of personal development (Skovholt & Rønnestad, 1996). Wilkins (1997) went so far as to suggest that personal development embraces everything else that facilitates being a practicing counselor. For example, personal development might include ways in which the counselor maintains a balanced lifestyle, or ways the counselor manages the stress brought on by difficult clients. A counselor lacking in personal well-being might not be considered fit to practice.

Many counselors view counselor identity development as a process (Auxier et al., 2003; Brott & Myers, 1999) that results in congruency between personal and professional worldviews (Reisetter et al., 2004), or consider it an equal combination of professional (e.g., roles, decisions, ethics) and personal selves (e.g., values, morals, perceptions; Auxier et al., 2003). This view suggests that personal and professional development are not mutually exclusive and are just as much interrelated as dependent concepts.

Research on counselor professional identity development has examined areas such as personal or professional fit (Woodside, Oberman, Cole, & Carruth, 2007), critical incidents experienced by counselors-in-training (CITs; Howard, Inman, & Altman, 2006), career concerns of CITs (Busacca & Wester, 2006), evaluation of personal and professional development (Donati & Watt, 2005; Hensley, Smith, & Thompson, 2003; Lamadue & Duffey, 1999), and ways for counselor educators to address problematic behavior of trainees (Bhat, 2005; Gaubatz & Vera, 2002; McAdams & Foster, 2007; McAdams, Foster, & Ward, 2007). Furthermore, recent research has provided counselor educators with a model for professional identity development, specifying transformational tasks such as “finding a personal definition of counseling, internalizing responsibility for professional growth, and developing a systemic identity necessary for professional identity development” (Gibson, Dollarhide, & Moss, 2010, p. 21).

According to the transformational tasks theory proposed by Gibson et al. (2010), change happens in relation to a “transformational process across time and experience” (p. 28). From these transformational experiences, CITs evolve from reliance on external authorities (i.e., supervisors and teachers) to provide learning experiences to a position of self-validation (i.e., integrated personal and professional identity), resulting in a more internalized view of counseling and the ability to personalize understanding of experiences. The concept of counselor development evolving across time in stages and encompassing a spectrum of elements also is reflected in Skovholt & Rønnestad’s (1996) research, which suggests that counselor development explains a complex interplay between the personal and professional realms over the career span.

The incorporation of transformational learning experiences in counselor training might significantly impact both personal and professional development of CITs. The importance of a more internalized view of counseling and the ability to self-reflect (Skovholt & Rønnestad, 1996) constitute significant distinctions between counselors who continue to develop versus counselors who face professional burnout and stagnation. Furthermore, lack of reflection also has been shown to have significant impact on selecting intervention strategies (McAuliffe, Eriksen, & Associates, 2002). However, few researchers have examined pedagogical methods used to enhance CITs’ level of professional development. As a result, there is a dearth of literature exploring strategies to incorporate student self-reflective experiences into counselor education in order to influence professional identity development. Counselor educators play a significant role (Griffin, 1993; Sheeley, 1986; VanZandt, 1990; Weiss, 1981) and are a key factor in counselor personal and professional development (Gibson et al., 2010; Oliver, Moore, Schoen, & Scarmon, 1989; Weiss, 1981) through the facilitation of tasks that will increase opportunities for CITs to self-evaluate, self-motivate and self-locate.

Transformational learning experiences for counselor training can be described as expressive techniques or experiential activities that facilitate CITs’ ability to express feelings and meanings related to life issues (O’Brien, 2008). Experiential activities in counselor training are applied to creative approaches in the classroom as well as in individual and group supervision (Newsome, Henderson, & Veach, 2005; Sommer & Cox, 2003; ter Maat & Bowman, 2001; Waliski, 2009; Wilkins, 1995). The inclusion of expressive arts in training assists CITs with reframing and deepening their understanding of experience (Bradley, Whiting, Hendricks, Parr, & Jones, 2008) and enhances the development of personal awareness skills (Newsome et al., 2005), functions that are both considered highly important to professional development in models of supervision (Bernard, 1997; Holloway, 1995; Loganbill, Hardy, & Delworth, 1982; Rønnestad & Skovholt, 2003; Stoltenberg, McNeill, & Delworth, 1998), as well as to personal development.

Such research led the present authors to ask how counselor training programs can best assist in professional and personal identity development using transformational tasks. One suggestion is to incorporate transformational learning experiences into counselor training course work. In the current study, the authors examined the effects of transformational learning exercises on counselor professional identity development, using the professional identity development model (Gibson et al., 2010). In addition, the authors examined how the integration of transformational learning experiences (Mezirow, 1997) impacted CITs’ self-reported skill development on the Professional Performance Review Policy Standards (PPRPS; McAdams, Foster, & Ward, 2007) assessment tool and how reflective journaling impacted CITs’ personal development.

Method

Participants

The current study involved 17 counseling graduate students (N = 17) at a Midwestern university, with eight students (47%) pursuing a specialty in clinical mental health counseling, 8 students (47%) pursuing addictions counseling and one student (6%) pursuing school counseling. One student was in the first year of graduate training (6%), 12 students (71%) were in their second year and 4 (24%) were in their third year. Four students (24%) identified as male and 13 students (76%) as female. Researchers collected demographic data only during the initial stage of data collection, or Time 1. At Times 2 and 3 of data collection, 21 students participated in the study; however, demographic data was obtained for only 17 student participants.

Instrumentation

The PPRPS (McAdams, Foster, & Ward, 2007) was used to evaluate participants’ self-reported perceptions of their dispositions and skills. The PPRPS is a 10-item survey with each item rated on a 5-point Likert scale. The 10 dispositions and skills measured on the PPRPS include the following: (a) openness to new ideas, (b) flexibility, (c) cooperativeness with others, (d) willingness to accept and use feedback, (e) awareness of own impact on others, (f) ability to deal with conflict, (g) ability to accept personal responsibility, (h) ability to express feelings effectively and appropriately, (i) attention to ethical and legal considerations, and (j) initiative and motivation. Currently, no psychometric information is available for the PPRPS survey.

Procedure

Graduate counseling students were invited to enroll in an elective 1-hour graduate seminar. Students were notified of this opportunity via a university flyer containing the following message: “Sign up now for this new seminar opportunity which seeks to infuse creative, transformational learning exercises for personal and professional counselor growth and development into a 2-day class.” As students signed up for the course, they were informed that the course would involve collecting pretest data and data from three subsequent posttests using the PPRPS survey, in which students would be asked to rate themselves on 10 counselor skills and dispositions. Students also received the opportunity to engage in a self-reflective journaling exercise that accompanied the experiential activities used throughout the seminar. Students were informed that completion of the PPRPS was mandatory for the purposes of the seminar, but that the data gleaned from the surveys and self-reflective journals would only be used for the purposes of this study with their informed consent.

The seminar consisted of a 2-day class in which various counselor development topics were taught and activities were facilitated. The activities were regarded as transformational learning opportunities or experiences, and students were told that the purpose of the seminar was to infuse the didactic content of counselor development with creative, hands-on learning opportunities. Following the facilitation of each activity, students were invited to reflect on their experiences through electronic journaling in the university computer lab. The following section outlines the structure of the seminar across both days for all participants:

1.  Discussion of professional development, including CACREP core curriculum requirements for graduate-level

counselor training;

2.  Discussion of developing the counselor professional identity across training and clinical experiences;

3.  Discussion of the role of counselor educators and supervisors;

4.  Discussion of professional fit, critical incidents in counselor training and career concerns of CITs;

5.  Discussion of research into models of professional identity development including transformational tasks;

6.  Discussion of the role of self-reflection in counselor personal and professional development;

7.  Discussion of CIT self-efficacy;

8.  Facilitation of transformational learning experience 1: True north activity;

9.  Discussion of wellness and self-care in counselor training;

10.  Facilitation of transformational learning experience 2: Puzzling wellness activity;

11.  Discussion of the use of music as an expressive art in counseling practice;

12.  Facilitation of transformational learning experience 3: Lyrics to my life activity;

13.  Discussion of the use of cinematherapy in counseling practice;

14.  Transformational learning experience 4: Viewing of the movie Prayers for Bobby, and facilitation of discussion

following viewing the movie;

15.  Discussion of values as a determinant of counseling theory and practice;

16.  Facilitation of transformational learning experience 5: Values bench activity; and

17.  Final post-seminar discussion of experiences.

(For a full explanation of each transformational learning exercise facilitated in the seminar, please contact the

first author).

Students completed the PPRPS pretest, demographic sheet and informed consent prior to arriving at the seminar on day 1. The PPRPS pretest data collection will be referred to as Time 1 data. The demographic sheet included a personal 4-digit code (for participant anonymity) and gathered information about the counseling specialty track in which the participants were enrolled, their year in the counseling program and their gender. Students completed the PPRPS posttest at the start of the seminar on day 1, subsequently referred to as Time 2 data. Throughout the 2 days, students completed five transformational learning experience activities and reflected on each through electronic journaling following each activity. Students were asked to save their reflective journals and submit them to the principal investigator at the end of the 2-day seminar. At the end of day 2, students completed the PPRPS posttest again, subsequently referred to as Time 3 data. In addition, students wrote down the two most meaningful transformational learning experiences of the 2-day seminar, to be used in a frequency count by the researchers. Approximately 3 months following the completion of the seminar, students completed the PPRPS posttest for the final data collection time point, subsequently referred to as Time 4 data. Researchers kept all student data confidential at each data collection time point through the use of the personal 4-digit codes. Electronic journals were submitted by students to the principal investigator via a protected email server and saved in a password-protected file for review and coding.

Results

A one-way, within-group, repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare students’ self-reported professional performance using the PPRPS before, during and after the seminar. The comparison was conducted using the mean PPRPS score for all participants at Time 1, Time 2, Time 3 and Time 4. Nine participants did not submit PPRPS results at a minimum of one data collection time point and therefore were not included in the analysis. As such, 12 participants were included in the analysis of all four data time points (57% of participants). Results indicated that participants’ levels of self-reported professional performance scores were not statistically significantly different over time, F(3, 9) = .83, p = .51, partial η² = .22. Although while the results across the four data collection time points were not significantly different, further evaluation of the data showed an increase in self-reported professional performance on the PPRPS across each data collection point. Mean data for the PPRPS across the four data collection time points can be found in Table 1.

Table 1

Descriptive Statistics for All Data Collection Time Points

To explore the movement in the data further, the researchers completed an item analysis for descriptive statistics of all 10 PPRPS items across the four data collection time points. Results of the item analysis supported a positive movement in scores for all 10 areas assessed on the PPRPS, with the most meaningful movement in the data occurring in the following items: (a) Item 7: Ability to accept personal responsibility (+.62 from Time 1 to Time 4), (b) Item 2: Flexibility (+.49) and (c) Item 5: Awareness of my own impact on others (+.48). Table 2 highlights the mean data for each of the 10 PPRPS items across the four data time points.

Table 2

Item Analysis of PPRPS Survey

^a n = 17. ^b n = 21. ^c n = 20. ^d n = 16.

Qualitative Analysis

In order to gain a deeper understanding of the impact of the transformational learning experiences, the researchers conducted a qualitative analysis of the reflective journals for each participant across each activity. A grounded theory design was used to assess the data, with which an emerging theory could become evident for the use of transformational learning experiences in counselor training. Each participant’s journal entry following each transformational learning experience was coded for common themes from open (broad) to axial (narrowed) to selective codes across all five activities (Strauss & Corbin, 1998).

Prior to exploring commonalities and themes across the data, both researchers completed the open and axial coding process separately. Both researchers kept journals with reflective commentary throughout the seminar and coding process to identify, explore and process their emerging awareness, assumptions and biases. Following individual coding, the researchers collaborated to explore the emerging (selective) themes that were present in the data, as well as to further process self-understandings noted within the reflective commentary. Once the researchers identified the final selective codes, they used a member check to serve as a final trustworthiness measure to support the credibility of the findings, in which they invited three study participants to review their submitted journal transcripts to see if the overarching findings of the study accurately reflected their words.

Overarching Themes

Activities led to awareness of past and present challenges. Participants reflected that through the use of transformational learning experiences, they became more in touch with the past and present struggles they had encountered in their life journeys. One participant shared after completing the lyrics to my life activity, “I guess this means that the pain is sometimes still raw and close to the surface, although I haven’t thought about it in months.” Another participant noted, “As painful and troubled as that time of my life may have been, it did serve a purpose.” After the true north activity, a third participant said, “Anxiety, responsibilities, time/money constraints, and other people’s standards are my magnetic north.” In the same activity, one participant created a metaphor for her struggle and noted, “A picture of an army platoon was graced under the clock and weighed heavily on this magnetic pole. I believe it spoke to my affiliation with war. . . . It might represent my own inner conflicts.” Similarly, another participant stated, “This exercise provided me with a deep look at the small elements in my life that pull me off course. . . . My biggest accomplishment today was seeing my failures on paper.” When watching Prayers for Bobby, many participants explored the impact of discrimination, prejudice and judgment within their own lives. One participant shared, “I have experienced this type of constant condemnation from my grandma.” Another noted, “I can also relate to Bobby’s feelings of shame and not belonging as I felt some of that growing up, even the point of ‘what’s the use?’ ” With the values bench activity, one participant explored family conflict and noted the following about her father: “We have always had a very rocky relationship. . . . The message I got from him was I was not good enough to be his daughter.” Across all activities, participants recognized past and present struggles, challenges and conflict that impact their lives.

