The Developing Practitioner: Growth and Stagnation of Therapists and Counselors

by Ronnestad; Michael Helge

• ISBN13: 9780415884594
• ISBN10: 0415884594
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2012-07-12
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the professional development of counselors and therapists over the career lifespan. Drawing on their own experiences as psychotherapists, supervisors, teachers, and researchers, as well as from their own extensive study of the topic, the authors provide a synthesis of this knowledge that all counselors and psychotherapists will find valuable and useful. Readers will be provided with empirically based conceptual knowledge that can increase their awareness of the central issues in professional development, allowing them to monitor their own development. Educators and supervisors will find information to help them better insure a constructive learning environment for their students, and supervisees and students will gain a better understanding of what the challenges and experiences during training and later phases of professional development are. The authors discuss the concept of development and review the research literature on practitioner development, and then provide detailed descriptions of its six phases: the lay helper, the beginning student, the advanced student, the novice professional, the experienced professional, and the senior professional. Aspects of each phase addressed include the developmental tasks unique to that phase; the sources of influence and the learning process which impacts therapeutic work and a sense of development; the perception of the professional role and working sty≤ and therapists " measures of effectiveness and satisfaction.