The Discipline of

Counseling
Lesson 1:
At the end of this lesson, learners can:

 Define counseling.
 Discuss the application of the counseling as a discipline of
art as discipline of science.
 Enumerate and discuss the goals, and scope of counseling.
 Explain and provide a rationale about the principals of
counseling.
 Enumerate and discuss the core values of counseling.
There are misconceptions as regards not only to mental
health services, but also those who seek counseling.
These misconceptions include the following:
1. A person seeing a counselor, a psychologist, a
psychiatrist, or any mental health practitioner has a mental
illness.
A person can freely consult any mental health practitioner
and share his or her concerns so that he or she can deal with
them affectively. For instance, symptoms such as frequent
feelings of anxiety with excessive worry may not worsen and
develop into panic attacks. This is possible if contributing
reasons or factors are processed before an individual’s
condition has worsened.
2. Counseling means giving advice

The opposite is actually true: professional counselors

are trained to avoid giving advice. When a counselor
gives advice, the client is kept from gaining a better
position to understand, analyze, and solve his or her
problem. Instead of giving advice, the primary goal of
the counselor is to assist the client to identify the factors
that contribute to his or her problem and address them
accordingly.
3. Counseling is part of the discipline board.

 Students who have violated the school’s code

of discipline are referred to the counselor.
However, this does not mean that the
counselor’s role is to reprimand and
discipline. In this situation, the counselor
provides the following assistance to the
student concerned:
a. Facilitate an understanding of the factors that caused
him or her to disobey school rules and regulations
b.Reorient the student on school policies
c. Recommend seminars or workshops aimed to impart
the characterization of the schools values
d.Provide psychological support should the student’s
action merit dismissal
4. A counselor is a problem-solver.

 Counselors do not dispense easy solutions to problems. In fact,

counseling works best through collaboration with the client. A
counselor is a facilitator who guides you toward possible
solution to resolve your dilemma. However, only when the
counselor know and understands the entire situation could he or she
best help the client. Hence, through an honest, transparent, and
goal-oriented discussion between the counselor and the client,
the counselor is able to facilitate realizations of the advantages
and disadvantages of identified solutions to a dilemma.
The Art and Science of Counseling

 RA 9258, Guidance and Counseling Act of 2004

Guidance and counseling is defined by the law as “the
profession that involves the use of an integrated approach to
the development of a well-functioning individual primarily
by helping him or her utilize his or her potential to the fullest
and plan his or her present and future in accordance with his
or her abilities, interest, and needs.”
The Art and Science of Counseling

 Counseling is an active process between the counselor and

client, which aims to assist the clients to better understand
themselves and strive for changes to improve their lives
'circumstances.
 It is both an art and sciences.
 A counselor is like an artist who can be flexible and
creative with how he or she can reach and relate with his
or her client.
The Art and Science of Counseling

 A counselor makes himself or herself available

to attend to the concerns of the counselee – a
clear manifestation of the concept of giving
oneself to the counseling process.
 Counseling is a science as it practices objectivity
and follows a proper methodological process.
The Goals of Counseling
1.Plan and work in a constructive manner in
attaining life success;
2.Learn anticipate, and react positively to issues
brought about by developmental changes;
3.Express their uniqueness in diverse circumstances
through socially accepted integration of their
thoughts, feelings, and actions;
The Goals of Counseling
4.Respond with resilience to stress and be able
to buffer themselves from its negative impact
on their functioning;
5.Develop effective kills in relating with others
in order to enhance abilities in establishing
harmonious relationships;
The Goals of Counseling
6.Increase awareness of the self by identifying
their strengths and weaknesses;
7.Become mindful of the realities of life and be
able to apply effective principles of coping
and be able to adjust to the different
experiences they encounter in life;
The Goals of Counseling
8.Learn to seek for more options or
choices to be well-informed before
making a decision; and
9.Achieve autonomy from counseling
as they learn life skills.
The Goals of Counseling
 One of the important goals of the counseling process is to move the
client toward proper and empowered self-management.
 Professional counselors are not trained to give you direct advice or
act as your problems. Rather, they listen to you guide you to see the
whole picture of your situation, present options to you, and facilitate
you making informed decisions.
 The counselor also introduces tools such as time, stress
management, and social skills that you can use to manage and solve
your problems
The Importance of Counseling

 Counseling programs aim to provide preventive measures to

you as a client. This is achieved as the counselor assist you to
anticipate the challenges that may arise from a situations.
 As the counselors points these out, he or she will then
discuss and provide guidelines about how you may properly
deal with these situations. In doing so, you can function
better by being wiser in choosing your decisions, words, and
actions.
The Nature and Scope of Counseling
Counseling deals with a myriad of human concerns.
The following are general classifications of problems
and reasons why clients to consult counselors:
1. Academic Difficulties

