Teaching Gerontology in Counselor Education

Reinventing Gerocounseling in Counselor Education as a Specialization

“…Researchers have argued that mental health practitioners who counsel older adults should be familiar with the unique life circumstances they face (Agresti, 1992;Gatz, Karel, & Wolkenstein, 1991;Johnson & Rosich, 1997;Myers, 1995;Myers & Blake, 1986;Schwiebert, Myers, & Dice, 2000;Stickle & Onedera, 2006;Zucchero, 1998). The baby boom cohort, which is the next generation moving toward the later years, will face unique challenges and circumstances as they age based on their sociohistorical context (Long, 1990;Taylor & Hartman-Stein, 1995).…”

“…This separate course model could also be extended to offer a course that focuses primarily on gerocounseling content (Myers & Blake, 1986). Stickle and Onedera (2006) suggested that a separate course that focused on gerocounseling may include content related to assessment and counseling procedures for older adults. Other content that may be helpful are cultural issues of aging, biological attributes of aging, and social policies.…”

“…For a more detailed description of each curriculum model and how they could be used to integrate gerontological content into counseling programs, we refer you to the following articles (Myers, 1994;Myers & Blake, 1986;Stickle & Onedera, 2006;Zucchero, 1998).…”

“…The infusion model is defined as the inclusion of academic content related to a specific area into a number of courses within a program (Stickle & Onedera, 2006;Zucchero, 1998). Once again, counselor education programs may already be using this strategy to infuse content, such as multiculturalism and ethical guidelines, into existing coursework.…”

“…The separate course model is defined as a course offered within a program that covers content specific to an area of interest (Stickle & Onedera, 2006;Zucchero, 1998). Counselor education programs offer many courses that follow this model such as a substance abuse course and a family course.…”