     Activities revealed the need for change. As the participants became aware of past and present struggles through the transformational learning experiences, they also began to express the need for growth and change. One participant shared in the true north activity that “understanding the paths that may be challenging for me can help me have a resolution.” In the same activity, another participant stated the following:

Being able to point out the stressors and the negative impacts of things that try to take away from me as a whole and who I am trying to become made it much easier for me to see what I need to work on and what I need to eliminate from my life.

Another participant noted, “I’ve got to break that cycle. . . . I have to let go of the distractors and truly take ownership of my situation.” Similarly, a participant stated in the puzzling wellness activity, “This activity brought out my desires and in a way reinforced my need to stay on target of what I want.” Another shared, “This exercise helped me to identify that I need to find more time to establish a better balance for all elements of wellness in my life.” After watching Prayers for Bobby, one participant described her need for better understanding and stated, “I am the only one who can live my life for me and directly suffer the consequences or reap the rewards.” When completing the values bench activity, one participant explored the impact of family struggle in her life and how the activity facilitated her desire to grow and move forward. She wrote, “I don’t mean that I want to win a Nobel peace prize or invent something unbelievable. . . . I simply mean to overcome the battles and issues within my family and get everyone on the same page.” Another participant shared, “What this assignment has done for me personally is to stop and think before I act at home, school, and work because the way you act and treat people is the legacy you will leave behind.” In realizing personal struggles, participants became aware of room for growth and change. The activities sparked discussions of how that growth and development could begin for the participants.

Group processing continued self-exploration and connection. It became apparent across the reflective journals that the participants felt connected to the small group processing that followed each transformational learning experience. Time and again, the participants relayed the relief they felt, as well as the ability to process more deeply when sharing their creative expression with others. In the lyrics to my life activity, a participant shared, “I really enjoyed this assignment and sharing my story with the group,” and another noted, “This activity brought out much emotion in most people that shared today. We all struggle.” One participant explained in the puzzling wellness activity, “I did feel better once we presented our puzzles to our groups. It was nice to see what other people struggle with and how they represent themselves.” Another student stated, “I enjoyed processing the work, which actually turned into a very interesting conversation.” One participant offered the awareness that emerged from processing as she shared the following: “As we processed, I noticed that I felt very content in my life and this often comes when I hear where others are in their own life.” In the true north activity, one participant discussed her “strong emotional reaction” and said, “I wasn’t fully aware of just how visceral the feelings I had about them [were]. I felt anger, disgust and even shame when processing with my group.” Another shared, “I had a little break down trying to explain it to my classmates, but it made me realize how this is important and a part of me.” After watching Prayers for Bobby, one participant noted, “This was a great movie and I think the reflection after with the group was powerful. The movie affected everyone in different ways; being able to relax and share our thoughts as a class was so important and refreshing.” Through the group discussion process, participants offered a glimpse into the self-exploration that this interpersonal opportunity facilitated. Participants voiced the normalcy and empathy that were promoted through group self-disclosure and how this processing opportunity deepened their awareness.

Activities became useful interventions for future counseling practice. Across all activities, participants noted the usefulness, relevance and effectiveness of creative interventions for their future professional counseling practice. After watching Prayers for Bobby, one participant said, “I have never thought about using film as a therapeutic tool . . . but now my mind is spinning with ideas.” In the same activity, another shared, “This movie could be helpful in the field with families who are struggling to find acceptance.” In the true north activity, one participant stated, “This assignment was very beneficial and it’s something I would definitely use in the future with my clients as well as with myself.” In the puzzling wellness activity, one participant said, “I would recommend this activity to someone that deals with low self-esteem.” In the same activity, another student shared, “I can see how this activity may be useful with a client who has not thought along the lines of wholeness and wellness.” In the lyrics to my life activity, one participant explained, “I will try to incorporate some of these learning tools with my clients,” while another student noted, “Great activity. Several ‘ah ha’ moments. This could be a powerful tool with a client.” Following the values bench activity, one participant shared, “I will also add this to my clinical techniques during session.” In each activity, the participants were able to articulate the utility and application of these transformational experiences not just for themselves, but for their future counseling clients as well.

Discussion

The current study’s researchers explored the impact of transformational learning experiences and reflective journaling on the personal and professional development of CITs who completed a 2-day seminar in a university setting. Results reflected an increase in each of the 10 areas of professional development across the four data time points, though findings were not statistically significant.

Professional development is meaningful for promoting best practice in counselor training and development. Results of this study show gradual improvement in professional development, mirroring the results of Gibson et al. (2010) and indicating that professional development occurs over time and through experience. Both studies shed light on the progression from “reliance on external (classroom and expert) teachings and validation to a more internalized view of counseling and self-validation” (Gibson et al., 2010, p. 33). Interestingly, the items showing the greatest improvement reflect (a) the ability to accept personal responsibility, (b) flexibility and (c) awareness of personal impact on others. One could argue that these three factors also are reflected in the following transformational tasks from Gibson et al. (2010): (a) finding a personal definition of counseling, (b) internalizing responsibility for professional growth, and (c) developing a systemic identity necessary for professional identity development.

The qualitative analysis of the reflective journals lends rich support to the use of transformational learning experiences for enhancing and promoting personal and professional development. Participants noted that through these activities, they became aware of past and present challenges, the need for change, the impact of processing within a group, and the application of transformational activities in clinical practices. Such findings provide justification for how transformational learning experiences, particularly through the use of reflective journaling, might influence personal development of CITs. The themes identified above, such as awareness of past and present challenges and the need for change, indicate that participation in such activities provides an opportunity for self-examination, which leads to identification of areas in need of personal attention. Finally, the remaining themes identified relate to the use of transformational activities in future counseling practice. These themes are representative of the integration of personal and professional development identified by Skovholt and Rønnestad (1996).

An interesting emergence from the qualitative data is that participants not only recognized challenges inherent to living, but that they also saw themselves as the vehicle for change. Across each activity, participants were aware of the need of personal and professional growth and development. Blonna (2010) wrote that one reasonable response to personal challenge is to “focus on the positive things that can result from taking on a potential stressor. When you feel challenged, you look at a situation for its growth potential or for what you might gain from the challenge” (p. 10). Participants in the study reflected on their desire to grow and change as much as they reflected on the situation that led to the struggle. They voiced their desire to see challenges as obstacles worth overcoming. Doing so could be the beginning of an evolving personal journey that deepens their experience and informs a more competent counseling practice in the future.

Limitations and Directions for Further Research

A notable limitation to the study was the limited number of participants. Furthermore, students in counselor education programs are asked to intrapersonally and interpersonally reflect on their development within a number of courses and learning experiences. As such, it would be misguided to assume that improvements in professional development across a semester were only due to the contribution of a 2-day seminar.

Additionally, results from data in the current study did not support a statistically significant impact in professional development, though a meaningful trend in the data was revealed. The findings must not be overgeneralized; however, the findings can be used to articulate the benefits that the students noted through the self-reported inventory. A follow-up study is currently underway to replicate the original study and identify commonalities as well as differences in findings with another cohort of graduate counseling students.

Conclusions

     As counselor educators, the authors believe that CITs benefit from gaining a deeper understanding of themselves, which in turn can positively impact their personal and professional growth. As indicated in the literature related to counselor identity development, the authors are not alone in thinking that greater self-awareness is connected to increased competence on both personal and professional levels. However, at times counselor training curriculum lacks emphasis on self-awareness and would benefit from increasing opportunities for students to engage in self-reflective and experiential activities. The incorporation of transformational exercises into counselor training curriculum can encourage and enhance positive counselor identity development. In participating in these exercises, CITs deepen their intrapersonal and interpersonal learning and developmental journey, thus potentially enriching the counseling relationship, skills and techniques they will eventually use with future clients.

Conflict of Interest and Funding Disclosure

The authors reported no conflict of

interest or funding contributions for

the development of this manuscript.

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Michelle Kelley Shuler and Elizabeth A. Keller-Dupree, NCC, are Assistant Professors at Northeastern State University- Tahlequah. Correspondence can be addressed to Michelle Kelley Shuler, College of Education, Northeastern State University – Tahlequah, 705 N Grand Avenue, Tahlequah, OK 74464-2300, michelle.shuler@gmail.com.

Supervisor, Counselor-In-Training and Client Perspectives in Counseling: A Qualitative Exploration

Feb 9, 2015 | Article, Volume 5 - Issue 1

Corrine R. Sackett, Gerard Lawson, Penny L. Burge

The authors examined multiple perspectives of meaningful in-session events through participant observation of counseling sessions as well as interviews with client and counselor. The results are anchored with the perspective of a supervisor, and highlight similarities and differences among the three perspectives of supervisor, counselor-in-training and client. Six themes emerged from the observer’s perspective: immediacy with several subthemes, nonverbals and intuition, rescuing, depth of congruence, insights, and goal setting. For each theme and subtheme deemed meaningful in counseling sessions by a supervisor, an event representing the respective theme or subtheme is presented from the three perspectives of supervisor, counselor-in-training and client. The authors discuss implications for counselor training and supervision.

Keywords: supervisor, counselor-in-training, client perspectives, immediacy, counselor training

Researchers in the counseling field have much to discover about the counseling process and how it works (Paulson, Everall, & Stuart, 2001; Sackett, Lawson, & Burge, 2012). Researchers who examine multiple perspectives (Elliott & James, 1989; Moon, Dillon, & Sprenkle, 1990; Sackett et al., 2012; Sells, Smith, & Moon, 1996), in-session subjective experience (Bennun, Hahlweg, Schindler, & Langlotz, 1986; Elliott & Shapiro, 1992), and comparisons of those experiences further our comprehension of the counseling process (Elliott & Shapiro, 1992; Sackett et al., 2012). The client and counselor have separate perspectives, each of which is important to recognize in order to gain a picture of what is meaningful in counseling (Blow et al., 2009). Further, the perspective of an observer offers a compelling extension for our understanding (Elliott & James, 1989), as an observer can identify subtleties in interactions between clients and counselors, as well as shed light on experiences that clients may be less willing to report and of which counselors may be unaware. Consequently, capturing multiple perspectives on the counseling process, including client, counselor and observer, enriches understanding. Each perspective is compelling and contributes something unique to understanding the counseling process (Elliott & James, 1989; Sells et al., 1996).

Research on Client, Counselor and Observer Perspectives on Counseling Sessions

There is a dearth of research exploring multiple perspectives on counseling sessions beyond those of client and counselor. Several researchers have examined clients’ and counselors’ experiences and perspectives in counseling (Lietaer, 1992; Lietaer & Neirinck, 1986; Llewelyn, 1988; Martin & Stelmaczonek, 1988; Sackett et al., 2012; Sells et al., 1996). For example, in a recent study, Sackett et al. (2012) found that clients and counselors-in-training (CITs) consider many of the same aspects meaningful in a counseling session, including the relationship, goals, insights, immediacy and emotions. Findings such as these are valuable for clinical supervision, because supervisors’ awareness of similarities and differences in clients’ and counselors’ perspectives can enhance supervisors’ training of CITs to effectively work with clients. Further, when CITs are counseling, the supervisor’s perspective becomes part of the picture as well, and contributes indirectly to the counseling process through the supervision process.

As Elliott and Shapiro (1992) have noted, few researchers have added a third lens by exploring the process through client, counselor and observer perspectives. This statement from more than 20 years ago is still accurate today. In the research that does exist (Blow et al., 2009; Elliott & Shapiro, 1992), discrepancies have been found when comparing client, counselor and observer perspectives. Thus, including all three perspectives creates a more complete picture of the process (Llewelyn, 1988). In two studies, researchers explored a single client system (either a couple or an individual client) from multiple perspectives, including an observer’s. Blow et al. (2009) examined experiences of key therapeutic moments from the perspectives of counselor, client (i.e., a couple) and observation team. Therapeutic mistakes, as labeled by the observation team, did not detract from the work in counseling, given the strong therapeutic alliance. Similarly, what the observation team initially considered to be missed opportunities, they later saw as movement in a direction that they could not anticipate, and that worked well for the couple. Elliott and Shapiro (1992) elicited client, counselor and observer accounts of significant in-session events for a single client system (i.e., one client) as well. Most often the three perspectives were in general agreement. Elliott and Shapiro (1992) saw the few discrepancies in perspectives as opportunities for further understanding of the events and ultimately the counseling process.

