Selecting a Theory of Counseling: Personal and Professional Congruency for Counseling Students

Conceptualizing and measuring counselors' theoretical orientation.

“…There is considerable research showing regularly observed differences between counselors holding different theoretical positions. In particular, differences in epistemic beliefs (e.g., Finch, Mattson, & Moore, 1993;Kimble, 1984;Peterson & Bradley, 1980), verbal response behavior (e.g., Brunink & Schroeder, 1979;Hill, Thames, & Rardin, 1979;Lee & Uhlemann, 1984;Stiles, 1979), and use of specific therapeutic techniques (e.g., Gomes-Schwartz, 1978;Luborsky, Singer, & Luborsky, 1975;Strupp, 1955aStrupp, , 1955bStrupp, , 1957Sundland, 1977) have been shown to correspond with differences in espoused theoretical orientations of counselors.…”