PSYC 388 INTRODUCTION TO COUNSELLING UNIT 1-4 DETAILED ANSWERS TO LEARNING OBJECTIVES ATHABASCA UNIVERSITY
UNIT 1: Counselling in Canada: History and Trends
Learning Objectives:
1. define counselling in your own words, using the CCPA definition as a basis for your definition.
a. Counselling is a process that promotes knowledge and understanding of one’s self and emotions. It
involves building proficient and ethical relationships that lead to acceptance, growth, and development
of one’s personal resources.
2. describe the similarities and differences between guidance, counselling, and psychotherapy.
a. Differences:
Guidance Counselling Psychotherapy
Process of helping people make
important choices that affect
their lives. For ex. Choosing a
preferred career
Skilled and principled use of
relationship to facilitate
self-knowledge, emotional
acceptance and growth, and the
optimal development of
personal resources
Focuses on serious problems
associated with intrapsychic,
internal, personal issues and
conflicts.
Decision making based Theory based - cognitive,
affective, behavioural, and
systemic
Analytically based therapy
Focus on helping choose what
people value most
Focus on both choice and
changes
Focus on insight more than
change; reconstructive change
Unequal relationship: help less
experienced people find
direction in life
Collaborative relationship Unequal relationship: Therapist
is expert
Early work occurred in schools
and career centres
Broad practice in diverse
settings: community agencies,
private practices, universities
Early work was more in
inpatient settings, residential
treatment
Short term intervention Mostly short term intervention
but can be extended
Long term intervention (6m to
2y)
b. Similarities:
i. Counsellors and Therapists have similar working processes (Fig 1.2)
ii. Some counselling theories are also referred to as therapies, can be used in either counselling or
therapy settings
iii. Counsellors see clients that have more developmental or situational concerns (same as
guidance counsellors) and also those whose treatment may encompass disorders (similar to
psychotherapists)