Considering that research including an observer’s account of the process is limited (Blow et al., 2009; Elliott & Shapiro, 1992), and that researchers who have included an observer’s perspective have not connected this perspective with that of a supervisor to explore implications for clinical supervision, we intend to fill this gap in the literature. Sackett et al. (2012) called for studies to examine meaningful, in-session events from the perspectives of the client(s), the counselor and an observer who has training and experience as a supervisor, in order to give counselor educators a more holistic understanding of the process and to inform supervision with CITs. This particular approach to examining multiple experiences of counseling has not been explored before. Therefore, we addressed the following research question: What are the similarities and differences in what is meaningful in counseling from the perspectives of a supervisor, CIT and client? We frame this inquiry in a constructivist lens, which Ponterotto (2005) describes as the perspective that there is no objective reality outside the person experiencing the reality. Consequently, it is critical to gain perspectives from all involved in the process.

Methods

We chose the qualitative methodology of phenomenology to answer this research question because it provides a way to describe the meaning of participant experiences in counseling (Hays & Wood, 2011). We answered the research question with an emphasis on the supervisor’s perspective, comparing it with the CIT and client perspectives in order to find similarities and differences. We accomplished this comparison through analysis of field notes from participant observation (Jorgensen, 1989) and of transcripts of in-depth interviews (Seidman, 2013). We utilized a single session unit and significance sampling in this study. The single session unit allows for an examination of in-session events and session impact (Elliott & James, 1989). It also allows participants to reflect on their most recent session, leading to better understanding of experiences than if participants were reflecting on an entire course of treatment (Mehr, Ladany, & Caskie, 2010). Significance sampling is the examination of events that have significant meaning to the participant, or therapeutic impact (Elliott & James, 1989). We designed this study to approach therapeutic impact with what is meaningful in session, as illustrated by Mahrer and Boulet’s (1999) statement, “The emphasis is on whatever touches you as something impressive happening here rather than relying on your theory, your knowledge, and your being on the lookout for particular kinds of traditional significant in-session changes” (p. 1484). For the purposes of this study, meaningful experiences are defined as experiences that are important, significant or moving to the participant as described by Mahrer and Boulet (1999). They may be cognitive, emotional, relational or behavioral in nature. Meaningful experiences were defined in each case by both the supervisor and participants.

Participants

Participants in this study included clients and CITs from a master’s counselor education training clinic at a satellite center for a large mid-Atlantic public university. CITs were completing their practicum experience in the clinic and working with actual clients for the first time. Clients were enrolled in a local community college at the time of the study. The resulting sample consisted of 24 participants, specifically 12 CITs and 12 clients, totaling 12 CIT–client dyads. Ages for CITs ranged from 22–29, with an average age of 23. CITs consisted of 10 White females, one Hispanic female and one White male. Client ages ranged from 18–40, with an average age of 25. Among client participants were eight White females and four White males. Each participant chose or was assigned a pseudonym, which appear in the findings section. We gave a $5 coffee shop gift card to each participant as a token of appreciation for participating in the study.

Data Collection

One supervisor (the first author) was utilized as the observer across all sessions for consistency, and her perspective as the supervisor was captured through participant observation. The first author observed the second counseling session of each client–CIT pair from a different room in the clinic via televisions linked to cameras in the counseling rooms. Based on recommendations from Emerson, Fretz, and Shaw (2011), the first author took brief notes, which included key words or phrases of significant happenings, both verbal and nonverbal, during the observations of the sessions. Later that day or the next, the first author used these brief notes to aid in writing a field note for each observation. The observation, brief notes and subsequent field notes focused on meaningful events in the counseling session.

We conducted semistructured interviews with clients and CITs following their second counseling session. Interviews ranged from 10–45 minutes in length and were audio recorded and transcribed. Interview questions were open-ended and focused on what participants had found most meaningful in that particular counseling session. The client protocol contained a few additional questions that were not asked of the CIT and related to the client’s goals and expectations for counseling. Examples of interview questions for both clients and CITs included the following: What stood out for you in today’s session? Which of those things stood out the most for you?

Data Analysis

We analyzed the field notes from the participant observation through qualitative analytic coding described by Emerson et al. (2011). This process began with open coding, reading field notes line by line to identify ideas, themes or issues without limitation. Through the analytic process, we wrote memos as needed when insights arose that deserved further attention. Through the process of coding and writing memos, we identified themes that described a particular group of codes. We integrated initial themes and combined similar themes, and created subthemes when themes were related, but exhibited distinct differences. Focused coding followed theme development and consisted of re-reading field notes, allowing for elaboration of themes, further development of subthemes, and integration of interesting material that may have initially been overlooked. For the purpose of this study, we only used portions of CIT and client interview transcripts that corresponded to meaningful experiences as observed by the supervisor. Themes of meaningful experiences from the CIT and client perspectives can be found in Sackett, Lawson, and Burge (2012).

Credibility and Rigor

We used several methods in this study to establish credibility and demonstrate rigor as recommended by Anfara, Brown, and Mangione (2002). First, we utilized triangulation through the interview data of clients and CITs and field notes from observations. Obtaining data with two different methods provided an opportunity to describe the counseling process in a more complete way. After interviews were transcribed, we implemented member checks, which allowed each participant (clients and CITs) an opportunity to review his or her interview transcript and clarify or expand his or her perspective if needed. We kept an audit trail detailing the steps of the research process, which enhanced the deliberateness and completeness of the study. The audit trail is specific enough that a reader could retrace the researchers’ steps if he or she chose. Peer debriefing and a community of practice were utilized to ensure the ongoing practice of reflexivity by serving as forums for discussion of issues that arose throughout the process.

In qualitative research, all data passes through the researcher’s lens; therefore, our position as researchers was important to note. At the time of data collection, the first author and observer was a doctoral candidate in the same counselor education program as the master’s student participants. She had practiced for the past 3 years as a clinical supervisor of CITs, and is currently a faculty member in another counselor education program. The first author was purposeful in not having teaching or supervisory relationships with the cohort of CITs who participated in the study. The first author continually examined how she was positioned in the study and heavily utilized her community of practice for reflexivity work. Practicing reflexivity did not limit her perspective, but instead allowed for critical self-reflection of the ways she contributed to the research process. The second author is an associate professor in the counselor education program where the study was conducted, and the third author is a professor of educational research at the university where the study was conducted.

Results

Six themes emerged from participant observation by a supervisor of the counseling sessions, including the following: immediacy (with several subthemes), nonverbals and intuition, rescuing, depth of congruence, insights, and goal setting. With each theme and subtheme discussed below, an example from the supervisor’s field notes is provided. These examples are followed first by an account of how the CIT experienced the event, and then by an account of how the client experienced the event. In other words, for each theme deemed meaningful in the counseling session by a supervisor, an event representing that theme or subtheme is presented from three perspectives: supervisor, CIT and client. We chose to present only one example for each theme and subtheme from the supervisor field notes in order to illustrate each event from the three perspectives.

Immediacy

The supervisor identified many instances and facets of immediacy between the CITs and clients. Immediacy as a theme included the following three subthemes: processing the counseling process and relationship, here-and-now moments, and the CIT sharing his or her experience of client with client and the reverse.

     Processing the counseling process and relationship. Many CIT–client pairs engaged in conversations about the counseling relationship and about the counseling process in an attempt to define it, better understand it and gain insight into how the other participant was experiencing it. In other words, many dyads engaged in processing the process and the relationship. The example given to illustrate this subtheme is from Annie (CIT) and Heather’s (client) conversation about the counseling relationship, including the ways it differs from other types of relationships.

     Supervisor. The supervisor wrote the following in her field notes: “The counselor asked the client, ‘How about our relationship?’ The client talked about the relationship feeling awkward. The counselor validated the client’s observation that counseling is a different kind of relationship. The counselor offered, ‘Is there anything I can do to make it [the relationship] more comfortable?’”

     CIT. Annie reflected that this conversation about the relationship with Heather was meaningful in their session. She spoke in her interview of initiating the discussion about the relationship with Heather and of asking Heather if she could do anything to make the relationship more comfortable.

     Client. Heather experienced this conversation about the relationship as meaningful as well, and said the following about Annie: “Her concern . . . with our relationship . . . seemed something that I would think about and that I would care about . . . , but she seemed to care about that relationship, too.” The supervisor, Annie and Heather all experienced this immediacy moment of the process and the relationship as meaningful, and experienced it in similar ways, emphasizing different parts given their positions.

     Here-and-now moments. There also were many here-and-now moments in the counseling sessions that were meaningful to the supervisor. Susan (CIT) and Carol’s (client) session contained a very meaningful here-and-now event that was initiated by the client, Carol.

     Supervisor. The observer recorded the following in her field notes: “The client confronted the counselor by stating, ‘You’re not as relaxed’ and saying that the counselor had ‘aggressive energy.’ So the client was being very immediate and authentic, and it didn’t feel to me that the counselor was authentic; instead, the counselor responded by smiling and nodding.”

     CIT. Susan spoke about this event as meaningful during her interview, although she described the occurrence as the result of her body language; specifically, the CIT perceived that she was sitting close to her client. Susan appreciated Carol’s honesty and directness.

     Client. From the client’s perspective, Carol found it meaningful that Susan wanted her to feel comfortable in the relationship, saying to let her know if she made her uncomfortable. Interestingly, Carol did not mention her initiation of the here-and-now event with Susan in her interview. Although the CIT and client found aspects of this occurrence meaningful as well, the supervisor’s experience of this event and strong reaction to it were unlike the experiences of the CIT and client.

     CIT sharing his or her experience of client with client and the reverse. Finally, there were a few immediacy events that involved the CIT sharing his or her experience of the client with the client, and the reverse. The supervisor found the following event from Sue (CIT) and Bridget’s (client) session meaningful. They were working on Sue’s fear of speaking up in class.

     Supervisor. The supervisor reflected as follows in her field notes: “The client, Bridget, used role playing to give an example of an awkward moment. Sue, the CIT, reflected, ‘You have put yourself out there.’ Sue shared her experience of Bridget, saying, ‘I would like to provide my feedback,’ and went on to say that Bridget provided many things [positive contributions] in session and she wondered if others in the Bridget’s life were missing out on this side of her. There seemed to be a shift to the positive here.”

     CIT. The CIT, Sue, found this event meaningful in the session as well. She reported that she told her client, Bridget, that she really valued what Bridget said in session. Sue was hesitant about whether or not this disclosure was appropriate, as she was still learning about boundaries in counseling. Ultimately though, Sue found this to be a positive and meaningful experience in the session.

     Client. The client, Bridget, also found this occurrence meaningful, saying:

Well, something that was different that was really important and really meaningful to me was just the way that she shared herself with me much more than [in] the first session. . . . She also told me that the things I tell her, even though I think they might not be useful . . . can grow from my opinion and that she really likes to hear what I have to say.

Here again, the supervisor, CIT and client all found this immediacy occurrence meaningful, and in this case, their accounts of the event were compatible from their varied perspectives.

Nonverbals and Intuition

The supervisor found many moments meaningful that were nonverbal events or exchanges in session, or that were intuitive to the supervisor. These moments included silence and space in the counseling, shifts of energy, and other nonverbal occurrences that the supervisor noticed.

     Supervisor. During Alex (CIT) and Frank’s (client) session, the observer wrote, “I’m wondering if the counselor is uncomfortable in this session. The client seems dominant and as if he is educating the counselor.”

     CIT. The CIT (Alex) perceived the dynamic between herself and her client (Frank), as Frank wanting Alex to be directive with him, and reflected, “I feel like he’s kind of looking for someone to tell him what to do sometimes.” On the other hand, Alex also experienced the dynamic in the session as Frank fulfilling the counselor’s role, saying, “A lot of times I’ll go to like say something just to reflect something back and he’s there already. I’m like, ‘Oh, you steal my job.’ ” This comment from Alex was in line with the supervisor’s observation that Frank was dominant in the session. It seemed as though Alex saw Frank as both wanting her to be the expert and as jumping into the expert role himself.

     Client. In his interview, Frank evaluated Alex, concluding, “I was very impressed with my counselor today.” Frank confirmed in some ways the supervisor’s intuition here by making evaluative statements of Alex as a counselor, as though he was in a dominant role in relation to her.

Rescuing

The theme of rescuing included instances where the supervisor noticed either the client or CIT shifting the discussion away from something intimate or uncomfortable. Some examples included the CIT interrupting a silence rather than allowing the client to experience what he or she needed in that silence, or the CIT rescuing the client from an uncomfortable thought. In this example from Susie (CIT) and Wanda’s (client) session, the supervisor noticed Susie shifting the conversation away from a topic that seemed clearly important, intimate and likely uncomfortable for Wanda.

