Spirituality in counsellor education: a new course

Religion and pet loss: afterlife beliefs, religious coping, prayer and their associations with sorrow

“…In fact, in one study, mourners who exhibited emotion dysregulation during interviews about their bereavement experiences tended to also be negative religious copers (Lee, Roberts, & Gibbons, 2013). Therefore, counsellors should be educated on working with all sides of religion, from the supportive elements to spiritual emergencies such as feeling abandoned by God (Leseho, 2007).…”

“…Despite the growing recognition that pet loss (Clements, Benasutti, & Carmone, 2003) and religion (Leseho, 2007) are important topics for mainstream counselling, there has been very little empirical work for counsellors to draw upon when confronted with these issues. Although the literature on the role of religion in bereavement has been growing (Wortmann & Park, 2008), there are only a handful of empirical studies that have explicitly examined the links between religion and grief among mourners of deceased pets (e.g., Davis, Irwin, Richardson, & O'Brien-Malone, 2003;Lee & Surething, 2013).…”

A Constructivist Perspective for Integrating Spirituality Into Counselor Training

“…To achieve this goal, educators can attend to the language they use, avoid rigid labels, challenge assumptions, and acknowledge the contextual nature of ideas and beliefs (Hodge & Derezotes, 2008; McAuliffe, 2011b). It is also important to emphasize multiple perspectives, embrace differences, and encourage plurality (Hage et al, 2006; Hodge & Derezotes, 2008; Leseho, 2007; Watts, 2011). In the classroom, this means that special attention should be given to hearing a variety of viewpoints and perspectives (McAuliffe, 2011b).…”

“…First, avoiding discussions of spirituality and religion may communicate to trainees that these topics are not relevant or are perhaps viewed as harmful to the counseling process (Grimm, 1994). Whether trainees hold spiritual or religious beliefs or affiliate with a belief system that plays an important role in their lives, they should be encouraged to listen to one another and build on the ideas generated (Hage et al, 2006; Leseho, 2007; McAuliffe, 2011b). Talking about spiritual and religious concepts related to counseling during discussions can also promote relativism when varying views are shared, examined, and reflected upon (Hage et al, 2006; McAuliffe, 2011b).…”

Spirituality, religion and counselling practice: a guide to competent integration

“…, Cashwell & Young, 2004;Leseho, 2007;Myers & Williard, 2003;O'Connor, 2004;Pate & Hall, 2005 ;Souza, 2002). Indeed, there are more opportunities today for students and clinicians to become competent in religious and spiritual matters related to counselling than ever before.…”