Counseling and
Guidance

Contents
 Introduction
 Objectives
 Goals
 Principles
 Types
 Phases
 Indicators of successful counseling

Introduction
 Counseling is a process, as well as a
relationship, between persons.
 The aim of the counselor is usually to assist the
person in realizing a change in behavior or
attitude, or to seek achievement of goals.
 Often there are varieties of problems for which
the counselee may seek to find help.

Introduction…
 Counseling is derived from the word “counsel”
which literally means “to give advice.”
 Dictionary meaning of the word “counseling” is
that it is kind of a help with personal or
psychological matters usually given by a
professional”.

Definition of Counseling
 Counseling is a process, organized in a
series of steps, which aims to help people
cope (deal with or adapt to) better with
situations they are facing.
 This involves helping the individual to
understand their emotions and feelings and
to help them make positive choices and
decisions.

Definition…
 It is an interactive process conjoining the counselee
who needs assistance and the counselor who is
trained and educated to give this assistance
- (Perez, 1965)
 “skilled and principled use of relationship to facilitate
self- knowledge, emotional acceptance and growth
and the optimal development of personal resources”
-(The British Association for Counseling)

Guidance
 Guidance means to guide, which means to direct
or to lead, is concerned with the best development
of the person for ultimate development.
 In broader sense, guidance is the assistance
made available by qualified and trained persons to
an individual of any age to help him manage his
own decisions and carry on his own his burdens.

Definition of Guidance
 Guidance is the help given by one person to
another in making choices and adjustments and in
solving problems, further it aims at aiding the
recipient to grow in his/her independence, and
ability “to be responsible for himself/herself”
- (Jones, 1971).
 Guidance is a process of dynamic interpersonal
relationship designed to influence the attitude and
subsequent behaviour of a person - (Good).

Objectives of Counseling
 To assist clients in exploring their problems & guide
them to solutions.
 To reduce worry, anxiety or any other negative
emotions.
 To guide clients in their recovery from, & adaptation to,
difficult circumstances.
 Developing the ability to make wise & realistic decision
 Altering their own behavior to produce desirable
decisions

Objectives…
 To have clients become aware of the consequences of
the experiences & situations they have been/are going
through.
 To help individuals become self-sufficient, self-dependent,
self-directed & to adjust themselves efficiently to the
demands of a better & meaningful life.
 To provided assistance to enhance their personal,
emotional, and intellectual development.
 To provide information according to client’s need.

Goals of Counseling
 Facilitating behaviour change
 Enhancing coping skills
 Promoting decision making
 Improving relationships
 Facilitating client potential

Principles of counseling
Hann & Macclean:
 It is strongly dedicated to self- direction and self-
realization of the client or the student.
 Client’s need is to be put first.
 It is preliminary, a preventive and remedial process
 Avoid dictatorial attitudes

Principles…
 Maintain relationship of trust and confidence with
the client.
 Let the client make voluntary informed decision.
 The client’s family members and significant
influencing personnel must be included in
counseling process.
 Maintain dignity of individual as individual is primary
concern in counseling.

Characteristics of Effective
Counselor
 Self-awareness &
understanding
 Good psychological
health
 Sensitivity
 Open-mindedness
 Objectivity
 Competence
 Trustworthiness
 Accessibility
 Interpersonal
Attractiveness
 Acceptance and respect
 Consistency & accuracy
 Honesty
 Tactfulness
 Confidentiality
 empathetic

Functions of Counseling
 Remedial: Functional Impairment
 Preventive: Anticipate and Accommodate
 Enhancement: Human Potential

Types of Counseling
Non clinical
 Counseling about risk
 Marriage guidance
counseling
 Bereavement counseling
 Problem solving
counseling
 In school, college,
hospitals, guidance
centers, rehabilitations
centers, industries & at
home
Clinical
 HIV/AIDS counseling
 Genetic counseling
 Counseling in Psychiatry
» Adjustment disorder
» Mild depressive illness
» Normal & pathological grief
» Sequelae of childhood sexual abuse
» After other traumas e.g., rape,
accidents
» Postnatal depression
» Pregnancy loss & still birth
» Drugs & alcohol problems

Steps In Counseling
Procedure
 G ---- Greet the client
 A ---- Ask clients about themselves
 T ---- Give information of Strategies of coping
mechanisms
 H ---- Help the client to choose a method.
 E ---- Explain how to use a method.
 R ---- Return for follow-up.