     Supervisor. The supervisor recorded in her field notes, “The client said she was ‘always a nervous person, even when [she] was little.’ The counselor left this conversation abruptly and shifted to talking about the client’s present relationships.”

     CIT. Susie, the CIT, did not mention that particular occurrence, but did have the following to say about the session, “I felt like . . . I didn’t do a lot of validating. So, at times . . . I would kind of forget to be in that moment with her and validate painful feelings.” It may be that the example from the observer’s perspective was one of the times Susie forgot to be in the moment with her client and validate her feelings. However, this perceived missed opportunity, or shifting away from something intimate, led to a conversation about present relationships, which ultimately led to a major insight for Wanda that she was judging others in her relationships.

     Client. Wanda, the client, did not mention this occurrence either, as rescuing was unique to the supervisor’s perspective.

Depth of Congruence

Depth of congruence included instances when CITs understood as well as did not understand their clients’ experiences, and also included questions that CITs asked to further their understanding of their clients’ experiences. This theme also comprised CITs’ efforts to validate and reframe their clients’ experiences. Finally, the theme included instances of clients expressing that their CITs understood their experiences. This example of Penelope (CIT) and Cindy (client) illustrates the supervisor’s perspective of the CIT not understanding her client’s pain and missing the expression of pain and her own part in that pain.

     Supervisor. The observer wrote the following in her field notes:

The client began the session saying that she felt . . . badly after last week’s session, that she spent the week feeling very negative. The counselor responded with nodding and smiling, [which seemed] disrespectful and heartbreaking. The client continuously brought it up throughout the session, without the counselor addressing it.

     CIT. The CIT in this dyad, Penelope, experienced this event differently and felt she had addressed the client’s pain. Penelope spoke to the difficulty she experienced in hearing her client’s discomfort, which may have contributed to her in-session behavior. Penelope’s experience of this event is as follows:

She [the client] initially came in and she said that after last week’s session, she felt like crap. . . . I tried to talk with her about why she felt so bad about the last session, . . . [how] to make it a better process for her . . . to make her feel more comfortable. . . . It was hard not to . . . blame myself . . . but, I was glad that she did at least feel comfortable being honest with me and I think that it will be more productive in the next couple of sessions.

Penelope perceived her client’s honesty as evidence that they could have a more productive counseling relationship in the future.

     Client. Interestingly, Cindy, the client, experienced the CIT’s reaction to her pain as positive, in contrast to the supervisor’s perception. She said the following: “Yeah, today was good. I think what helped is . . . before we even started I let her know how I felt last week, and she was great about it. She didn’t take offense to it. . . . She . . . thanked me for telling her.” The supervisor, CIT and client all experienced this occurrence as meaningful, yet each had her own distinctive view of what happened. While the supervisor saw the CIT as missing on joining with the client on her experience, or as lacking congruence, neither the CIT nor client experienced the situation this way.

Insights

Insights were present in many sessions and constituted meaningful occurrences in the supervisor’s perspective. Included in this theme were new realizations, ah-ha moments, and questions and experiences that led to insights. The supervisor described the following meaningful event, in which Wanda (client) came to a new realization in her session with Susie (CIT).

     Supervisor. The supervisor wrote the following in her field notes:

The client, Wanda, talked about feeling judged by her partner’s mother. Wanda came around to saying that her partner’s mother’s behavior might not be about her. Susie, the counselor, affirmed this idea and asked if Wanda felt judged in any other relationships besides her relationship with her partner’s mother. There was a long pause and Wanda finally said that she felt judged by her cousin. Wanda said at one point, “Maybe I’m judging her.”

     CIT. Susie, the CIT, found this event meaningful as well: “The first moment when she [the client] said, . . . ‘Maybe it wasn’t them being judgmental, it’s me that is being judgmental towards others,’. . . I felt like that was a big moment for her. . . . I think that’s important for [the client] to realize.”

     Client. Wanda had the following to say when asked what she had learned about herself through counseling: “I . . . realized that maybe I judge people a little bit too, like I think they have maybe an ulterior motive sometimes, or that they’re being mean or judgmental, and when it’s really just them being themselves.” All three perspectives—the supervisor, CIT and client—found this event meaningful in session, and experienced the event in very similar ways.

Goal Setting

The final theme, goal setting, encompassed formulating and mutually setting goals and creating plans of action for clients. Clients seemed energetic in sessions during conversations about goal setting. The following example of goal setting in Kerry (CIT) and Ava’s (client) session, although important to the client, felt like avoidance of painful issues to the supervisor.

     Supervisor. The supervisor wrote the following in her field notes:

They ended the session with suggestions about how the client could busy herself so that she is not lonely (such as focusing on her school work). The client stated that she wants to be an ER nurse, start a family and then ‘everything will be ok.’ This feels like avoidance and/or denial to me, and feels sad.

     CIT. Kerry, the CIT in this dyad, did not experience the goal setting as meaningful and did not mention the event in his interview.

     Client. The client, Ava, did find the goal setting meaningful, saying, “Schooling . . . is a huge goal that I need to focus on and to keep in mind, and I know schooling will overcome everything if I just focus.” Although the supervisor and client both found this event meaningful, it was for different reasons. The client gleaned hope from the goal setting, while the supervisor felt it was a temporary solution for a deeper issue.

Discussion and Implications

The findings from this study contribute to our understanding of the counseling process by providing an examination of the similarities and differences between meaningful happenings from three different perspectives—the client, the CIT and a supervisor. Operating from a constructivist paradigm (Ponterotto, 2005), we see multiple and equally valid realities in the findings. In answering the research question, beginning with themes from the supervisor’s perspective, we found that supervisors, CITs and clients were in general agreement about what was meaningful, as was in the case in Elliott and Shapiro’s (1992) study, with some differences in how they experienced the events given their position. Purposely approaching the findings through a supervisor’s lens allows us to clearly delineate implications for supervision.

First, many of the findings of this study regarding meaningful events in counseling have support in the literature from the client and counselor (or CIT) perspectives. Immediacy has been found meaningful in counseling from the client and CIT perspectives (Sackett et al., 2012). Goal setting as an important aspect of counseling also is supported in the literature. Sells et al. (1996) demonstrated that both clients and counselors find a focus on goals effective in counseling, and Sackett et al. (2012) found that both clients and CITs find goals meaningful in counseling. Not surprisingly, the literature shows that the counseling relationship is important to both clients and counselors or CITs (Sackett et al., 2012; Thomas, 2006). Further, Singer (2005) established that clients value feeling understood by their counselors, and Paulson et al. (2001) found that clients’ feeling connected with their counselors allows them to engage in the process. Several researchers also have found insight important from both client and counselor perspectives (Lietaer & Neirinck, 1986; Martin & Stelmaczonek, 1988; Sackett et al., 2012). The present study provides evidence that these aspects of counseling are meaningful to a supervisor as well.

In some cases, the supervisor, client and CIT not only found the same event meaningful, but also had similar experiences of the events. This was the case for the immediacy subtheme of processing the counseling process and the relationship. Hill and Knox (2009) suggested that when clients and counselors process their relationship, the relationship is enhanced, and clients transfer this relational learning to their other relationships. Relatedly, Bowman and Fine (2000) found that counselor transparency is helpful to clients in counseling. Further, Knight (2012) asserted that counselor transparency is critical to client openness in counseling and serves as a model for clients, and that this learning can be transferred to other relationships. Supervisors who observe CIT transparency can reinforce this skill and the benefits for CITs, as well as model this behavior themselves in their supervisory relationships. Osborn, Paez, and Carrabine (2007) recommended participating in reflective conversations in supervision, creating a collaborative relationship that assists CITs in becoming more aware of their own feelings.

Two examples of meaningful events in this study were consistent with Blow et al.’s (2009) finding that a “mistake” as seen by the supervisor did not hinder the process when the counseling relationship was solid, as was the case in the here-and-now subtheme of immediacy, and in the theme depth of congruence. These two examples also are consistent with the finding of Rhodes, Hill, Thompson, and Elliott (1994) in which a client experiencing discomfort in counseling was able to share concern with the CIT, and the CIT responded with understanding and the counseling relationship was strengthened. Similarly, in the case of rescuing, the current results are in line with Blow et al.’s (2009), in that a missed opportunity can lead to a direction that the observer does not anticipate, yet works well for the client.

Other differences in perspectives exist in the findings and give us fodder for discussion of supervision. In the example given for the goal-setting theme, the supervisor and the client both found goal setting meaningful, though for different reasons. In supervision with this CIT, the supervisor might have encouraged him to focus less on the client’s seemingly idealistic goals and more on the client’s loneliness, unaware that the focus on the goals was so meaningful to the client. In the case of nonverbals and intuition, the supervisor picked up on a dynamic, or a force producing change, between the client and CIT that she could see since she was not directly involved in the dynamic. In the example given for rescuing, the supervisor was the only one who experienced the abrupt shift away from an intimate topic as meaningful. The rescuing in this example actually led, albeit abruptly, to a conversation that ultimately led to a major insight for the client. This finding supports the discovery of Elliott and Shapiro (1992) that a discrepancy in perspectives eventually can lead to a significantly helpful event for the client. In supervision, the first author might have drawn the CIT’s attention to the rescuing, as well as pointed out that the direction taken led to a realization for the client. Examining meaningful events from multiple perspectives allows for identifying discrepancies and how they might be manifested in supervision with CITs.

These findings indicate many recommendations for supervisors. Supervisors can encourage CITs to elicit client experiences throughout the counseling process, as other researchers have recommended (Sackett et al., 2012; Singer, 2005), including directly talking about the alliance as suggested by Hill and Knox (2009). In moments of immediacy, the supervisor can view these intimate interactions from a distance and offer valuable feedback to the supervisee. However, the supervisor is not in the room for these moments of immediacy, and therefore may experience the feeling differently than the CIT and client. Even in these instances, the supervisor can engage in productive conversations with the CIT about the differences in perspectives, facilitating awareness and growth for the supervisee. In addition, modeling conversations about the process and relationship ideally can occur within the context of the supervisory relationship, which also has been suggested by Hill and Knox (2009), as well as Osborn et al. (2007). Clearly, the counseling relationship is paramount, and the supervisor is not part of that relationship. Therefore, what the supervisor sees as a therapeutic mistake might in fact be experienced differently in the counseling room because of the relationship between the client and CIT. Consequently, the significance of the counseling relationship must be continually stressed to supervisees, and the supervisory relationship should be treated with as much care.

The findings point to meaningful experiences that may be unique to a supervisor’s perspective, such as those related to nonverbals and intuition, which are often outside the awareness of the CIT and client in the relationship; and rescuing, which may be beyond the developmental level of the CIT and not an aspect with which clients would be in tune. Supervisors can challenge CITs by informing them of moments when they rescue clients. Rescuing is an aspect of counseling that must be seen by the supervisor (live or via video), as CITs likely will be unaware of doing this and therefore not report it. Similarly, supervisors can offer CITs another perspective on what may be happening in the counseling session and in the counseling relationship that the CIT is unable to see, such as nonverbals and intuitive observations. The use of live supervision and video recordings can reinforce how powerful these meaningful experiences are in counseling sessions. For instance, in the case of Sue and Bridget, the supervisor noticed a clear, positive shift in the session following the CIT’s disclosure of how she experienced her client, and although the CIT experienced this event as meaningful, she may not have noticed an overall positive shift in the session or attributed the shift to her disclosure.

It is important for supervisors to remember that although they bring expertise to the table, they can only see through their own lens, and therefore should be aware of their predispositions. The use of live supervision and video recording is important in adding the supervisor’s perspective to supplement the CIT’s account of the session. Interpersonal process recall (Kagan, 1980) can be used to enhance supervisee self-awareness (Getz, 1999) by pausing at vital moments while viewing a video recording and checking in with the supervisee about his or her feelings and thoughts from that moment in the counseling session. The supervisor’s perspective can be added to this process as well. The reflective model of supervision (Stinchfield, Hill, & Kleist, 2007) also can be effective in facilitating supervisee self-awareness and growth. This technique involves the supervisor and a peer supervisee observing the presenting supervisee’s work and then discussing feedback for the presenting supervisee with each other while he or she only listens and reflects internally. These supervision techniques can include the multiple perspectives of the supervisor, supervisee and peer supervisee(s). However, it is important to remember, as indicated in the findings of this study, that the clients’ experience can only be accurately known by eliciting it.

In summary, we found general agreement among a supervisor, CITs and clients about what was meaningful in the counseling events examined in this study. We did find some differences in how they experienced the events given their roles. We purposely approached the findings through a supervisor’s lens, which allowed us to discuss implications for supervision.

