Assignment: History Of Counseling Profession

How have the history and philosophical foundations of counseling contributed to current trends and professional issues in counseling?

1. · Explain how specific events have influenced the development of the identity of professional counselors.
2. · Analyze the evolution of the key philosophies of wellness, resilience, and prevention.
3. · Summarize the historical events that contributed to the development of your counseling specialization.

Note: Up until this point, you have been primarily using first person when responding to discussions and assignments. This was appropriate because you were generally discussing your opinions about the subjects. This discussion, however, calls for an academic analysis of the literature on a subject. You will be expected to use the conventional academic third-person form when writing this post. Instead of expressing your own opinions, you will be supporting your analysis referencing the research and expertise of others. For more information on this style of academic writing, review the Campus resource Writing in Third Person (given in the resources).

Assignment: History Of Counseling Profession

The Industrial Revolution and the Advent of Psychotherapy

Sigmund Freud was born in 1856 during the Industrial Revolution. Scientific and technological advances were making vast changes in European life. A growing middle class began to bridge the gap between rich and poor. Machines began to make life easier for many, and urbanization presented both solutions and problems for the general public. The practice of hypnotism had been popularized by Mesmer in the previous century, and a search for scientific understanding of the mind and psyche was the natural next step for the human race.

Freud began looking for answers to mental problems within the individual’s thought patterns. Focusing on listening to his clients, he made many breakthroughs in treatment and is known as the Father of Psychoanalysis. Others followed in his footsteps and developed new approaches in treating mental illness. Early pioneers in psychoanalysis include Anna Freud, Jacques Lacan and Melanie Klien.

Behaviorism and Psychology in America

Across the Atlantic Ocean in America, pioneers such as Carl Rogers, Eric Berne and Abraham Maslow began focusing more on the individual. Behavioral and humanist models encouraged counselors to focus on the present rather than spotlighting issues from the past.

Modern War and Other Societal Influences

World War I, the first truly modern war, was fought during Sigmund Freud’s lifetime. This became the first war in which automatic weapons, submarines and aircraft all played a part. Advances in medicine saved lives on the battlefield as well as in hospital facilities near the front lines. For the first time, soldiers didn’t have to look in the eyes of the men they killed, and for the first time a condition known as “shell shock,” now understood as post-traumatic stress disorder, became understood as an effect of war.

By the middle of the 20th century, life had changed for people across Europe and North America. In the wake of World War II, research psychologists began studying the reasons behind human behavior. Infamous experiments such as the Milgram Study and the Stanford Prison Experiment, all of which are considered deeply unethical today, helped to shed light on the reasons behind many war crimes that occurred during the Holocaust.

Modern Counseling

One of the most influential psychologists of the 20th century was B.F. Skinner. Building on research from scientists such as Pavlov, Thorndike and Guthrie, Skinner developed and tested the reasoning behind human behavior. Modern cognitive behavioral therapy, the most common form of psychotherapy used in counseling today, stems from the work of B.F. Skinner combined with the psychoanalytic principles developed and tested by Aaron T. Beck. Assignment: History Of Counseling Profession

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS

Discussion Questions (DQ)

• Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
• Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
• One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
• I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.

Weekly Participation

• Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
• In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
• Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
• Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.

APA Format and Writing Quality

• Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
• Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
• I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.

Use of Direct Quotes

• I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly.
• As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
• It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.

LopesWrite Policy

• For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
• Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
• Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
• Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.

Late Policy

• The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
• Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
• If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
• I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
• As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.

Communication

• Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me: 
  • Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
  • Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.