20/20: A Vision for the
Future of Counseling
The New Consensus
Definition of Counseling
www.counseling.org/kaplan
Bradley T. Erford, PhD
President
American Counseling Association
[email protected]
David Kaplan, PhD
Chief Professional Officer
American Counseling Association
[email protected]
20/20: The Future of Counseling
• Has to do with vision
• Has to do with the year 2020
• Has to do with Counseling!
Constructing a Definition of Counseling
• Purpose: To promulgate a definition of
counseling endorsed by the profession of
counseling in the United States.
• No consensus definition had yet to be
created or endorsed.
Methodology
The Delphi Method
20/20: A Vision for the Future of Counseling
The Consensus Definition of Counseling
Bernice B. Brown of the Rand Corporation wrote the first
published brief describing the The Delphi Method.
She wrote: “The Delphi Method is used for the elicitation
of opinions with the object of obtaining a group response
of a panel of experts….
The technique puts the emphasis on informed judgment
(September, 1968).
“Fidelity to the Delphi Process requires that a
group utilize the “top ranked statements”
which rose by consensus to the top of their
respective lists to craft the wording of the
statements which will then be presented to
the whole committee for approval and public
dissemination.”
Strengths of Delphi Technique
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Rapid consensus.
Participants can live anywhere in the world.
Avoids group-think.
Flexible with no set meeting times, only an agreeable deadline.
Information can be very powerful in predicting future trends and
events.
• Gain consensus on a large scale (provincial to national to global).
• Cost effective.
• More detailed than typical survey responses.
Limitations of Delphi
• Assumes that all raters are experts.
• Some delegates may have been chosen for leadership experience,
rather than task expertness.
• Quality of responses depend on panel.
• Researchers must choose participants selectively.
• Time consuming. This process is rarely used by researchers/agencies.
• Panel may lose interest in topic if consensus is not reached within
reasonable time.
• Panel may lose cohesiveness overtime.
• Interactions between participants and researcher are not face-toface, depending on subject matter this fact can hinder or assist in
information gathering.
Method Application
• Two-round Delphi used to identify conceptual elements
• Round 1: Seven workgroups (of ~4-5)
– Each constructed a definition aimed at public and politicians
– Each definition rated on Likert-type scale
– List the most frequent terms/concepts
• Round 2: Construct a new definition using the terms/concepts
from Round 1
– Rate the second round definitions
• Construct a final definition
• Tweak until consensus is reached
RESULTS
The Definition of Counseling:
First Round Delphi Entries
Counseling is the application of mental
health, psychological, human
development, or family systems principles
and interventions to help clients adjust
their thoughts, feelings, or actions in
order to address issues of personal
growth, wellness, career development, or
pathology.
Professional counselors create
purposeful relationships designed to
assist and empower individuals,
families, and groups to address life
challenges.
A professional counselor is a graduate degreed
professional trained to work with individuals,
groups, and families in various settings.
Professional counselors assist clients of all ages
with normal developmental, career, and
relational concerns as well as those who suffer
from serious mental health problems using
evidence-based and best practices to provide
ethical, multiculturally sensitive care.
Professional counseling is a
humanistic and ethical practice that
occurs in the context of relationships
that promote human development.
Using evidence-based practices,
counseling helps people via
prevention, education, and
treatment, promoting wellness
throughout the lifespan.
Counseling - helping people deal with
life's challenges throughout the
lifespan!
Counseling: a profession assisting
people toward lifelong mental health,
educational, and career goals.
Counseling is a professional relationship
through which credentialed and regulated
counselors assist and empower
individuals, families, and groups, and
communities to prevent and/or address
life challenges; foster human
development; and advocate for wellness,
human dignity, and social justice in a
healthy society.
Counseling is a process that utilizes a
professional relationship to empower
others, while promoting wellness.
Three highly rated
definitions
• Professional counselors create purposeful
relationships designed to assist and empower
individuals, families, and groups to address
life challenges.
• Counseling - helping people deal with life's
challenges throughout the lifespan!
• Counseling: a profession assisting people
toward lifelong mental health, educational,
and career goals.
Common Words Across the
Definitions
• wellness
• empower/ment
• profession/al
• lifespan
• relationship
Delphi Round 2
Crafting new workgroup definitions
using the highly rated definitions and
common words
Most Highly Rated Round Two
Definition
Counseling involves professional
relationships designed to assist
individuals, families and groups
toward mental health, wellness,
educational and career goals.
Final (tweaked) Consensus Result
Counseling
A professional relationship that empowers
diverse individuals, families, and groups
to accomplish mental health, wellness,
education and career goals.
29 Organizational Endorsements
(93.5% of participating entities)
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ACA
ACA MWR
ACA NAR
ACA SR
ACA WR
AACE
AADA
AASCB
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ACC
ACCA
ACEG
ACES
AGLBTIC
AMCD
AMHCA
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ARCA
ASERVIC
ASGW
C-AHEAD
CACREP
CORE
CRCC
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CSI
IAAOC
IAMFC
NBCC
NCDA
NECA
NRCA
Two participating organizations have
declined endorsement
• Counselors for Social Justice
• American School Counselor
Association
20/20: A Vision for the
Future of Counseling
The New Consensus
Definition of Counseling
www.counseling.org/kaplan