Limitations and Suggestions for Future Research

There are limitations to this study that are important to mention. We chose examples for each theme to illustrate a meaningful event as seen by the observer, and described them from each of the three perspectives of the supervisor, client and CIT. As such, the similarities and differences among the three perspectives on the chosen events cannot be generalized to the other meaningful events within those same themes. Also, the study was conducted in one particular clinic, which is associated with a counselor education program that has its own training and style preferences that may not be representative of other counselor education programs and their supervisors.

Future research concerning multiple perspectives on meaningful events in counseling sessions can further our understanding of the counseling process. It would be useful to replicate this study across a variety of settings and populations. Finally, using a quantitative or mixed-methods research methodology to examine multiple perspectives on the process would likely provide new, helpful information for supervisors.

Conflict of Interest and Funding Disclosure

The authors reported no conflict of

interest or funding contributions for

the development of this manuscript.

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Corrine R. Sackett is an Assistant Professor at Clemson University. Gerard Lawson, NCC, is an Associate Professor at Virginia Tech. Penny L. Burge is a Professor at Virginia Tech. Correspondence can be addressed to Corrine R. Sackett, 307 Tillman Hall, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, csacket@clemson.edu.

Addressing Mental Health Needs in Our Schools: Supporting the Role of School Counselors

Dec 2, 2014 | Article, Volume 4 - Issue 5

Traci P. Collins

School counselors are a well-positioned resource to reach the significant number of children and adolescents with mental health problems. In this special school counseling issue of The Professional Counselor, some articles focus on systemic, top-down advocacy efforts as the point of intervention for addressing child and adolescent mental health. Other articles investigate improving child and adolescent mental health through a localized, ground-level approach by developing school counselors’ competency areas and specific school counseling interventions. Article topics include school counselors’ professional identity, training, self-efficacy, supervision, burnout, career competencies and cultural competencies, as well as how to measure the impact of school counselors’ interventions.  The author discusses the importance of school counselors’ role within schools, and hindrances to school counselors’ ability to perform their role as counselors.

Keywords: school counselors, professional identity, role, competencies

A significant number of children and adolescents experience mental health problems in the United States. Between 13% and 20% of children experience a mental disorder in a given year (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2013). Because school counselors have access to these students with mental illness in our nation’s school systems, they are a well-positioned resource. School counselors improve the mental health of children and adolescents, thereby improving the students’ overall functioning, personal/social development, career development and educational success. Students need mental health services; however, confusion exists as to how to utilize their most easily operationalized resource—school counselors (Gysbers & Henderson, 2006).

Overview of the Special Issue

In order to improve child and adolescent mental health and the efficiency of mental health services, the function of school counselors within the school system must be examined. I am pleased to introduce this special issue of The Professional Counselor focusing on school counseling. The collection of articles combines systemic, theoretical explorations with assessments of school counselor preparation and competencies. Some articles focus on the point of intervention (i.e., place for needed improvement and change) as systemic, top-down advocacy efforts. Other articles cover school counselor training, self-efficacy, supervision, and burnout versus career sustainability. A few articles in this special issue investigate improving child and adolescent mental health through a localized, ground-level approach by developing school counselors’ competency areas and specific school counseling interventions.

School Counselor Professional Identity

Over the last 100 years, school counseling has evolved from vocational guidance to the current concept of comprehensive school counseling. The first article in this special issue provides a historical perspective, describing the progression of school counselor professional identity (Cinotti, 2014). Cinotti (2014) discusses the conflicting professional identities (educator and counselor) that school counselors have experienced for the last century and the effects of role ambiguity concerning the utilization of school counselors and the assignment of duties. School counselors receive conflicting obligations and messages from counselor educators, school administrators and other stakeholders. However, research has found that among usual school counselor duties, direct counseling services are the most unique role of school counselors (Astramovich, Hoskins, Gutierrez, & Bartlett, 2014). Counseling services are often underutilized.

Bardhoshi, Schweinle, and Duncan (2014) explore school counselor professional identity on a more practical level by examining the impact of school-specific factors on school counselor burnout. The authors describe a mixed-methods study that expands on previous research indicating that role conflict is related to burnout in school counselors (Wilkerson & Bellini, 2006) and examine organizational factors such as student caseload. Bardhoshi et al. include a telling statement from a study participant who shared, “When we are allowed to focus on the social and emotional needs of the whole child, we are best positioned to clear away the barriers to academic achievement” (p. 434). These authors emphasize the importance of comprehensive training in school counselor programs and counselor educator advocacy efforts.

In a third article involving school counselor professional identity, Duncan, Brown-Rice, and Bardhoshi (2014) describe the ways that inadequate supervision for school counselors contributes further to disordered professional identity development and insufficient support for school counselors. Appropriate clinical supervision provides professional identity development, proficiency in ethics and improved clinical abilities. However, school counselors often receive only administrative supervision conducted by noncounselors, and rural school counselors face additional challenges in seeking clinical supervision (Duncan, Brown-Rice, & Bardhoshi, 2014).

School Counselor Training

In 2012, the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) published the third edition of The ASCA National Model: A Framework for School Counseling Programs, which contains the following four elements for comprehensive school counseling programs: foundation, delivery system, management and accountability. In this special issue, Martin and Carey (2014) describe their examination of the National Model and subsequent development of a logic model for use in evaluating the success of the National Model. They suggest that future research could examine the outputs and outcomes outlined in their logic model before and after implementation of the National Model. Assessing school counselor preparation and student change provides insight into the effectiveness of the current guidelines for school counselor training.

After completing their graduate program, school counselors must apply knowledge associated with professional identity, ethical practice and sound counseling interventions. Schiele, Weist, Youngstrom, Stephan, and Lever (2014) present their research on counselor self-efficacy and performance when working with students in schools, focusing on the impact of counselor self-efficacy on the quality of counseling services and knowledge of evidence-based practices. Relatedly, Schiele et al. found that counselor self-efficacy plays an important role in the effective assessment and treatment of students’ mental health needs.

Career Counseling Competencies. Morgan, Greenwaldt, and Gosselin (2014) studied school counselor perceptions of competency in career counseling, also comparing Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) counselor preparation versus non-CACREP preparation. Their participants, practicing school counselors, consistently shared feelings of incompetence and inadequacy in their ability to provide sound career development programming to their students. The results of this study indicate that feelings of unpreparedness upon leaving graduate school, along with feelings of incompetency, significantly impact school counselors’ ability to address the needs of their students.

     Cultural Competencies. Several articles in this special school counseling issue examine school counseling interventions or approaches for working with diverse populations. A 2010 Department of Defense report revealed that approximately 1.85 million children have at least one parent serving in the U.S. military (see Ruff & Keim, 2014). In this issue, Cole (2014) provides a guide for working with children from military culture. Culturally competent school counselors must be knowledgeable about the unique complexities of this population, along with other culturally distinctive populations. Van Velsor and Thakore-Dunlap (2014) describe working with South Asian immigrant adolescents in a group counseling format. Additionally, Shi, Liu, and Leuwerke (2014) offer insights into Chinese culture in their study examining students’ perceptions of school counselors in Beijing.

While the aforementioned articles discuss students from certain cultural groups, this special issue of The Professional Counselor also provides an article about a specific population of U.S. students—those in need of anger management. Although anger is a common emotion experienced by both females and males (Karreman & Bekker, 2012), Burt and Butler (2011) noted that most anger management groups are gender biased, focusing excessively on adolescent males. In this special issue, Burt (2014) describes his investigation of gender differences in anger expression and anger control in adolescent middle school students, providing a foundation for practical applications and future research.

Concluding Comments

School counselors are well positioned within the school system to provide short-term clinical-based interventions to improve child and adolescent mental health. Proper identification, evaluation, and treatment of child and adolescent mental illness contribute to students’ well-being, productivity and success in various areas of their lives (National Institute of Mental Health, 1999), including academic success. With student academic achievement receiving national attention, school counselors have been challenged to provide interventions that contribute to increased student achievement (ASCA, 2005). Villares et al. (2014) continue this initiative by establishing the validity of an assessment tool that can be used to measure the impact of school counselor-led interventions on student achievement. Outcome research can be useful in responding to the systemic concerns regarding school counselor professional identity and role within the schools. When counselors stay true to their roots—as counselors first and educators second—they are in the most useful position to improve student achievement by first fighting the war on student mental health.

Ninety years ago, Myers (1924) warned about interferences that would prevent the “real work of a counselor” from occurring (p. 141). This 90-year-old forecast echoes today, as contemporary school counselors need support in receiving robust training and preparation in professional identity and competencies, resolving administrative and systemic issues, and obtaining efficient supervision to guide the course of the counseling profession in the school system.

References

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Astramovich, R. L., Hoskins, W. J., Gutierrez, A. P., & Bartlett, K. A. (2014). Identifying role diffusion in school counseling. The Professional Counselor, 3, 175–184. doi:10.15241/rla.3.3.175

Bardhoshi, G., Schweinle, A., & Duncan, K. (2014). Understanding the impact of school factors on school counselor burnout: A mixed-methods study. The Professional Counselor, 4, 426–443. doi:10.15241/gb.4.5.426

Burt, I. (2014). Identifying gender differences in male and female anger among an adolescent population. The Professional Counselor, 4, 531–540.doi:10.15241/ib.4.5.531

Burt, I., & Butler, S. K. (2011). Capoeira as a clinical intervention: Addressing adolescent aggression with Brazilian martial arts. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 39, 48–57. doi:10.1002/j.2161-1912.2011.tb00139.x

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2013). Mental health surveillance among children—United States, 2005–2011. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 62(2), 1–35. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/su6202a1.htm?s_cid=su6202a1_w

Cinotti, D. (2014). Competing professional identity models in school counseling: A historical perspective and commentary. The Professional Counselor, 4, 417–425. doi:10.15241/dc.4.5.417

Cole, R. F. (2014). Understanding military culture: A guide for professional school counselors. The Professional Counselor, 4, 497–504. doi:10.15241/rfc.4.5.497

Duncan, K., Brown-Rice, K., & Bardhoshi, G. (2014). Perceptions of the importance and utilization of clinical supervision among certified rural school counselors. The Professional Counselor, 4, 444–454. doi:10.15241/kd.4.5.444

Gysbers, N. C., & Henderson, P. (2006). Developing & managing your school guidance and counseling program (4th ed.). Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.

Karreman, A., & Bekker, M. H. J. (2012). Feeling angry and acting angry: Different effects of autonomy-connectedness in boys and girls. Journal of Adolescence, 35, 407–415. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2011.07.016

Martin, I., & Carey, J. (2014). Development of a logic model to guide evaluations of the ASCA national model for school counseling programs. The Professional Counselor, 4, 455–466. doi:10.15241/im.4.5.455

Morgan, L. W., Greenwaldt, M. E., & Gosselin, K. P. (2014). School counselors’ perceptions of competency in career counseling. The Professional Counselor, 4, 481–496. doi:10.15241/lwm.4.5.481

Myers, G. E. (1924). A critical review of present developments in vocational guidance with special reference to future prospects. The Vocational Guidance Magazine, 2, 139–142. doi:10.1002/j.2164-5884.1924.tb00721.x

National Institute of Mental Health. (1999). Facts on children’s mental health in America. Retrieved from http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=federal_and_state_policy_legislation&template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=43804

Ruff, S. B., & Keim, M. A. (2014). Revolving doors: The impact of multiple school transitions on military children. The Professional Counselor, 4, 103–113. doi:10.15241/sbr.4.2.103

Schiele, B. E., Weist, M. D., Youngstrom, E. A., Stephan, S. H., & Lever, N. A. (2014). Counseling self-efficacy, quality of services and knowledge of evidence-based practices in school mental health. The Professional Counselor, 4, 467–480. doi:10.15241/bes.4.5.467

Shi, Q., Liu, X., & Leuwerke, W. (2014). Students’ perceptions of school counselors: An investigation of two high schools in Beijing, China. The Professional Counselor, 4, 519–530. doi:10.15241/qs.4.5.519

Van Velsor, P., & Thakore-Dunlap, U. (2014). Group counseling with South Asian immigrant high school girls: Reflections and commentary of a group facilitator. The Professional Counselor, 4, 505–518. doi:10.15241/pvv.4.5.505

Villares, E., Colvin, K., Carey, J., Webb, L., Brigman, G., & Harrington, K. (2014). The convergent and divergent validity of the Student Engagement in School Success Skills Survey. The Professional Counselor, 4, 541–553. doi:10.15241/ev.4.5.541

Wilkerson, K., & Bellini, J. (2006). Intrapersonal and organizational factors associated with burnout among school counselors. Journal of Counseling & Development, 84, 440–450. doi:10.1002/j.1556-6678.2006.tb00428.x

Traci P. Collins, NCC, is the Managing Editor of The Professional Counselor and a doctoral student at North Carolina State University. Correspondence can be addressed to: Traci P. Collins, The Professional Counselor, National Board for Certified Counselors, 3 Terrace Way, Greensboro, NC 27403-3660, tcollins@nbcc.org. 

