A Historical Perspective on Counselling

Discuss how the history and philosophical foundations of counseling have contributed to current trends and professional issues in clinical mental health counseling. Support your points using readings from the unit and at least one additional peer-reviewed article not found in the unit.

Significant Events in the Development of the Counseling Profession
1889 - Jane Addams
Established the Hull House in Chicago and marked the beginning of the social movement focusing on assisting the individual. Addams' philosophy influenced the social justice movement that grew in the counseling profession 100 years later.
1907 - Jesse B. Davis
Superintendant of the Grand Rapids, MI, school system, implemented the first systematic guidance program in public schools.
1908 - Frank Parsons
The "Father of Vocational Guidance," founded Boston's Vocational Bureau. This was the first major step in institutionalizing vocational guidance. Parsons worked with young people in making their career decisions. His theory proposed that choosing a vocation required relating three factors: a clear understanding of self, knowledge of work, and true reasoning of the relationship of the two. This framework would later become the basis trait/factor theory of career development.
1908 - A Mind That Found Itself is published
The book is an autobiographical account of Clifford Beers' experiences as a mental hospital patient. The following year, Beers founded the National Committee for Mental Hygiene (today's Mental Health America), which was the formal start of the reform movement to better conditions in mental hospitals and general care of the mentally ill.
1913 - National Vocational Guidance Association
The first counseling association (NVGA) was established at the National Society for Promotion of Industrial Education (NSPIE) meeting in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
1917 - Smith-Hughes Act
Provided funding for vocation education in public schools.
1917-1918 - U.S. Army screening draftees
The U.S. Army began using psychological instruments to screen draftees for fitness. The testing will be utilized on civilian populations after the war and the field of psychometrics was born.
1925 - Counselor certification
The first certification of counselors in New York and Boston takes place.
1929 - Abraham and Hannah Stone
Established the first marriage and family counseling center in New York City.
1930 - E.G. Williamson
The University of Minnesota's E.G. Williamson modified Parsons' theories and used the trait-and-factor theory to counsel students and the unemployed. This first counseling theory emphasized the teaching, mentoring, and influencing skills of the counselor. Williamson became the 10th president of the American College Personnel Association (1941-1945).
1932 - Education as Guidance published
Author Edmund Brewer proposed that teachers should be counselors, and that guidance be incorporated as a subject in curriculums to prepare students for life after completing school.
1939 - U.S. Employment Service established
The service was established and published the first edition of The Dictionary of Occupational Titles, which became the primary source of career information for guidance specialists.
1942 - Carl Rogers
Published Counseling and Psychotherapy, which challenged Williamson's counselor-centered approach and the major tenants of Freudian psychology. The book was both criticized and accepted for placing responsibility on the client for growth and change. Rogers also shifted the emphasis from statistics and testing to techniques and research. His revolutionary thoughts greatly impacted both psychology and counseling.
1942 - G.I. Bill
Passage of the Servicemen's Readjustment Act (the G.I. Bill) provided training for counseling and psychology graduate students funded by the Veteran's Administration by granting stipends and paid internships. Specifications for vocational counselors were established and the term "counseling psychologist" introduced.
1942-1945 - U.S. in World War II
During the war, the government used psychologists and counselors to help select specialists for industry and the military. Testing of individual abilities was used for the placement of soldiers and sailors into specialist training programs.
1952 - APGA founded
The American Personnel Guidance Association (APGA) was founded, bringing together groups interested in personnel issues, guidance, and counseling. The American Psychology Association formed Division 17, the Division of Counseling Psychology, for members wanting to work with a more "normal" population.
1958 - Sputnik I
National concerns in U.S. after the Soviet Union launched Sputnik I led to the enactment of the National Defense Education Act. Its primary purpose was to identify academically and scientifically talented students and promote their development.
1961 - Association for Humanistic Psychology
Following meetings in Detroit, MI, in the late 1950's of notable theorists such as Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow, Rollo May, and Clark Moustakas, the Association for Humanistic Psychology was formed. This was the beginning of the Third Force (humanistic counseling) movement which focused on a more holistic view of therapy.
1962 - The Counselor in a Changing World
The Gilbert Wrenn-authored book was published. Wrenn's premise is that with rapid advances in technology and changing social structures, counseling must move beyond working in isolation and work with others to resolve developmental needs.
1963 - Mental health centers established
The Community Mental Health Centers Act established and funded community mental health centers. This opened up employment opportunities for counselors outside of education.
1966 - ERIC established
The Office of Education Research and Improvement at the U.S. Department of Education established the ERIC Clearinghouse on Counseling and Personnel Services (CAPS) at the University of Michigan. ERIC will become the largest and most-used resource for counseling activities and trends in the U.S.
1976 - American Mental Health Counselor Association
The association was founded and became one of the largest divisions of the American Personnel and Guidance Association (APGA). As a result of increased restrictions by the state boards of examiners for psychologists, tension with the APGA led to the creation of a movement toward state licensure for counselors. The Commonwealth of Virginia became the first state to pass a law in 1976, requiring licensure of professional counselors. The last of the 50 states (California) did not pass counselor licensure until 2010.
