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Responsibilities of Counselling Supervisors

Counselling supervisors have the responsibility to provide ongoing training in the context of related supervised experiences to enable supervisees to deliver effective and ethical services. Because of this, supervisors must be well trained, knowledgeable and skilled in the practice of their profession and in clinical supervision. Failure to have appropriate supervision experience will make it […]

Types of Therapeutic Groups

Group therapy is a popular mode of therapy for both therapists and clients. Group therapy is a highly effective form of psychotherapy that is based on interdependence and interaction among the group members who mutually disclose personal material (Laski & Riva, 2006). While group therapy is sometimes used alone, it is also commonly integrated into […]

Happiness, Positive Psychology and Wellbeing

The concept of happiness is the corner stone of the assumptions of positive psychology. Happiness is characterised by the experience of more frequent positive affective states than negative ones as well as a perception that one is progressing toward important life goals (Tkach & Lyubomirsky, 2006). Identifying factors that contribute to happiness has proven to […]

Children and Emotional Development

A child’s earliest experiences with emotion most often occurs in the family setting. Consequently, the family plays an important role in the development of emotional understanding, particularly interactions between parents and children. For example, children who possess secure attachments with their parents show greater emotional understanding than those children who do not possess secure attachments […]

Reasons for Unresolved/Complicated Grief

In this post we explore psychological and social factors that may contribute to unresolved/complicated grief. Click here for a list of symptoms and behaviours of unresolved/complicated grief. Psychological factors Anger and guilt can often be a key source of adjustment difficulties in the process of grief. Guilt can inhibit the grief process if mourners are unable […]

Ten Barriers to Ethical Decisions in Counselling

Coleman (n.d) suggests ten (10) barriers to the ethical problem solving process. They are: Lack of knowledge of Ethical Standards Financial Incentives Perfectionism Fear of Criticism/Scrutiny by Others High Affiliative Needs Personal and/or Professional Immaturity Counsellor Substance Abuse Lack of Personal Values Clarification Limitations of Codes of Ethics and Conduct Lack of a Decision Making […]

7 Ways to Improve Intimacy in Your Relationship

Good relationships don’t just happen. Many people have the attitude that, “If I have to work at it, then it can’t be the right relationship.” This is not a true statement, any more than it’s true that you don’t have to work at good physical health through exercise, eating well, and stress reduction. There are […]

Treatment Steps in Behaviour Therapy

Behaviour therapy/counselling is used to help “clients acquire new coping skills, improve communication, or learn to break maladaptive habits and overcome self-defeating emotional conflicts” (Corsini & Wedding, 2000). The behavioural therapist/counsellor focuses on interpreting the client’s behaviour, emphasising a collaborative and positive relationship with the client and values the use of objectivity to assess and […]

Common Thinking Errors

Below is a list of descriptions that cognitive-behavioural counsellors can use to categorise automatic thoughts. These are descriptions of the common types of faulty thinking. All-or-nothing thinking: You see things in black and white categories. If your performance falls short of perfect, you see yourself as a total failure. Overgeneralisation: You see a single negative […]

Attachment Theory

Attachment theory has emerged as a leading tool for understanding the deeper roots of the dynamics in a close relationship. Originally developed to explain attachments of children to their caregivers, this theory has been especially fruitful in couple therapy as it helps to explain how adults come to depend on one another. Attachment is viewed […]