Understanding the Impact of School Factors on School Counselor Burnout: A Mixed-Methods Study

Dec 2, 2014 | Article, Volume 4 - Issue 5

Gerta Bardhoshi, Amy Schweinle, Kelly Duncan

This mixed-methods study investigated the relationship between burnout and performing noncounseling duties among a national sample of professional school counselors, while identifying school factors that could attenuate this relationship. Results of regression analyses indicate that performing noncounseling duties significantly predicted burnout (e.g., exhaustion, negative work environment and deterioration in personal life), and that school factors such as caseload, Adequate Yearly Progress status and level of principal support significantly added to the prediction of burnout over and above noncounseling duties. Moderation tests revealed that Adequate Yearly Progress and caseload moderated the effect of noncounseling duties as related to several burnout dimensions. Participants related their burnout experience to emotional exhaustion, reduced effectiveness, performing noncounseling duties, job dissatisfaction and other school factors. Participants conceptualized noncounseling duties in terms of adverse effects and as a reality of the job, while also reframing them within the context of being a school counselor.

Keywords: burnout, noncounseling duties, professional school counselors, mixed methods, job dissatisfaction

Although the term burnout was first coined by Freudenberger (1974) to describe a clinical syndrome encompassing symptoms of job-related stress, it is generally accepted that the work of Maslach and colleagues has served as the foundation of the empirical study of burnout as a psychological phenomenon. Maslach, Schaufeli, and Leiter (2001) defined burnout as a prolonged exposure to chronic emotional and interpersonal stressors on the job. The primary focus of burnout studies remains within the occupational sector of human services and education, where empathy demands are high and the emotional challenges of working intensively with other people in either a caregiving or teaching role are considerable (Maslach et al., 2001). Burnout is defined by three core dimensions: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and reduced personal accomplishment (Maslach & Jackson, 1981).

Emotional exhaustion is a key aspect of the burnout syndrome. It is the most obvious manifestation of the syndrome (Maslach et al., 2001) and a reaction to increasing job demands that produce a sense of overload and exhaust one’s capacity to maintain involvement with clients (Lee & Ashforth, 1996). Feeling unable to respond to the needs of the client, one experiences purposeful emotional and cognitive distancing from one’s work. This effort to establish distance between oneself and the client is defined as depersonalization. Reduced personal accomplishment describes the eroded sense of effectiveness that burned-out individuals experience (Maslach et al., 2001).

According to the job demands–resources model, one of the most cited models in burnout literature, burnout occurs in two phases: first, extreme job demands lead to sustained effort and eventually exhaustion; second, a lack of resources to deal with those demands further leads to withdrawal and eventual disengagement from work (Demerouti, Nachreiner, Bakker, & Schaufeli, 2001). Professional school counseling is a profession in which emotional empathy is a requirement, and the qualitative and quantitative job demands are high. Stressors linked to burnout (e.g., high workload, negative work environment) have effects that may persist even after exposure to the stressor has ended, leading to negative impact on daily well-being (Repetti, 1993). In those jobs in which high demands exist simultaneously with limited job resources, both exhaustion and disengagement are evident (Bakker, Demerouti, & Euwema, 2005; Demerouti et al., 2001). With organizational factors accounting for the greatest degree of variance in burnout studies (Lee & Ashforth, 1996), robustly exploring factors unique to the profession of school counseling is a key to understanding the phenomenon of burnout in school counselors.

Variables Related to Burnout in School Counselors

School counseling literature has repeatedly drawn attention to organizational variables that are problematic for the profession and might provide insight into the burnout phenomenon. School counselors face rising job demands (Cunningham & Sandhu, 2000; Gysbers, Lapan, & Blair, 1999; Herr, 2001) that are often difficult to balance (Bryant & Constantine, 2006), leading them to feel overwhelmed in their work environment (Kendrick, Chandler, & Hatcher, 1994; Kolodinsky, Draves, Schroder, Lindsey, and Zlatev, 2009; Lambie & Williamson, 2004), and to lack the time to provide direct services to students (Gysbers & Henderson, 2000). In addition to job overload, school counselors also are expected to perform a high number of conflicting job responsibilities, leading to role conflict (Coll & Freeman, 1997).

Role conflict is indeed related to burnout in school counselors (Wilkerson & Bellini, 2006). Paperwork and other noncounseling duties interfere with the roles of school counselors and are a source of job stress and dissatisfaction (Burnham & Jackson, 2000; Kolodinsky et al., 2009). Authors have pointed out that school counselors who perform noncounseling duties labeled as inappropriate rate them as highly demanding (McCarthy et al., 2010), experience less satisfaction with and commitment to their jobs (Baggerly & Osborn, 2006), and cite these duties as a source of stress and role conflict (Kendrick et al., 1994).

Another factor implicated in school counselor overload is a large caseload (Sears & Navin, 1983). The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) recommends a 250:1 ratio of students to counselors; however, the national average of students per counselor is closer to 471 (ASCA, 2014). High counselor-to-student ratios further decrease the already limited time school counselors have available for providing direct counseling services to students (Astramovich & Holden, 2002). Feldstein (2000) reported that larger caseloads correlate with higher burnout in school counselors, a finding also echoed in Gunduz’s (2012) study of school counselors in Turkey.

School counseling today continues to be affected by initiatives and educational reforms (Herr, 2001), with school counselors facing the expectation of involvement in both educational and mental health initiatives (Paisley & McMahon, 2001). A current example includes the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) mandate, passed in 2002, which emphasizes required testing for all students, as well as increased accountability for school staff, including school counselors, to track student progress (Erford, 2011). Despite school counselors being an essential part of the school achievement team, they were not included in the NCLB reform movement (Thompson, 2012). The consequences of not meeting annual NCLB progress targets, termed Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), have been implicated in increased stress for school staff and have negatively impacted school climates (Paisley & McMahon, 2001; Thompson & Crank, 2010), potentially important factors to explore in relation to school counselor burnout.

A few studies also have drawn attention to the organizational support received from colleagues and supervisors in the work environment and the potential moderating effects of this variable on burnout. Perceived organizational support refers to employees’ perception of their value to the organization, as well as the support available to help them perform their work and deal effectively with stressful situations (Rhoades & Eisenberger, 2002). Bakker et al. (2005) found that, among other factors, a high-quality relationship with one’s supervisor provided a buffering effect on the impact of work overload on emotional exhaustion. Similarly, school counselors who perceive their own value to the organization as high seem to experience lower levels of job-related stress and greater levels of job satisfaction (Rayle, 2006). Lambie (2002) identified organizational support as the greatest influence on school counselor burnout levels in all three dimensions: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and personal accomplishment. Yildrim (2008) reported significant negative relationships between principal support and burnout in school counselors, while Wilkerson and Bellini (2006) further asserted that working relationships with school principals make a difference in school counselor burnout.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between burnout among professional school counselors, as measured by the Counselor Burnout Inventory (CBI; Lee et al., 2007), and the assignment of noncounseling duties, as measured by the School Counselor Activity Rating Scale (SCARS; Scarborough, 2005), while also identifying other organizational factors in schools that could attenuate this relationship. We aimed to obtain different but complementary data on the same topics and included open-ended qualitative questions in the online survey in order to expand on quantitative results with qualitative data and gain a more nuanced understanding of burnout (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011). Connides (1983) concluded that this combined qualitative and quantitative analysis approach is efficient for gathering baseline data from large numbers of respondents, resulting in a broader understanding of participants and phenomena. Research questions included the following:

What is the relationship between noncounseling duties, as measured by all three subscales of the SCARS (Fair Share, Clerical and Administrative), and burnout, as measured by each of the five subscales of the CBI (Exhaustion, Incompetence, Negative Work Environment, Devaluing Client and Deterioration in Personal Life) among professional school counselors surveyed?

Do other school factors—specifically caseload, principal support and meeting AYP—also affect burnout, above and beyond noncounselor duties?

Can other school factors attenuate the effect of assignment of noncounselor duties on burnout?

What is the individual, unique and subjective meaning that participants ascribe to their experience of burnout and performing noncounseling duties in a school setting?

Method

Participants and Procedure

     After obtaining institutional board approval, we created a randomized list of 1,000 school counselors who belonged to ASCA. The survey method followed a multiple-contact procedure suggested by Dillman (2007) regarding Internet surveys; a criterion sampling procedure embedded in the first page of the online survey ensured that all participants who progressed to the survey met the following criteria: (a) certified as a school counselor in their practicing state, and (b) working in elementary, middle and/or high school. Of the 286 counselors who responded to an e-mail survey invitation, 252 provided complete responses on the CBI, resulting in a 26% response rate (sample sizes for the specific tests may vary as a function of missing data for individual variables).

Some states offer a K–12 certification for school counselors. School counselors with this certification typically work in small schools and their assignment is the whole K–12 population; or, in the case in which counselors work in a school with multiple school counselors, their assignment might be a mix of grades from K–12. Participants in this study included school counselors with a wide range of grade-level assignment: 36.5% were K–12 school counselors, 32.9% were high school counselors, 19% were elementary school counselors and 11.5% were middle school counselors. The majority of the school counselors (41.7%) reported a rural work location, with the remaining 31% being suburban and 27.8% urban. Public school counselors made up the majority of the sample (75% public vs. 18.3% private). The sample also included charter schools (6%) and a tribal school (.4%). Although 36.5% of the participants reported caseloads of up to 250, the majority of the participants reported caseloads over the recommended ASCA numbers of 250 (32.9% had caseloads of 251–400; 30.6% had caseloads of 400+). The majority of school counselors (56%) indicated that their school had made AYP for the most recent school year, with 24.6 % indicating that their school had not made AYP, and 19.4% identifying AYP as not applicable for their particular school. School counselors’ responses also ranged in how supported they felt by their school principal—from very much so (42.9%), to quite a bit (23%), moderately (18.7%), a little bit (12.3%) and not at all (3.2%).

Women made up the majority of the sample (82.1% vs. 17.9% men). In terms of race and ethnicity, the majority identified as White (78.6%), with the next largest groups being Black and Hispanic (both 7.9%). The majority of school counselors (49.2%) selected the 0–5 range for their years of experience, with the following categories (6–10 and 11+) almost equally distributed (25% and 25.8%, respectively).

Instruments

     Counselor Burnout Inventory. The CBI is a 20-item instrument designed to measure burnout in professional counselors (Lee et al., 2007). It is divided into five subscales: Exhaustion (e.g., “I feel exhausted due to my job as a counselor”), Incompetence (e.g., “I feel frustrated by my effectiveness as a counselor”), Negative Work Environment (e.g., “I feel negative energy from my supervisor”), Devaluing Client (e.g., “I am not interested in my clients and their problems”) and Deterioration in Personal Life (e.g., “I feel I have poor boundaries between work and my personal life”). Participants rate items on a five-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 = never true, to 5 = always true. Scores for each of the individual subscales may range from 4–20, with total scores ranging from 20–100.

Lee et al. (2007; 2010) examined the initial validity and reliability of the CBI with two samples of counselors from a variety of specialties, including professional school counselors. Construct validity for the CBI was assessed by utilizing an exploratory factor analysis, which resulted in a five-factor solution that accounted for 66.97% of the total variance, with all goodness of fit indices also supporting an adequate fit to the data. Reported internal consistency for all five subscales by Lee et al. (2007) included alpha coefficient scores of .94 for the overall scale and .80 for Exhaustion, .81 for Incompetence, .83 for Negative Work Environment, .83 for Devaluing Client and .84 for Deterioration in Personal Life subscales. Test-retest reliability of the CBI across all five subscales was .81, indicating good reliability of this instrument over time. In the present study, Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of scores for the CBI were .92, well within the reported range of .88–.94.

     School Counselor Activity Rating Scale. The SCARS was designed to assess the frequency with which school counselors actually perform certain activities, as well as the frequency with which they would prefer to perform those activities (Scarborough, 2005; Scarborough & Culbreth, 2008). Utilizing a verbal frequency scale (ranging from 1 = rarely do this activity, to 5 = routinely do this activity), school counselors rate their actual and preferred performance of a wide range of intervention activities (e.g., counsel students regarding personal problems, coordinate and maintain a comprehensive school counseling program) as well as other noncounseling activities. Only the Other Duties scale of the SCARS was used for this study. Participants rated their actual performance of 10 activities that fall into three subscales: Clerical (e.g., “schedule students for classes”), with scores ranging from 3–15; Fair Share (e.g., “coordinate the standardized testing program”), with scores ranging from 5–15; and Administrative (e.g., “substitute teach and/or cover for teachers at your school”), with scores ranging from 2–10.

