child and adolescent counseling chapter 1

Chapter 1

Introduction to a Child's
World
The honor of one is the honor of all
The hurt of one is the hurt of all
Creek Indian Creed

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Chapter Objectives
After reading this chapter, you should be able to:
•Discuss the state of children in the United States
•Explain indicators of well-being
•Outline the history of children’s rights
•Describe resilience
•List causes of children’s problems
•Define counseling and its possibilities
•Compare the work of professionals who help children
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Children's Defense Fund
Calls for adults to leave no child behind by working to
ensure
•

A healthy start

•

A head start

•

A fair start

•

A safe start and

•

A moral start

in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of
caring families and communities
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


History
•

Children as servants

•

Childhood as a special part of life

•

18th century brought attention to mental health concerns

•

Child labor laws and required schooling

•

Dorothea Dix, Sigmund Freud ,Anna Freud

•

In re Gault
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


What causes children's problems?
A changing world
•The American home
•Societal crises
•Changing values

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


A Changing World
The American Home
• Needed: warm, loving, stable home
• Varied family constellations

• Complex responsibilities of parents
• Less constructive parent-child time

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


A Changing World
Societal Crises
• Conflict-ridden society
• Tension, war, terrorism
• Poverty, job market

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


A Changing World
Changing Values
• Sexuality
• Lifestyles
• Gender roles
• Drugs
• Ethical & moral issues

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Summary
• Multiple risks factors = most vulnerable
• Most significant indicators of poor long-term
outcomes:

o
o
o
o
o
o

Not living with both parents
Household headed by high school dropout
Family income below poverty level
Parents without steady job
Family receiving welfare benefits
No health insurance
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


World Initiative
Children are individuals.
They start life as totally dependent beings.
The actions, or inactions, of government impact children more
strongly than any other group in society.
Children's views are rarely heard and rarely considered in the
political process yet many changes in society are having a
disproportionate, and often negative, impact on children.
The healthy development of children is crucial to the future wellbeing of any society.
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Indicators of Well-Being
1. Continuing, nurturing relationships

2. Physical protection and safety with regulations to
safeguard those needs
3. Experiences tailored to individual differences for each
child’s optimal development
4. Developmentally appropriate opportunities as building
blocks for cognitive, motor, language, emotional, and
social skills
5. Adults who set limits, provide structure, and guide by
having appropriate expectations
6. A community that is stable, supportive, and consistent
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Resilience
“What began as a quest to understand the
extraordinary has revealed the power of
the ordinary. Resilience does not come
from rare and special qualities, but from
the everyday magic of ordinary,
normative human resources in the
minds, brains, and bodies of children, in
their families and relationships, and in
their communities” (Masten, 2001, 235).
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Resilience
Outcomes: Personal Strengths
• Social competence
• Problem solving

• Autonomy
• A sense of purpose
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Resilience
Environmental characteristics that support
positive development:
• Caring and support
• High expectations
• Opportunities for participation

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Community Services
• Preventive
• Supportive
• Rehabilitative

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Counseling versus Psychotherapy
Counseling is more for:
• Clients
• Mild Disorders
o
o
o

o
o

Personal, social, vocational, educational, and
decision-making problems
Preventive and developmental concerns
Educational and developmental settings
Conscious concerns
Teaching Methods
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Counseling versus Psychotherapy
(Cont.)

Psychotherapy is more for:
• Patients
• Serious disorders
o
o
o
o
o

Personality problems
Remedial problems
Clinical and Medical settings
Unconscious concerns
Healing methods

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


What is counseling?
The Practice of Professional Counseling:
The application of mental health,
psychological or human development
principles, through cognitive, affective,
behavioral, or systemic intervention
strategies, that address wellness,
personal growth, or career development
as well as pathology.
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Counseling
• Counseling involves a relationship between
two people so that one person can help the
other resolve a problem.
• Counseling can work to create a healthy
environment
• Counseling can work to prevent “normal”
problems from becoming more serious
problems.
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Counseling Process
• The client’s thoughts and feelings
about life at present

• Where the client would like to be in life
• Plans to reduce any discrepancy
between the first and second area

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Categories of Problems
• Interpersonal conflict, or conflict with others
• Intrapersonal conflict, or conflict with self
• Lack of information about self
• Lack of information about the environment
• Lack of skill

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Counseling Focus Scale
Finding meaning and
purpose in living

5
4
3
2
1

2
No Problem
solving

-5 -4 -3 -2 -1
3

Child A

1

1 2 3 4 5
-1
-2
4
-3
-4
-5

Finding no meaning and
purpose in living

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A

Problem
solving


Mental Health Professionals
Variety of professions such as:
•

Counselors, psychologists, psychiatrists, social

workers, marriage and family therapists, juvenile
justice workers and others

Variety of duties such as:
•
•

Individual counseling, group counseling,
consultation
Helping with social, developmental, educational
or vocational concerns; collecting and analyzing
data, evaluating
© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Help children by
• Providing comprehensive home- and
community-based services
• Creating family support and partnerships
• Offering culturally competent care and
eliminating disparities in access to resources
• Individualizing care for each child

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A


Help children by
• Using evidence-based practices
• Coordinating services and designating
responsibility for wrap-around care

• Delivering multiple prevention activities for
groups at risk starting in early childhood
• Expanding mental health services in schools

© 2011 Brooks/Cole, A