Phases of Counseling
The Waehler & Lennox Five Stages of Counseling
 Relationship building - the counselor and client establish
the therapeutic relationship.
 Assessment and diagnosis - the counselor determines the
psychological status of the client.
 Goal Setting - the counselor helps the client set meaningful
goals that can lead to cognitive and behavioral change.

Phases of Counseling
 Intervention and problem solving - the
counselor helps the client get started with
meeting the goals.
 Termination and follow-up - when the
counseling process is complete, the counselor
terminates the session.

Phase-1: Establishing Relationship
Tasks of this stage
 Laying foundations for trust
 Establishing the structure and form the
relationship
 Informed consent process
 Articulating roles of counselor and client –
developing a collaborative working alliance

Procedure
 Introduce self.
 Listen attentively.
 Always address the individual by his/her name.
 Ensure physical comfort.
 Do not interrupt the individual while he is talking.
 Observe non-verbal communication.
 Accurate Empathy
 Creates an atmosphere of trust and safety
 Provides a medium or vehicle for intense affect
 Models a healthy interpersonal relationship
 Provides motivation for change

Phase- 2: Assessment And Diagnosis
(Performing standard assessments)
Standardized Techniques
 Aptitude Tests
 Intelligence Tests
 Achievement Tests
 Interest test
 DSM III-R/ICD-10
 Personality Tests
 SOCRATES
Non-standardized Techniques
 The Questionnaire
 Observation
 Sociometry
 Autobiography
 Rating Scales
 Anecdotal Record
 Case Study
 Cumulative Record
 Interviews

Tasks of this Stage
 Identifying the nature of the presenting problem –
what kind of change is sought.
 Counselor role more so in helping the client articulate
than in pronouncing for them.
 Seeing problem in-context to the client’s larger world.
Keeping an eye on strengths and resources.
 Counselor builds hypotheses during this stage and
throughout.

Phase- 3: Setting Goals
Tasks of this stage
» Define desired outcomes
» Give direction to the counseling process
» Specify what can & cannot be accomplished in
counseling
» Client motivation
» Evaluate effectiveness of counseling
» Measure client progress

Phase- 4: Intervention
 Tasks of this stage
» Handling the interventions.
» Knowledge of its effects.
» Ability to read clients reaction.

Phase – 5: Termination And
Follow-up
Counselor Considers
 Counselor always mindful of avoiding fostering
dependency and is aware of own needs.
 Preparation for termination begins long before.
 Open door / plan for possibility of future need.
 Termination considered not just at end of successful
relationship, but also is considered when it seems
counseling is not being helpful.

Indicators of Counseling Success
 Clients “own” their problems and solutions
 Clients develop more useful insight into
problems and issues
 Clients acquire new responses to old issues
 Clients learn to develop more effective
relationships

The Basics of Communication
 Positive counselling skills
 Non- verbal communication
 Barriers to Effective Communication
 Sending solutions
 Avoiding the other’s concerns
 Culture sensitivity:

Problems in counselling
 Resistance to counselling; either by counsellor or
by faculty (Transference & counter-transference)
 Counselee with different cultural background,
they have own values and expectations.
 Counselling individuals with strong emotions such
as anxiety, anger, depression, intensity etc which
will hinder counselling process.

Problems in counselling
 Counsellor burnout- the symptoms such as
restlessness, boredom, irritability, lethargy, fatigue,
negative feelings etc.
 Lack of awareness of value of counselling by
public.
 Inadequate administrative setup.
 Lack of physical facilities, non-availability of time
and tools, dearth of training facilities for counsellors.

Categories of Counseling
Interventions
 Affective
 Cognitive
 Behavioral
 Interpersonal/Systemic

Affective Models
 Person-centered therapy
 Gestalt Therapy
 Body awareness therapies
 Psychodynamic therapies
 Experiential therapies

Cognitive Models
 Rational-emotive therapy
 Information-giving
 Problem-solving and decision-
making
 Transactional Analysis

Behavioral Models
 Behavior therapy
 Reality therapy
 Cognitive-behavioral therapy
Systemic Models
 Structural therapy
 Strategic therapy
 Intergenerational systems