Scarborough (2005) examined the initial validity and reliability of the SCARS with a random sample of 300 school counselors, demonstrating content and construct validity for the SCARS subscales. A separate analysis on the 10 items reflecting Other School Counseling Activities supported three factors in which noncounseling activities can be categorized: Clerical, Fair Share and Administrative. Scarborough (2005) also demonstrated convergent and discriminant construct validity. Reported Cronbach’s alphas were .84 for the Clerical subscale, .53 for the Fair Share subscale, and .43 for the Administrative subscale. Despite some subscale low reliability scores, the researchers were unable to locate any other instrument measuring noncounseling duties with published psychometric data. In the current study, the Cronbach’s alpha for the Other Duties Subscale scale was an adequate .69 and within the reported range of .43–.84.

Demographic Information. Demographic information collected included gender, ethnicity, highest degree earned, number of years as a practicing school counselor, grade-level assignment, location of school, type of school, total numbers of students in school, caseload number, total number of school counselors in school, percentage of minority students, percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, whether the school made AYP, and perceived level of support from school principals.

     Qualitative Questions. Three open-ended questions were included in the online survey to allow participants latitude in their responses (Marshall & Rossman, 1999). These questions included the following: What does burnout mean to you as a school counselor?, What does performing noncounseling duties in a school setting mean to you? and What other information would you like to add that has not been addressed in this survey?

Data Entry and Analysis

Data were imported from SurveyMonkey to Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 18 and examined prior to analysis. A concurrent triangulation mixed-methods design was utilized with the qualitative and quantitative data analyzed separately but integrated in the interpretation of the find­ings; quantitative and qualitative findings were combined into a “coherent whole” (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011, p. 214). It was hypothesized that among professional school counselors surveyed, a model containing all three of the SCARS subscales measuring noncounseling duties (Fair Share, Clerical and Administrative) would significantly predict three subscales of the CBI (Exhaustion, Negative Work Environment and Deterioration in Personal Life). In order to test this hypothesis, we conducted five separate linear, multiple-regression analyses of assignment of noncounselor duties (Clerical, Fair Share and Administrative, as measured by the SCARS) on each of the measures of burnout (Exhaustion, Incompetence, Negative Work Environment, Devaluing Clients and Deterioration in Personal Life, as measured by the CBI). We predicted that noncounselor duties would significantly predict exhaustion, negative work environment and deterioration in personal life. (Those participants who said AYP was not applicable to them were removed from this and future analyses.)

We also questioned whether school factors that could tap into job demands and resources (e.g., caseload, meeting AYP and lack of principal support) were predictive of burnout, over and above noncounselor duties. Caseload was coded as 0–250, 251–400, and over 400. Therefore, we dummy-coded this variable with the ASCA-recommended load of 0–250 as the reference group. We conducted hierarchical regressions, assessing the increase in prediction of burnout by other factors from the models with only noncounselor duties. To test the possibility that other school factors (e.g., meeting AYP, caseload, principal support) may increase or lessen (i.e., moderate) the effects of noncounseling duties on burnout, we ran a series of moderation tests (see Baron & Kenny, 1986) to arrive at a model for each measure of burnout including only the meaningful moderators. To create moderation terms, we centered the measures of noncounselor duties and other school factors about their means, and then multiplied (other school factors × noncounselor duties). For each measure of burnout, we used hierarchical regression to determine if the moderators significantly added to the prediction, over and above the main effects. We tested the addition of each moderator to the main effects model. Because this resulted in 60 tests, only the significant tests are reported in the results.

Analysis of the qualitative data was guided by a grounded theory approach, which allows the researcher to inductively move from a simple to a more nuanced understanding of a phenomenon through the identification and formulation of words, concepts and categories within the text (Corbin & Strauss, 2008). Although not used to build a theory, this methodology allows for the utilization of frequency, meanings and relationships of words, concepts or categories to make meaningful inferences regarding the participants’ words (Silverman, 1999).

The first author coded qualitative responses line-by-line using etic or substantive codes, which were informed by school counseling and burnout literature. The first author then used a second level of coding: emic codes that emerged from the data, which are open codes using the participant’s own words to identify any emergent codes that departed from or supplemented burnout and school counseling literature. A constant comparative method, which compares coded segments of text with similar and different segments, was utilized to further refine the analysis. Axial codes were then used to conceptually categorize codes in order to capture larger emergent themes (Corbin & Strauss, 2008; Lincoln & Guba, 1985).

When using qualitative methodology, researchers must be transparent as they become instruments of investigation. The first author is in her second year as a counselor educator, and was prompted to study the topic after working closely with school counselors who displayed many of the symptoms of burnout. The third author is in her 11th year as a counselor educator and has been involved in the field of school counseling for over 25 years. In addition to utilizing a subjectivity memo to guard against bias (Marshall & Rossman, 1999), we enhanced trustworthiness by having the third author audit the first author’s entire process and documents. A review of verbatim responses to determine adequate categorization of codes and themes derived by the first author provided a reliability check, and led to appropriate adjustments made by consensus. Response frequencies are included to present particularly influential codes (Driscoll, Appiah-Yeboah, Salib, & Rupert, 2007).

Results

Assignment of Noncounselor Duties and Burnout

     The results of the regression analysis (see Table 1) supported the hypothesis that among professional school counselors surveyed, a model containing all three of the SCARS subscales measuring noncounseling duties (Fair Share, Clerical and Administrative) would significantly predict three subscales of the CBI (Exhaustion, Negative Work Environment and Deterioration in Personal Life). That is, noncounselor duties significantly predicted exhaustion, negative work environment and deterioration in personal life. More specifically, assignment of clerical duties was an important predictor for all three burnout subscales, and administrative duties were important for predicting negative work environment.

Table 1

Results of Regression Analyses of Noncounselor Duties Predicting Each Burnout Subscale

Note. N = 212.

*p < .05; **p < .01; ***p < .001; ^†p < .06.

Qualitative responses from participants answering the question, What does performing noncounseling duties mean to you? also echoed these results. Many participants responded to this qualitative question by listing a variety of noncounseling duties they performed at their school, which were fair share, administrative or clerical in nature. The most frequently cited noncounseling duties were testing (46), lunch duty (38), substitute teaching (31), discipline (23), scheduling (19), special education services (15) and bus duty (15). Many school counselors also described noncounseling duties as those that do not fall in the direct services category (16), or are not recommended by ASCA (10).

A major theme that emerged from the qualitative responses was that school counselors viewed performing noncounseling duties as having adverse personal and professional effects, including feeling exhausted and burned out (21), detracting from their job (36), serving as a source of stress and frustration (13), being a waste of time and resources (8) and resulting in making them feel less valued (8). One school counselor described performing noncounseling duties as follows:

It means that these activities and responsibilities are taking away from my time with students. When I am pushing papers, coordinating everything under the sun and mandated to serve on multiple committees, I rarely have time to design the classroom guidance lessons I’d like to do and I rarely have time to adequately research/prepare for my individual counseling sessions. I often feel like I am “putting out little fires” with students, staff, and parents.
Another major theme that emerged from the responses was that performing noncounseling duties was accepted as a reality of the job. Although many school counselors viewed noncounseling duties as tasks that could or should be done by other school professionals (19), or as resulting from role ambiguity (13), many cited that they simply had to be done (28). One school counselor stated, “It inevitably leads to the question of who will do the duty if we were not to. Resources are limited in many school districts these days.” Another added, “Counselors have always taken on or have been given other school assignments, it usually depends on the site administrator who often shares their overwhelming work load.” Yet another school counselor said, “It is somewhat expected because administration is not aware of all that we do, and the immediate demands are constantly arising.”

A final major theme emerging from school counselor responses regarding noncounseling duties was that many school counselors positively reframed some noncounseling duties within the context of their job, with many of them viewing them as fair share duties (17), as part of being on the school team (16) and even opportunities that positively affect their job (23). As one school counselor stated, “Obviously it would be ideal to be doing counseling all the time but I also feel that as a member of the team, supporting other team members in doing things that are not necessarily counseling related is also part of the job.”

Another counselor added the following:

It is difficult to define noncounseling duties in a school setting because every opportunity to be with students is an opportunity to build relationships that can be beneficial to the counseling relationship. In the same way, working with adults in the school community on committees for example can be the vehicle for forming positive professional relationships. In my school, I also teach classes for teachers and parents which increases my “counselor visibility” and has greatly enhanced my school practice. Some counselors would find teaching and serving on committees to be “noncounseling” but I find them to be “door opening.”

It appears that many school counselors view duties that allow them to interact with children and other school professionals positively, even if those duties may fit the noncounseling category.

Other School Factors and Burnout

To determine whether school factors that could tap into job demands and resources (e.g., caseload, meeting AYP and lack of principal support) were predictive of burnout, in addition to noncounselor duties, we conducted hierarchical regressions. We assessed the increase in prediction of burnout by other factors from the models with only noncounselor duties. For all but one measure of burnout (devaluing clients), caseload, AYP and principal support significantly added to the prediction of burnout over and above that accounted for by assignment of noncounseling duties. This was especially true for negative work environment. In all cases, principal support negatively predicted burnout (see Table 2).

A major qualitative theme was that individuals related their experience of burnout to organizational factors specific to their school. School factors cited as defining burnout included lack of time (36), budgetary constraints (13), lack of resources (8), lack of organizational support (8), lack of authority (4) and a negative school environment (4). One participant’s words seemed to encapsulate this theme when describing the experience of burnout: “When you feel you have too many responsibilities and not enough time or resources. When you feel overwhelmed by the amount of work. Feeling of longing to do some other job due to stress, difficulty coping with demands, paperwork, lack of support, lack of input, or other long-term difficulties on the job.”

Table 2

Results of Hierarchical Regression of Noncounselor Duties and Other School Factors Predicting Burnout

Note. Hierarchical regressions adding other school factors (caseload, AYP, and principal support) to the model with noncounselor duties. N = 206.

*p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001.

Qualitative findings, although not AYP-specific or constituting major themes, indicated that some counselors felt stress regarding the call for data and accountability measures present in today’s school systems. One counselor described the situation as follows:

I think that the fact that ASCA has swallowed the NCLB “data-all-the-time” Kool Aid, adds to my stress tremendously. It encourages counselors to become quasi-administrators and data-collectors instead of doing the job that is encapsulated by our title: COUNSEL [sic] individuals and groups of kids in a school setting. When we are allowed to focus on the social and emotional needs of the whole child, we are best positioned to clear away the barriers to academic achievement. Our effect on test scores is indirect. Thus, it is a red herring to go chasing after “data” that proves we belong in a school.

Another participant stated, “The biggest drain and waste of time has to be, without a doubt, testing, testing, testing!”

Although principal support was not a major theme in the qualitative results, participants discussed principal support when referring to a lack of organizational support and a negative work environment in their schools. Another participant’s words seemed to echo the importance of supervisor support when discussing his or her own experience of burnout: “Stress from too much work and less resources. Supervisors becoming less supportive and more disciplinary. School is not a fun place to learn. So much for positive behavior supports.”

Effects of Other School Factors on Noncounseling Duties and Burnout

To determine whether other school factors, like meeting AYP, caseload and principal support may increase or lessen (i.e., moderate) the effects of noncounseling duties on burnout, we ran a series of moderation tests (see Baron & Kenny, 1986) to arrive at a model for each measure of burnout including only the meaningful moderators. It appears that meeting AYP and caseload can moderate the effect of noncounselor duties as they relate to exhaustion. Caseload also can moderate the effects on noncounselor duties as they relate to incompetence, devaluing clients and deterioration in personal life. However, even though adding the moderation of the SCARS Fair Share Activities (SFSA) by caseload increased the prediction of devaluing clients, the whole model was still not significant (R² = .04). Therefore, we will not discuss this measure of burnout further; the remaining moderations, as indicated in Table 3, will be discussed in turn.

Table 3

Moderation Tests

Note. Values in the table represent the change in R² as a function of adding each moderator, in turn, to the main effects model (i.e., full model in Table 2). Only significant values are reported. ¹Caseload was dummy coded, so two moderation terms were actually created—one for each dummy code. The ΔR² values result from adding both terms. N = 206.

*p < .05; **p < .01; ***p < .001.

     Exhaustion: Adequate Yearly Progress × noncounselor duties. Whether or not a school made AYP moderated the effect of assignment of both fair share and administrative duties. Assignment of these duties related to increased exhaustion among counselors at schools that made AYP (SFSA, r[152] = .27, p < .001; SCARS Administrative Activities (SAA), r[155] = .18, p = .026), but not at schools that did not make AYP (SFSA, r[64] = .01, p = .92; SAA, r[67] = .07, p = .56). As revealed in Figure 1, exhaustion remained high among those at schools that did not make AYP, regardless of fair share and administrative duties. However, at schools that did make AYP, exhaustion was lower when assignment of fair share and administrative duties was lower.

Figure 1. Mean predicted values of exhaustion as predicted by noncounselor duties as a function of (a) meeting AYP and (b) caseload.

