Emotion Regulation for Counselors

Abstract

Emotion regulation is a developmental process that begins at an early age. However, working with clients experiencing highly emotionally charged situations may challenge a counselor's skills in this area. Therefore, emotion regulation capacity seems to be pivotal in the professional development of a counselor. This article focuses on the developmental concept of emotion regulation, with an emphasis on counselor development and specific recommendations for coping with strong feelings toward clients and oneself.

Emotion Regulation for Counselors‐in‐Training: A Grounded Theory

“…Supervisors could discuss ways CITs regulate their feelings toward clients and themselves both during and out of session, focusing on both positive and negative emotions (Prikhidko & Swank, 2018). The focus may be split between positive and negative emotions, with the latter being regulated by (a) using a positive emotional experience as a positive exception (Terni, 2015), (b) decreasing self‐doubt, and (c) increasing self‐esteem through confidence in one's abilities to provide services to clients.…”

“…Prikhidko and Swank (2018) suggested multiple ER strategies counselors can use based on the process model of ER (Gross, 2015), in which emotion is viewed as a process that evolves over time and includes the following components: (a) experiential (subjective feeling), (b) behavioral (actions), and (c) physiological (heart rate and respiration). ER comprises conscious and subconscious ways to change one or more components of an emotional response.…”

“…Despite scholars emphasizing the importance of ER training for counselors (e.g., Prikhidko & Swank, 2018), there is limited research on how ER is taught to CITs, with no models of ER describing how helping professionals regulate their feeling toward client and themselves and processes specific to counseling (i.e., transference and countertransference). CITs need ER training specifically focused on coping with emotions, connected to their vulnerabilities, activated in working with clients.…”

Preliminary Validation of the Feelings Experienced in Supervision Scale

“…Developing awareness of and exploring feelings is central to most approaches to counseling (e.g., Murdock, 2017). There is limited research, however, on counselors' emotional experiences (Prikhidko & Swank, 2018). The emotions of guilt, anger, and anxiety among counselors have been described as theoretically tied to clinician impairment, burnout, and problems with ethical decision‐making (Prikhidko & Swank, 2018).…”

“…There is limited research, however, on counselors' emotional experiences (Prikhidko & Swank, 2018). The emotions of guilt, anger, and anxiety among counselors have been described as theoretically tied to clinician impairment, burnout, and problems with ethical decision‐making (Prikhidko & Swank, 2018). The importance of fostering development of emotional awareness and both cognitive and affective complexity among counselors has been noted in the supervision literature (Tangen, 2017).…”