ABSTRACT
This study aimed to reflect on counselors' experiences and the adaptation processes in university counseling centers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Accordingly, 15 counselors and psychologists working at different counseling centers were reached and interviewed. Thematic analysis showed that participants had to adapt to changes brought by the pandemic to continue their services. The adaptation of counseling centers to online practices showed differences according to administrative decisions and technical capacities. As a result of the urgent need to continue providing psychological help, participants moved to online practices, which caused professional and social life changes. Participant attitudes to online counseling were mainly positive. Since students had to move back to their family homes during the pandemic, limited confidentiality was the main problem aside from technological glitches in online sessions. Counselors encountered personal and professional challenges as a result of the ongoing counseling sessions and listed the self-care activities they used.
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Group counseling is one intervention that seems to be perceived as less valuable than individual ones in helping professions. In countries where counseling is still in an emerging stage, there is sometimes little to no specific training in group skills for future counselors. This paper addresses the history of group work in helping professions, the types of groups in career settings, the benefits and limitations of group interventions, and the opportunity offered by increasing interest and access to online interventions. The study covers the implications of the social and psychological outcomes of the COVID-pandemic on school and career counseling interventions. Challenges for practitioners and educators in countries where counseling is not a recognized profession are analyzed.
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In recent years, COVID-19 has led to a blossoming of online counseling (OC) as an important and alternative way to help people in need. In this regard, the present study aims to explore and clarify therapists' practical implementation and preparation of OC in the post-pandemic era by developing scales. In total, 306 Taiwanese licensed therapists participated in this study and filled out the developed scales (75 males and 231 females, 246 of whom have provided OC to clients). The psychometric analysis revealed that the two scales developed in this study, the implementation of OC scale and the preparation of OC scale, have positive reliability and validity. The former consists of three factors: standardized process, presence of infrastructure, and similarity in practice, and the latter comprises two factors: intent to conduct OC and perceived benefits for clients. In addition, the results indicated that therapists who are elder, more experienced, or working in community mental health facilities showed better practical implementation and preparation of OC. Findings from this study carry useful reference for strengthening therapists' preparation for and the effectiveness of OC.
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Internal counselor competence refers to the metacognition skills to manage all their mental experiences and internal conditions. These are in the form of mind skills. In particular, in the industrial revolution 4.0 and the COVID-19 pandemic situation, online counselors face many unpredictable and unfamiliar conditions. This study aims to identify the state level of the counselor's mind skills during online counseling sessions. This research method uses survey research methods of 181 online counselors in various regions in Indonesia. A mind skills journal is the instrument used for data collection to assess the four levels of counselor metacognition (reflective, strategic, aware, and tacit). The analysis used basic statistics and graphs. The results showed the overall score of the mind skills level was 78.166%, which was in the strategic use level. The mind skills contribution can be counselor self-regulation, counselor assessment, verbalization, information visualization description, causal analysis, and predictive planning. Suggestions based on research results are the need for an alternative to improve mind skills through reflective learning of prospective counselors and reflective supervision activities of counselors in the field. © 2023, Institute of Advanced Engineering and Science. All rights reserved.
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Background: COVID-19 has triggered public health crises all around the globe. It has caused mental health issues not only in infected cases but also in uninfected cases. The world was put under strict/restricted lockdown to contain the transmission of COVID-19 diseases. All important aspects of life including therapies and counseling went online. "EmoAid " is one such online mental health program started during the COVID-19 to ease psychological distress. Aim: The current study assessed the efficacy of "EmoAid " program. Methods: One hundred and twenty-two participants completed depression, anxiety, and stress scale-21 online at three time periods;before the program (T1), after the program (T2), and 3 weeks after the program to study the maintenance effect (T3). Results: The results suggested that the program was successful in decreasing symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress among participants. The maintenance effect of the program was also observed. Conclusion: The results highlight the importance of "EmoAid, " an online mental health program in lowering the levels of psychological distress during the pandemic, however, a randomized controlled study is required to validate the results.