Exhaustion seemed to be central in how school counselors related their experience of burnout. The overwhelming majority of school counselors qualitatively described the meaning of burnout in terminology and symptoms congruent with emotional exhaustion. Participants described burnout in terms of feeling tired (27), overwhelmed (27), stressed (27), exhausted (23), lacking energy (22), becoming emotionally drained (16), and unable to cope and respond to daily demands (10). One participant characterized burnout as “reaching the bottom of psychological energy,” while another one added that burnout is “being unable to complete my duties of caring for and assisting my students because I am exhausted, stressed, or completely overwhelmed.”

     Exhaustion: Caseload × noncounselor duties. Assignment of clerical and fair share noncounseling duties differentially predicted exhaustion depending on caseload. Interestingly, the greatest variability and strongest relationships were at large caseloads (from 251–400; SCARS Clerical Activities (SCA), r[74] = .50, p < .001; SFSA, r[73] = .39, p < .001). In both cases, the lowest levels of exhaustion were seen for those with the fewest noncounseling duties.

Similar variability was seen at the ASCA-recommended level of moderate caseloads (fewer than 250) for assignment of clerical, but not fair share, duties related to exhaustion (SCA, r[75] = .34, p = .003; SFSA, r[70] = .10, p = .38). For counselors with the highest caseloads (greater than 400), assignment of clerical and fair share duties was not significantly or meaningfully related to exhaustion (SCA, r[68] = .11, p = .37; SFSA, r[67] = .05, p = .66). At the highest caseloads, exhaustion remained high regardless of fair share or clerical noncounselor duties. At a large caseload (and moderate caseloads as pertaining to clerical duties), exhaustion was lowest at the fewest noncounseling duties. It should be noted that for school counselors with caseloads at the ASCA-recommended levels (fewer than 250), exhaustion levels did not meaningfully increase even if fair share or clerical duties increased. Even though some school counselors defined burnout in terms of caseloads, this was not a major qualitative finding. One participant stated, when discussing caseload, “I am asked to provide critical services to 400 students and yet I make the same salary as teachers who are only responsible for educating one quarter of the students on my case load.”

     Incompetence: Caseload × noncounselor duties. Assignment of fair share duties differentially related to incompetence as a function of caseload. It was only at a large caseload (251–400) that fair share duties predicted incompetence (r[72] = .24, p = .04). At moderate (0–250; r[71] = –.07, p = .57) and extra-large caseloads (more than 400; r[66] = .12, p = .33), assignment of fair share duties did not significantly or meaningfully relate to incompetence. As depicted in Figure 2, the lowest levels of incompetence are reported for those with moderate or large caseloads at low levels of fair share duties. For those at larger caseloads, though, incompetence increases as fair share duties increase, indicating that the assignment of fair share duties with the existence of large caseloads is related to school counselor self-reported incompetence levels. For those with small caseloads, levels of incompetence remain steady.

Figure 2. Mean predicted values of (a) incompetence as predicted by SFSA and (b) deterioration in personal life as predicted by SCA, both as a function of caseload.

Qualitative results indicated that reduced effectiveness also was a major common theme. Participants cited feeling that they were not effective (60) and no longer made a difference (12) as descriptors of burnout. One participant stated, “It means that I am no longer helpful to my students. I feel like I’m extremely tired and over-worked and consequently my effectiveness as a school counselor is negatively impacted.” Yet another participant described burnout as “being overwhelmed by so many duties and responsibilities over an extended amount of time. The result in turn is being a less focused, determined, dedicated, effective school counselor.”

     Deterioration in personal life: Caseload × noncounselor duties. Assignment of clerical duties related differently to deterioration in personal life depending on caseload. At an extra- large caseload (more than 400), the relationship between clerical duties and deterioration was not significant (r[68] = .11, p = .37). However, the relationship was positive at moderate (0–250; r[75] = .25, p = .03) and large caseloads (251–400; r[74] = .38, p < .001). As depicted in Figure 2, at moderate and large caseloads, deterioration in personal life starts out low with low levels of clerical duties, but increases as caseload increases. However, for those with the highest caseloads, deterioration in personal life remains steady.

Although not a major theme, qualitative results indicated that some participants discussed burnout in terms of a spillover effect (22), with symptoms experienced beyond the workplace and in school counselors’ personal lives. One participant described burnout as “work becoming overwhelming enough that it is negatively affecting other parts of your life and dreading work every day because you do not think you can deal with anything else.”

     Additional qualitative findings. Job dissatisfaction, a factor not examined quantitatively, was a major additional theme that emerged from the participants’ discussion of their experience of burnout. Several participants discussed burnout as simply going through the motions at work (9) and having difficulty continuing to do the job (18). One participant defined burnout as “no longer enjoying the job. Counting the days. Waiting for the weekend. Thinking about retirement too much. Rather not go to work.” Another participant discussed burnout as “waking up and not wanting to go to work . . . or being at work and just going through the motions. Dreaming of jobs where you don’t deal with emotions or hardships!”

Discussion

In sum, the quantitative results suggest that the assignment of noncounselor duties positively predicts burnout—especially exhaustion, negative work environment and deterioration in personal life (and incompetence to a lesser extent). Qualitative results echo these findings, as participants discussed their experience of burnout in terms of emotional exhaustion, reduced effectiveness, performance of noncounseling duties and being tied to organizational factors in their school setting. Another major qualitative theme emerging from the participants’ experience of burnout is job dissatisfaction. School counseling literature has noted that demands placed upon school counselors are rising (Cunningham & Sandhu, 2000; Gysbers et al., 1999; Herr, 2001), that many feel stressed and overwhelmed with the numerous job demands that have been placed on them (Kendrick et al., 1994; Lambie & Williamson, 2004; Wilkerson & Bellini, 2006), and that performing inappropriate duties is linked to job dissatisfaction (Baggerly & Osborn, 2006). However, the results of this study surpass current literature by providing support for the assignment of noncounseling duties as a predictor of burnout in school counselors.

More specifically, the results indicate that the assignment of clerical duties predicts exhaustion and deterioration in personal life, while the assignment of administrative duties predicts negative work environment. These results are supported by the qualitative findings: while the majority of school counselors surveyed viewed the assignment of noncounseling duties as having adverse personal and professional effects, or resignedly accepted them as a reality of the job, some counselors also reframed noncounseling duties within the context of their job, distinguishing fair share duties and suggesting that performing the latter was part of being a team, and even an opportunity to better perform their job.

Quantitative results, however, indicate that the assignment of fair share duties for school counselors who already have large or extra-large caseloads is related to increased feelings of incompetence in their jobs. Reduced effectiveness is also a major qualitative theme that emerged when participants discussed their experience of burnout. It appears that despite qualitative results supporting some counselors’ positive view of performing fair share duties, quantitative results also point out that fair share duties have negative effects for counselors with large caseloads, or for those working in a school that has not met AYP. This finding indicates that clerical and administrative duties may be potential areas for intervention and advocacy for school counselors. Furthermore, school counselors may benefit from taking into account particular school factors when evaluating the effect of fair share duties on burnout.

Results indicate that support from the school principal can reduce burnout, as a unique predictor and not as it interacts with noncounselor duties. This finding is congruent with Lee (2008), who reported that level of perceived support from the school principal was a significant predictor of emotional exhaustion, a dimension of burnout, among school counselors. Although not a major theme, participants also linked principal support to their personal meaning of burnout, as some related it to a lack of organizational support and a negative work environment in their schools.

The results of moderation analyses suggest that meeting AYP can be a buffer against burnout as a result of fair share and administrative duties when those duties are low. Similarly, for school counselors working in a school that did not meet AYP, emotional exhaustion remains high, regardless of performing fair share or administrative duties. Schools that do not meet AYP are subject to interventions that can eventually lead to the replacement of staff, including school counselors, a stressor that is potentially more threatening than performing a low level of noncounseling duties. Although not a major qualitative theme, participants discussed budgetary constraints and accountability standards as stressors in their work environment. Although the consequences of not meeting AYP have been implicated in increased stress for school staff and in negative impacts on school climate (Paisley & McMahon, 2001; Thompson & Crank, 2010), no other studies to date have examined the relationship between meeting AYP, performing noncounseling duties and experiencing school counselor burnout.

Similarly, a low or moderate caseload can be a buffer against exhaustion related to fair share and clerical duties, but only when those duties are lower. At higher levels of noncounselor duties, even meeting AYP or having a lower caseload does not buffer against exhaustion. These findings seem consistent with previous research exploring school counselor demands: although caseload size was rated by participants as demanding, it was secondary to paperwork requirements, a duty that fits the noncounseling duties category (McCarthy et al., 2010). These results also are supported by the qualitative findings: while performing noncounseling duties is a major theme related to the experience of burnout, caseload does not feature prominently. However, the distinction in caseload numbers, based on ASCA recommendations, seems to be a meaningful one; if number of caseloads is at or below the recommended 250, levels of emotional exhaustion do not increase even if noncounseling duties are high. Caseloads that exceed the 400 threshold increase emotional exhaustion regardless of noncounseling duties. It seems that counselors operating at those very high caseloads are experiencing exhaustion from the sheer number of students they must serve, regardless of performing noncounseling duties.

Implications for Practice: School Counselors and Counselor Educators

It is evident from this study that school counselors face many organizational challenges that may make them vulnerable to experiencing the negative effects of burnout. Supervisors may be the first to notice stressed-out counselors and be privy to feelings and concerns related to those challenges (Lee at al., 2010). In a school setting, principals can have extensive influence on determining the role of the school counselors with whom they work (Amatea & Clark, 2005; Dollarhide, Smith, & Lemberger, 2007). Research suggests that when compared to school counselors, principals seem to underestimate the time that school counselors spend on clerical and administrative noncounseling duties, and place more importance on the performance of other noncounseling duties such as record keeping, coordinating the standardized testing program and scheduling (Finkelstein, 2009). As few graduate programs in administration include courses in school counseling, school principals may receive little training or education regarding the appropriate role of the school counselor and the nature of the comprehensive school counseling program, making school counselor advocacy even more imperative (Dollarhide et al., 2007; Fitch, Newby, Ballestero, & Marshall, 2001). It appears that administrators may especially benefit from a discussion regarding the school counselor’s role (Amatea & Clark, 2005), and that facilitating an increased awareness of school counselor burnout may result in interventions dedicated to preventing and ameliorating burnout (Lee et al., 2010).

     Counselor educators also are responsible for advocating for the profession and promoting best practices for school counselors. They are uniquely positioned to expose future school counselors to quality training and resources. Indeed, adequate training can reduce role stress for school counselors (Culbreth, Scarborough, Banks-Johnson, & Solomon, 2005). Membership in professional organizations can serve as an important resource for beginning school counselors, as it can reduce the likelihood of becoming isolated and encourage practices according to professional standards (Baker & Gerler, 2004). Resources such as self-assessment tools that can be shared with principals to identify gaps in perceptions and priorities, and strategies for promoting collaboration and preventing burnout, are all available through professional organizations and publications. Equipping school counselors with knowledge, resources and strategies to optimize effectiveness early in their careers may better prepare them for the challenges inherent in their profession.

Limitations and Suggestions for Future Studies

Certain limitations in this study may have affected the reported outcomes. First, utilizing a volunteer sample of school counselors who were exclusively members of ASCA poses a limit to generalizability. Despite use of a nationwide sample, responses cannot be generalized to school counselors who may not belong to ASCA. It also is possible that school counselors experiencing the most severe form of burnout may be underrepresented in this study, as those active in professional organizations may be less likely to experience high levels of burnout. As all data gathered in this study utilized self-reports, school counselors experiencing high levels of burnout may have opted out due to the uncomfortable nature of the topic.

Second, the addition of the open-ended questions to the quantitative questionnaire did not result in an extensive qualitative data set or the opportunity for additional follow-up discussion, providing only specific qualitative data from one point in time. However, the method of employing written responses to open-ended questions to gain broad information on sensitive topics (such as occupational burnout) has merit in this study (Friborg & Rosenvinge, 2013; Montero-Marín et al., 2013) and can be successfully utilized to triangulate or converge quantitative data (Hanson, Creswell, Plano Clark, Petska, & Creswell, 2005).

Replicating the results of this study with a random sample of school counselors who are practicing nationwide but are not exclusively ASCA members may increase the representativeness of the sample. Multi-informant, multi-method data would be useful in further examining burnout and the assignment of noncounseling duties and enhancing validity. Future studies utilizing a mixed-methods approach could incorporate semistructured interviews to collect more in-depth qualitative responses and enrich school counseling literature on burnout.

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Gerta Bardhoshi, NCC, is an assistant professor at the University of South Dakota. Amy Schweinle and Kelly Duncan are associate professors at the University of South Dakota. Correspondence can be addressed to Gerta Bardhoshi, Division of Counseling and Psychology in Education, 414 E. Clark Street, Vermillion, SD 57069, gerta.bardhoshi@usd.edu.