1981 - CACREP formed
The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) was formed as an affiliate organization of the APGA. CACREP brought standardization to counselor education programs at the master's and doctoral levels.
1983 - NBCC begins certification
The National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC) formed and began to certify counselors at the national level. After much debate, the APGA changed its name to the American Association for Counseling and Development (AACD).
1985 - Chi Sigma Iota established
Chi Sigma Iota established as an international professional and academic honor society for counseling students. Currently, Capella University has the largest Chi Sigma Iota chapter in the world.
1987 - CACREP membership
CACREP gained membership in the Council on Postsecondary Accreditation, bringing it into a position of power parallel to other accreditation bodies such as the American Psychological Association.
1992 - AACD becomes ACA
To better reflect the membership and the mission of the organization, AACD became the American Counseling Association (ACA).
1994 - ACA and Red Cross partner
ACA partnered with the American Red Cross to provide counselors with training to become part of disaster response teams. Trained counselors now provide clinical services to the Red Cross in response to state and national disasters.
2009 - Important and Historic Victory
California Becomes 50th State to License Professional Counselors ACA President Lynn Linde applauded California's enactment of the licensure bill. "This is a momentous occasion; now all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have licensure. What this means is that professional counseling is now recognized in all areas of the country and, more importantly, that protections for the consumers will now exist everywhere. Licensure for counselors significantly expands the availability of mental health services, which is crucial to helping meet the need for services."
2010 - VA Recognizes Mental Health Counselors
The standards, released internally to VA staff open up mental health provider jobs within the Veteran's Administration to professional counselors. This is a landmark step forward for the counseling profession as well as an important means of expanding the pool of mental health service providers available to meet the large unmet treatment needs of our nation's veterans.
2011 - Independent TRICARE Practice for Counselors
Congress passed legislation that directs the Secretary of Defense to implement regulations authorizing counselors to practice independently under TRICARE by June 20, 2011. TRICARE is the health services program operated by the Department of Defense (DoD) for military personnel, retirees, and their dependents. For many years, counselors have been the only master's level mental health professionals required by TRICARE to operate under physician referral and supervision; all other covered mental health professionals have been allowed to practice independently for many years.
Credits
Subject Matter Expert:
Benjamin V. Noah, Ph.D., NCC, NCCC, ACS, LPC
Interactive Design:
Tara Schiller
Instructional Designer:
Rochelle Williams
Project Manager:
Melanie Laudenbach
Image Credits
• Zagalejo/Hull House at the University of Illinois at Chicago
• Schenectady, New York. School counselor at the Onieda School helping a mother and her child decide his career possibilities/Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black-and-White Negatives/Library of Congress, (LC-USW3- 033777-C)
• Three Lions/Stringer/Hulton Archive/Getty Images.
• Triplets William F., Robert J., and Henry L. Aldinger, all 18 years old, of Springfield, Long Island, New York, draw their uniforms and equiment after enlisting. Under army policy they will be kept in the same outfit, Prints & Photographs Division, Library of Congress, (LC-DIG-hec-06237).
• POLK, FRANK LYON, COUNSELOR, STATE DEPT., 1915; ACTING SEC. OF STATE, 1918-1919; UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE, 1920-1921. AT DESK, Prints & Photographs Division, Library of Congress, (LC-ppmsca-04598).
• Wilson's Teacher's college student, Prints & Photographs Division, Library of Congress, (LC-DIG-npcc-28272).
• General Photographic Agency/Stringer/Hulton Archive/Getty Images.
• "Power house mechanic working on steam pump" 1920. Vintage print. Records of the Work Projects Administration. (69-RH-4L-2)
• A young soldier of the armored forces holds and sights his Garand rifle like an old timer, Fort Knox, Ky. He likes the piece for its fine firing qualities and its rugged, dependable mechanism. Infantryman with halftrack (LOC), Prints & Photographs Division, Library of Congress, ( LC-USW36-174).
• Marines finishing training at Parris Island, S.C. (LOC), Prints & Photographs Division, Library of Congress, (LC-USW36-990).
• Portrait of Stan Kenton and Pete Rugolo, WORK, 1947 or 1948 (LOC), Prints & Photographs Division, Library of Congress, (LC-GLB13- 050).
• 50th Anniversary of Sputnik: Traveling Companion ©NASA
• © istockphoto.com/Yobro 10
• © istockphoto.com/David Palmer
• © istockphoto.com/Brad Killer
• © istockphoto.com/Lisa F. Young
• © istockphoto.com/Richard Clark
• © istockphoto.com/Kriss Russell
• Houston, TX., 9/3/2005 - Counselors and volunteers help stressed and grief stricken evacuees deal with the trauma of Hurricane Katrina in the Astrodome. FEMA photo/Andrea Booher