The authors discuss the historical and contemporary connection to social justice issues in the fields of counseling and counseling psychology via the multicultural counseling movement. In addition, the authors present ways in which social justice issues can be addressed in counselors' and counseling psychologists' work with clients from diverse cultural backgrounds and in graduate training programs.

Social Justice and Multicultural Issues: Implications for the Practice and Training of Counselors and Counseling Psychologists

A case is made to consider social justice as a fifth force complementary to the psychodynamic, cognitive behavioral, existential-humanistic, and multicultural forces in counseling This article explores how social justice is shifting the counseling paradigm and how the ACA (American Counseling Association) Advocacy Competencies (J A Lewis, M S Arnold, R House, & R L Toporek, 2002) complement this movement Implications are also discussed ********** The counseling profession is in the midst of a transformation Specifically, there is a growing movement within the profession calling on counselors to return to their roots by infusing a social justice perspective into counseling theories, paradigms, and practices (Toporek, Gerstein, Fouad, Roysircar, & Israel, 2006) A social justice perspective in counseling acknowledges issues of power, privilege, and oppression (Fouad, Gerstein, & Toporek, 2006) Moreover, a social justice counseling approach uses social advocacy and activism as a means to address inequitable social, political, and economic conditions that impede on the academic, career, and personal/social development of individuals, families, and communities The belief is that social advocacy is a necessary step to address issues of equity for those who have been marginalized in society This is a position that aligns with the American Counseling Association's (ACA; 2005) ACA Code of Ethics, which states in Section A6a, "when appropriate, counselors advocate at the individual, group, institutional, and societal levels to examine potential barriers and obstacles that inhibit access and/or the growth and development of clients" (p 5) The need to make social justice a clearer presence in the field is primarily fueled by forces such as the continued marginalization of those who live on the fringes of society (L Smith, Baluch, Bernabei, Robohm, & Sheehy, 2003); the growing awareness that well-intentioned counselors are not adequately drawing the connection between oppression and mental health issues (Jacobs, 1994); and the increasing realization that counseling paradigms, which focus solely on the individual without regard for environmental factors, may be limiting (Prilleltensky, 1994) These concerns have led to calls to expand the counselor role to include social justice advocacy (Fouad et al, 2006; Lee & Hipolito-Delgado, 2007) The resurgence of a social justice counseling perspective led Ratts, D'Andrea, and Arredondo (2004) to refer to the profession's attempt to return to its roots as a fifth force in the field Based on this perspective, social justice counseling follows the psychodynamic, cognitive behavioral, existential-humanistic, and multicultural counseling forces that exist in the profession Other scholars have also followed suit indicating that social justice counseling is a reemerging force that is shaping how human behavior is explained and the ways in which counseling is currently being practiced (Fouad et al, 2006; Goodman et al, 2004; Lee, 2007) Labeling social justice as a fifth force is not a position shared by everyone For example, S D Smith, Reynolds, and Rovnak (2009) suggested that the social justice counseling movement should be viewed as a "recurring wave" (p 484) because the concepts are not new S D Smith et al further added that this movement needs to be grounded in more research if it is to gain credibility in the field I concur Social justice has been a part of the counseling profession since its inception, and more research needs to be conducted to determine best practices However, classifying social justice as a fifth force is not suggesting that it is a new concept Rather, it has more to do with acknowledging how the social justice perspective has matured since its infancy in the early 1900s Moreover, it is about recognizing the depth, breadth, and widespread impact the social justice perspective is currently having on the counseling profession …

Social Justice Counseling: Toward the Development of a Fifth Force Among Counseling Paradigms

Extent of burnout experienced by conseling psychologists and the relationship between levels of burnout and different types of practice settings, selected demographic and work-related variables were investigated in this study. Burnout was defind in terms of the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) subsxales. Multiple regression anslyses were perforned on the data (n = 521). Counseling psychologists in private practice reported the lowest levels of burnout, while those employed in hospital settings reported the highest levels of Burnout. A positive relationship was found between hours of client contact per week and sense of personal accomplishment. Finally, an inverse relationship was reported between age and burnout, and males experienced greater depersonalization of clients than females.

Burnout in counseling psychologists: Type of practice setting and pertinent demographics

For centuries, compassion has been a central virtue in all major religious
traditions. It has also appeared – sometimes indirectly – in the literature on
social psychology under headings such as empathy, altruism, and prosocial
behavior (e.g. Batson et al., 1999). In psychotherapy, compassion has been
viewed as crucial, but again, often under different names – empathy,
unconditional positive regard, containment or holding, client-therapist rapport, and working alliance. Compassion appears, partially disguised, in the
extensive literature on good parenting, under headings such as availability,
sensitivity, and responsiveness. In recent years compassion has become visible
in its own right, partly because of the growing emphasis in educated circles
on Buddhism, which highlights compassion (Dalai Lama, 2001, 2002), and
partly because of the tendency for compassion to wear thin in cases of
‘compassion fatigue’ (e.g. Keidel, 2002), a common problem in the helping
professions.

An attachment-theoretical approach to compassion and altruism

Considerable research relevant to counselor and therapist development has been done since Worthington's (1987) review. Additional support has surfaced for Worthington's conclusions: There is support for general developmental models, perceptions of supervisors and supervisees are consistent with developmental theories, the behaviors of supervisors change as counselors gain experience, and the supervision relationship changes as counselors gain experience. Although the types of research used and the sophistication of data analysis have improved somewhat, too few studies directly address changes over time for trainees in supervision. Suggestions are given for future research in supervision to reflect the level of specificity necessary to investigate developmental models.

https://psycnet.apa.org/journals/pro/25/4/416.pdf

Changes in supervision as counselors and therapists gain experience: A review.

This article describes how the faculty of a counselor education program developed and implemented a social advocacy model of counselor preparation.

Developing a Social Advocacy Model for Counselor Education

The authors assessed counselor expectations of supervision and counselor burnout. A sample consisting of 120 members of the Oregon Personnel and Guidance Association completed the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and the Counselor Supervision Inventory (CSI).

James L. Firth

Papers

Developing a Social Advocacy Model for Counselor Education

Burnout and Counselor Practitioner Expectations of Supervision