Toward a More Unified Understanding of Personal Development in Counsellor Training Programs

Abstract

Current conceptualizations of the key personal characteristics associated with effective counsellors vary, which highlights the lack of consensus on what these characteristics constitute and how they are developed. While some characteristics are consistent, other characteristics identified in these studies as important for counsellors in training are not consistent with the research into the personal characteristics associated with therapeutic effectiveness. There is a clear disjunction between the personal characteristics associated with therapeutic effectiveness and the characteristics deemed necessary in counsellor training, and this makes the task of developing an appropriate curriculum and learning environment a challenging one for counsellor educators. Despite stipulations in various training standards that personal development work be incorporated into counselling programs, there is limited research on the experiences, processes, and strategies that effectively promote personal development in trainee counsellors. Implications and recommendations for future research in counsellor training are included.