Fundamentals of Counseling:

DANTES Final Exam Outline 

Each topic will be covered in class. 

     

Historical Development (4% - 6%)

 

• Significant Influences and Historical Elements: With the rise of science, the power of the church declined, and it was not always able to give the help that was needed.

• People of Significance: Frank Parsons was known as “The father of the guidance movement,” and credited with being the first true counselor.

 

Counselor Roles and Functions (19% - 21%)

 

• The Profession of Counseling: Professional counselors have a minimum of a master's degree (M.Ed.) in counseling.

• Role expectations of counseling in various settings: Comfort, security/privacy, noise/stimuli control, and a supportive environment are crucial to counseling.

• Professional Associations: Examples include the American Counseling Association (ACA) and the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) among others.

• Consultation: The process whereby an expert enables a consultee to deliver services more effectively to the client.

• Group approaches: This involves facilitating interaction among a group of members to help them learn from one another.

• Family counseling: Treatment to help families overcome mental or emotional problems that may result within the home.

• Individual counseling: The traditional, one-on-one setting most commonly associated with the profession.

• Advocacy: Speaking and acting on behalf of the client.

 

The Counseling Relationship (14% - 16%)

 

• Communication: Involves both Verbal and non-verbal behavior of the client.

• Counselor Characteristics and Skills: Ability to listen and convey understanding without judgment.

• Ethical and legal issues: Adherence to ethical codes and standards relevant to the profession of career counseling (e.g. NBCC, NCDA, and ACA).

 

Theoretical Approaches (19% - 21%)

 

• Psychodynamic: Focuses on the unconscious process as they manifest in a person in real time.

• Humanistic and Experiential: The focus is on helping the individual recognize strengths and creativity and be in the “here and now”.

• Cognitive – Behavioral: By changing one's negative behavior (bad habits), one's behavior and effect will also change.

• Behavioral: Like Cognitive Therapy, it seeks to change one's behavior.

• Systems: Behavior patterns and the human experience are explored by using complex systems.

• Postmodern approaches: Narrative, Solution-Focused, and Collaborative Language Systems are three of the most common types.

 

Social and Cultural Foundations (14% - 16%)

 

• Multicultural issues (e.g., religion race, ability, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, socioeconomics, spiritual, non-traditional approaches, etc.): A multicultural approach to counseling challenges the assumption that one style of interviewing is transferable to all clients.

• Discrimination issues (e.g., gender, age, sexual orientation, disability, AIDS, managed care, etc.): Try to understand what causes them and how they can be removed.

• Societal concerns (e.g., substance abuse, physical and sexual abuse, stress, violence): Counselors must be able to articulate and implement counseling intervention strategies perceived as appropriate by both the counselor and the client.

 

Career Development (6% - 8%)

 

• Theories: There are two types of career development theories: structural and developmental.

• Decision-making models: Some decision-making theories hypothesize that there are critical points in our lives when choices are made that greatly influence our career development.

• Career Information Resources: The Occupational Outlook Handbook provides detailed descriptions of hundreds of occupations, including salary expectations and growth outlook.

 

Human Growth and Development (7% - 9%)

 

• Child development: Children’s basic survival depends on forming meaningful, effective relationships with other people.

• Adolescent development: An adolescent is discovering their true identity amid confusion created by playing many different roles for different people in their social surroundings.

• Adulthood: An essential stage in early adulthood allows a person to have the capacity for closeness and commitment to another.

 

Assessment and Appraisal Techniques (9% - 11%)

 

• Testing and measurement: To obtain reliable evidence that generate valid results, researchers follow the scientific method.

• Models of Assessment: Scientific theories undergo rigorous testing, and independent investigators must replicate the results before the theories are recognized as proven.

• Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders, 4th Ed. (DSM-IV): DSM-IV is the current diagnostic and statistical manual of the American Psychiatric Association that classifies, defines, and describes over 200 mental disorders.