ABSTRACT
Internal counselor competence refers to the metacognition skills to manage all their mental experiences and internal conditions. These are in the form of mind skills. In particular, in the industrial revolution 4.0 and the COVID-19 pandemic situation, online counselors face many unpredictable and unfamiliar conditions. This study aims to identify the state level of the counselor's mind skills during online counseling sessions. This research method uses survey research methods of 181 online counselors in various regions in Indonesia. A mind skills journal is the instrument used for data collection to assess the four levels of counselor metacognition (reflective, strategic, aware, and tacit). The analysis used basic statistics and graphs. The results showed the overall score of the mind skills level was 78.166%, which was in the strategic use level. The mind skills contribution can be counselor self-regulation, counselor assessment, verbalization, information visualization description, causal analysis, and predictive planning. Suggestions based on research results are the need for an alternative to improve mind skills through reflective learning of prospective counselors and reflective supervision activities of counselors in the field. © 2023, Institute of Advanced Engineering and Science. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, traditional face-to-face counseling has gradually given way to online counseling. To improve the application value of online counseling and change the current situation of college students' lack of willingness to receive online counseling, this study explored factors that influence Chinese college students' willingness to receive online counseling (WROC). Based on data gathered from surveying 823 Chinese college students using self-report questionnaires, we clarified the relationships between the self-stigma of seeking help, ethical concerns about online counseling (ECOC), online interpersonal trust (OIT), and the willingness to receive online counseling (WROC). The results indicated that (1) self-stigma of seeking help and OIT negatively and positively predicted the WROC, respectively; (2) ethical concerns negatively predicted the WROC; and (3) ethical concerns mediated the relationship between self-stigma and WROC and between OIT and WROC. The results suggest that reducing the self-stigma surrounding help-seeking, perfecting the ethical norms of online counseling, and enhancing interpersonal trust can improve willingness to receive online counseling.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Pandemics , Humans , Counseling/methods , Social Stigma , Asian PeopleABSTRACT
Introduction: As in many areas of life, the covid-19 epidemic has had a great impact on psychological counselor training. Although studies and practices on online counseling are increasing every day in the world, there has not been a psychological counseling method preferred by experts in Turkey, which comes from community culture and, where physical contact is important, until the pandemic. Objective(s): The examination of the opinions of the students studying in the last year of the psychological counseling and guidance undergraduate program during the pandemic regarding online counseling, where they perform their first psychological counseling experience. Method(s): The study was conducted with 10 counseling students, 9 women and 1 Man. The age range of the students is 22-24 and the average age is 20.6. The students' opinions are taken with openended questions such as "Can you share your views on online counseling before online counseling?" The reflection letter that the students responded to was subjected to content analysis. Result(s): The findings of the study show that there are four themes: Emotions before the counseling process, Thoughts before the counseling process, Therapeutic relationship, Online counseling in professional life. For example;in online counseling, negative emotions such as anxiety, excitement, fear, anxiety, stress, anxiety, as well as feeling comfortable and safe are among the positive feelings they experience in their therapeutic relationships. Conclusion(s): As a result, although students have a positive view of online counseling, they mainly prefer to do it face-to-face. The findings were discussed taking into account Turkish culture.
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The present study examines the impact of fear of COVID-19 on attitudes and intentions towards online and face-to-face counseling. A total of 526 adults participated in this study. The path analysis results indicated that attitude towards online and face-to-face counseling differentially mediated the relationship between COVID-19 fear and both counseling intentions, even when controlling for other covariates. Specifically, fear of COVID-19 predicted positive attitudes towards online counseling (value of counseling), which in turn, predicted online counseling intention. On the other hand, COVID-19 fear affected negative attitudes towards face-to-face counseling (discomfort with counseling), resulting in a decrease in face-to-face counseling intention.
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Online counseling is gradually finding its way into therapy in universities in Ghana. The recent outbreak of COVID-19 accompanied by uncertainties and the fears of physical contact signaled a consideration of complete acceptability of online counseling, in addition to face-to-face counseling. Nonetheless, the level of counselors, counselor educators and counselor trainees' knowledge, attitude, and usage of online counseling in Ghanaian universities is unclear. Thus, this study used an explanatory sequential mixed-method design to assess the perception of sampled respondents' and participants' viewpoints on online counseling available at a public university. Amid findings that counselors, counselor educators and counselor trainees have little awareness of online counseling and share a generally negative attitude towards it, the study concluded that online counseling is a highly unexplored option available on the university campus. Suggestions for augmented online counseling opportunities to assist students to resolve their difficulties on the university campus were also made. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)
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Black individuals and communities have held distrust toward mental health services and experience barriers in seeking services. Although the church is a significant support system in the Black community, it can also pose a barrier to congregation members seeking mental health services, as the Black church community has often stigmatized those seeking mental health services as weak. Ways to reach the Black community with trauma-informed, culturally competent, and spiritually sensitive mental health services through establishing connections with Black churches and church leaders were explored in this study. Previous research indicated that the COVID-19 pandemic increased depression and anxiety in the Black community because of disproportionate illnesses and deaths. This study explored ways Black churches can provide access to trustworthy, culturally competent, and spiritually sensitive mental health services. The Baldrige Framework of Excellence was the conceptual framework. Data were collected through six semistructured interviews with the senior leaders of the behavioral health organization who agreed to participate in the study. Secondary data were also collected and included meeting minutes, strategic plans, the organizational website, and information from the organization's library of resources. Findings showed that Black women were able to seek counseling comfortably because of increases in teletherapy and preparedness to handle increased demand during the coronavirus pandemic. This study's findings contribute to positive social change by providing behavioral health leaders with insights on how to establish trust and normalization of mental health services through effective outreach to local Black churches. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)
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The mental health condition of students during the COVID-19 pandemic has decreased a lot. Various efforts have been made by counselors to help students reduce academic stress and anxiety, one of which is providing online counseling services. However, online counseling that has been used is still not application-based, especially to prevent and cure mental health setbacks in students. Therefore, this study aims to develop the AKSENS application as a medium for handling student mental health setbacks. The design of this research is the development of the ADDIE model. The research subjects are guidance and counseling experts, IT experts, counselors and students of SMA N egeri 9 Malang. The data collection stage uses questionnaires and interviews with counselors and students. Data analysis used quantitative and qualitative data analysis. The results of the material test are 86.5%, IT experts are 85%, counselor and student user tests are 84.1 %, meaning that it can be concluded that the AKSENS application is very suitable to be used as an online counseling service for counselors and students in schools © 2022 IEEE.