These include the students’ difficulties in

accomplishing various requirements and
meeting the standards of education, adjusting
to teaching methods used, handling academic
pressures, maintaining good grades, managing
time, learning how to focus, and ensuring
effective study skills.
2. Personal concerns

these involve the difficulties that

counselees encounter in planning and
setting their goals, handling stress,
sustaining their motivation, making
informed decisions, identifying
priorities, and solving problems.
3. Social concerns

Difficulties encountered by counselees

in relating with others include dealing
with rejections, handling peer
pressure, coping with the challenges of
romantic relationships, and bullying.
4. Emotional difficulties

Problems related to clients’ emotions include

dealing with anxiety, nervousness, and
heartache; coping with loneliness due to
homesickness and rejection; managing
negative emotions such as depression, anger,
and fear; and attaining emotional stability.
5. Psychological challenges

These include handling persistent

suicidal behaviors; managing some forms
of addiction such as smoking, drinking,
and computer gaming; dealing with eating
or sleeping problems; understanding one’s
identity; and handling painful experiences.
6. Family Problems

Clients’ primary concerns usually involve

separation of parents, absence of parents due
to work abroad, single parenting, infidelity
of parents, hostile parenting favoritism in the
family, pregnancy and parenting, and
unpleasant home environment.
7. Career-related concerns

Primary career – related concerns

include difficulties in identifying one’s
strength and interests, lack of career
goals and plans, uncertainties in job
application, application with career
choices (Hurlock, 1980).
The Nature and Scope of Counseling

 Counseling focuses on assisting individuals of all

ages in all stages o development, assuring that they
will be able to make wise decisions in life and find
meaning, purpose, and actualization in what they
do.
 Thus, counseling promotes personal growth and
anticipates problems for prevention
The Nature and Scope of Counseling

 Guidance is focused on helping clients determine

what they value most, and from there choose the
path they want to pursue.
 Counseling is one of the services provided in
order to guide students in better understanding
themselves and striving for change improve their
lives’ circumstances.
The Nature and Scope of Counseling

 Psychotherapy is the practice of assessing, diagnosing,

and treating mental health problems.
 If a counselor encounters cases that are beyond his or her
professional expertise, then he or she refers the client to
other mental health practitioners who are advanced and
specialized training such as psychiatrists, who can be
prescribe medications, and clinical psychologists, who
may provide psychotherapy
Principles of Effective Counseling

 Counselor will objectively evaluate your situation, views, and

responses to help you better. He or she will never impose his or her
personal values on you. But he or she will collaborate with you in
identifying possible solutions to your problems.
 Effective counselors exhibit a degree of respect, motivation, and
encouragement that will allow you to gain confidence to act on your
situation. He or she will help you realize the value of taking
responsibility for your actions, words, and decisions, as well as their
results of repercussions.
Principles of Effective Counseling

 In counseling, effective counselors will remind you that you are an

indispensable individual whose right should be respected. Your
counselor will also emphasize your good qualities and my try to push
you to your limits, so you can fulfill your potential. You will also be
encouraged to exercise and improve your capacity to think and make
decisions.
 One important element in effective counseling is the clients feeling of
unconditional regard. This means that your counselor will be very
respectful and accepting of your own insights and personal feelings
about your situation.
Principles of Effective Counseling

 Counselor is bound by the principle of

privacy. “kept in full confidentiality”
 However, If there is a threat or danger to your
life, your counselor may inform your parents
and concerned authorities about pertinent
information to ensure your safety
The Core Values of Counseling

 Your values constitute your beliefs, which in

turn affect how you view the people you deal
with and how you understand your situation.
Hutchinson (2014) offered a synthesis of
moral values for effective counseling. These
include the following:
1. Each person is, in essence, naturally pure
and good.

 If you share the same belief, then you

treat every individual with care and
respect, operate from a non-judgmental
point of view, and try to understand why
some persons cannot perform or function
well.
2. The primary role of a counselor is to give support so
that the client will be able to attain autonomy

This would enhance the clients’

sense of responsibility so that he or she
could later arrive at a better positions
and see how he or she influences and
is influenced by social forces.
3. The essential values that will compel and sustain you
in doing this work are love and compassion

In order for you to become an

effective counselor, you must have
a big heart because as guidance
counselor, you should learn to
prioritize the needs of your clients.
4. An effective counselor finds the job’s intrinsic
rewards more interesting than its extrinsic ones

This job’s intrinsic rewards come

from the counselor’s sense of
fulfilment in seeing his or her clients
achieve life success, attain autonomy,
and exercise effective coping skills.
5. Deal with life through an attitude of
gratitude and forgiveness
You have to keep inspiring other people
to be well and do well; to be hopeful and
confident in facing life’s challenges; and
to stay positive in times of problems and
difficulties
Thank you for Listening
Source:

 Disciplines and Ideas in the Applied Social Sciences

DIWA 2nd edition p. 6-15