This study examined the predictive relationship between mindfulness and counseling self-efficacy and the potential mediating effects of attention and empathy. Master's-level counseling interns and doctoral counseling students (N = 179) were surveyed to determine levels of mindfulness, attention, empathy, and counseling self-efficacy. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients revealed significant pairwise relationships between the 4 variables of interest. A multiplemediator path analysis supported the hypotheses that mindfulness is a significant predictor of counseling self-efficacy and that attention is a mediator of that relationship. Results suggest that mindfulness may be an important variable in the development of key counselor preparation outcomes.
A random sample of 505 American Counseling Association (ACA) members completed a questionnaire that evaluated respondents' ratings of the importance of 9 competencies developed at the Summit on Spirituality (G. Miller, 1999; "Summit Results," 1995) meetings to effectively address spiritual and religious issues in counseling practice. Results suggest that, in general, ACA members strongly support the importance of the competencies for effective counseling practice.
In this study of 94 Counsel for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP)-accredited counselor education programs, 69% of respondents reported their programs addressed spiritual and religious issues; however, only 46% of CACREP liaisons perceived themselves as preparedor verypreparedto integrate material related to spirituality and religion in counseling into their teaching and supervision activities. In addition, only 28% of respondents viewed their colleagues as similarly capable of addressing these issues as a component of counselor preparation. The authors discuss implications for training and practice.
This article discusses the development of the Spiritual Bypass Scale-13 (SBS-13). Spiritual bypass is a clinical process of avoiding difficult psychological material using spiritual beliefs, practices, or experiences. A major limitation to the literature on spiritual bypass is that no psychometrically sound measures of the phenomenon exist, thus preventing scholars and clinicians from understanding its causes and treatment implications beyond anecdotal case reports. The SBS-13 was developed using a community sample of 661 participants. The factor structure of the SBS-13 was investigated using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis which identified 2 facets (Psychological Avoidance and Spiritualizing) with a second order facet (Spiritual Bypass). The reliability of SBS-13 was satisfactory, with alpha coefficients ranging from .75 to .87 across 2 different samples. The convergent, discriminant, predictive, and incremental validity of the SBS-13 was assessed using several criterion variables including measures of spirituality, religiosity, religious problems-solving style, mindfulness, stress, anxiety, depression, and the Five Factor Model of Personality. We concluded that the SBS-13 is a significant contribution to the research on spiritual bypass and can be used in clinical settings as a screening tool and for future research.
The authors discuss the results of a content analysis of 14 syllabi of introductory courses on spirituality in counseling. Course syllabi were examined to determine trends in the content of these courses and to determine if the instruction is consistent with 9 competencies developed at the Summit on Spirituality. Results suggested that there was substantial variance in the extent to which the competencies were covered in the syllabi. The authors discuss implications for teaching courses on spirituality in counseling.
The authors used a path model to examine how spirituality moderates relationships between negative life experiences and psychological adjustment, operationalized for this study as levels of depression and anxiety. Results suggest that spirituality provides a significant moderating effect for both depression and anxiety. The moderating effect was stronger for depression than for anxiety.
The purpose of this article is to address why the ASERVIC leadership deemed new competencies necessary, as well as provide a brief overview of the process whereby the new ASERVIC competencies emerged. In addition, this article serves to archive the competencies in the journal sponsored by the organization that developed them.
Why New Competencies?In 1995, a group of counselors and counselor educators gathered for the first Summit on Spirituality. Challenged even to define spirituality given its numinous qualities, the Summit working group ultimately developed a description of spirituality and a set of competencies that would support counselors in serving clients from various religious and spiritual traditions. After a series of town hall meetings at professional conferences over several years, at which the competencies were discussed and refined by the Summit working group, a final draft was submitted for acceptance by ASERVIC. These competencies were endorsed by ASERVIC and have since been en-
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