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The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for online counseling to preserve therapeutic processes that have begun face to face and to provide service to others in need during lockdowns. Previous studies underscored the importance of providing updated training as counselors frequently hesitate to use technological advances in therapeutic sessions. This study aims at reducing such barriers by revealing personal characteristics of future professionals that might inhibit or encourage their openness toward providing online counseling. To this end, this study is focused on several precursors of openness to provide online counseling: preference to communicate emotions online, identification of emotional expressiveness advantages in providing online counseling, innovative behavior, creativity, and future problem-solving thinking skills. The question at focus is which constructs would be found contributive to students' openness to provide online counseling. The sample included 277 undergraduate students (future counselors) who filled out questionnaires. Data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling. Our findings pointed to the centrality of students' preference to communicate their emotions online in explaining their openness to conducting online counseling. This study might help pinpointing the adjustments curriculum designers should address to better reflect the intensive changes within the counseling field that necessitate transferring face-to-face skills to online settings.
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Over the years, the domain of psychological therapy and counselling has significantly expanded and established different forums to provide mental health services. The use of virtual therapy for providing mental support to individuals has drastically increased by professionals over the internet through emails, chatting over voice, audio platforms or chat rooms. The world was exposed to certain triggers initiated due to the unprecedented crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic, yet therapy applications have helped alleviate mental health challenges and maximize benefits towards the psychological wellbeing of the society. However, evaluation of its efficiency in actually helping people during a crisis is important. The present study aims to (a) Evaluate online counselling services and its effectiveness in providing the necessary emotional support during the pandemic and (b) Understand perspective of trained experts and members on e-therapy platforms. Initially, the study carefully reviewed existing literature on virtual therapy. An online survey was designed to garner the opinions of over 100 mental health professionals about online counselling services. The results reported, about 72% of the experts would consider shifting to virtual platforms during difficult situations for their clients. This paper is particularly useful for mental health professionals evaluating the shift to online platforms for their clients. In the future, researchers could develop technology to enhance the process of e-therapy for the clients and the experts. © 2021 IEEE.
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This mixed-methods dissertation examines the experiences of academic counselors in the California community college (CCC) system who have provided distance/online counseling. As online education increases and is seen as a way to provide access to higher education at a lower cost to institutions, the need for online support services such as counseling is also increasing. Essential to student academic success is the utilization of counselors, yet we know little of the effectiveness of online support services such as academic counseling. Additionally, the process of accessing online student support services can be more difficult as these supports were limited at many CCCs prior to COVID-19. Research participants completed a 6-week online college counseling course provided by the Online Counseling Network (OCN) that led to an online counseling certificate. This program is managed by California Virtual Campus - Online Education Initiative (CVC-OEI) and funded by the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office (CCCCO). Participants (n = 61) completed a Counselor Online Experience Survey and a subset (n = 20) participated in focus groups in an effort to answer the research questions posed in this study. Using the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA): The Global Community for Academic Advising, Academic Advising Core Competencies (AACC) Model as the conceptual framework, this study found that CCC academic counselors providing distance/online counseling had a positive experience with online counseling and found that the online counseling training was useful, and counselors felt confident in their abilities to provide effective online counseling services. Recommendations include offering blended services on a consistent basis at CCC institutions and the suggestion that the CCCCO and the statewide academic senate support the return of the CCC academic counselor statewide committee and support the creation of a counselor conference to share best practices. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)
ABSTRACT
An accelerated need for effective and accessible therapy for children has become more evident in 2020 by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV2 (COVID-19) pandemic. This global health crisis has exacerbated an existing mental health care crisis for children, particularly for those of color and low income who have a history of being disproportionately underserved. Teletherapy may address some of the barriers that prevent many children from receiving mental health services. Play-based strategies can be creatively integrated in teletherapy to maintain a relational, developmentally appropriate, and evidence-based approach to working with children in a virtual setting. In this article, creative ways to facilitate virtual play-based strategies are provided. Specific information about set-up, accessibility, selectability, scaffolding technology, developmental and cultural considerations, limit setting, and documentation for virtual sessions is discussed. Access to creative and theoretically informed teletherapy practices will strengthen the mental health response needed to reduce disparities in care.