By serving as experts, counselors can help judges, hearing officers, or juries see that all persons receive a fair hearing and that informed decisions are made. Counselors can help to make a difference by learning to express professional opinions in an honest and professional manner. Experienced attorneys recognize the benefits of expert testimony…

Although they may be reflected in professional guidelines, formal standards, or law, ethics are not static codes. They are an active process by which the individual therapist or counselor struggles with the sometimes bewildering, always unique constellation of questions, responsibilities, contexts, and competing demands of helping another person.…

Counseling is a professional field that requires as much or more courage than virtually any non-life-threatening occupation. In a fashion analogous to both the fire fighter or the police officer who is in direct physical danger, effective counselors must fortify themselves and prepare themselves as well as possible when they enter the unknown and…

This paper discusses N. B. Ralph's (1980) four stages of development for the novice therapist, focusing on the fourth stage (therapists become aware of their own feelings and reactions to the therapeutic process) through the author's experience in therapy. The therapist as client is discussed according to Karen Horney's classification of neurotic…

This chapter provides direction in how to add the tool of cyberspace technology to the mental health professional's repertoire of skills. The first suggestion is that mental health professionals need to aspire to be a model for others. Before they can model appropriate use of technology to help in understanding cultures, they need to understand it…

This monograph addresses many of the questions mental health professionals find themselves asking when faced with counseling minor clients. The monograph begins by examining how children and adolescents are viewed in the eyes of the law and discusses a minor's legal right to seek or refuse counseling services. Issues involving custody and…

Describes three issues central to the relationship between counseling and culture: the etic-emit distinction (studying culture on its own terms versus how it compares to others), the sociology of knowledge, and modernity. Emphasizes the importance of these concepts in counselor training programs. (LLL)

Counseling is a dyadic interaction between client and counselor, in which their cognitive processes influence how they interact and communicate. To investigate the effect that a match of cognitive complexity between counselor and client has upon the counselor's empathy, 9 counselors and 27 clients participated in a study. After 7 weeks of…

A counselor's obligation to safeguard information shared in counseling has clinical, ethical, and legal implications. This volume focuses on the duty-to-warn exception in client confidentiality. It provides general ethical and legal guidelines and, where possible, specific information to help the practitioner make good choices. It is intended for…

Issues involving dual relationships in counseling are discussed in this monograph. Dual relationships occur when counselors have another, significantly different, relationship with one of their clients, students, or supervisees. This monograph is intended to be a resource that reflects the current thinking of the counseling profession and that…

This paper reviews recent social psychology studies on the influence of message characteristics, issue involvement, and the subject's cognitive response on perceptions of the communicator. The Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) is used as a framework to discuss various approaches to persuasion, particularly central and peripheral routes to…

In today's litigious society, the conduct of counseling professionals is increasingly scrutinized by the media, the general public, and the profession itself. Subsequently, counselors need to understand the permissible bounds of conduct within which they can perform their jobs effectively and legally. This text examines these parameters by…

The possibility of lawsuits is a general condition of citizenship; potential lawsuits based on allegations of malpractice is a routine part of professional practice. This monograph provides a guide for taking some reasonable precautions to avoid malpractice suits. The text provides an outline that counselors may use in developing a legal and…

Trustworthiness is the overriding trait counselors must exhibit for success with American Indian clients. Counselors must be able to select appropriate counseling techniques; the behavioristic model is preferred by many American Indian students. Students' orientation is to the "here and now" and emphasizes specificity and accountability.…

This document defines the role and responsibilities of Missouri's vocational special needs counselors as they work with special needs students in vocational programs at the secondary and postsecondary levels and offers advice on how they can fulfill their role and responsibilities. Following the introduction is the questionnaire used in a survey…