Counselor trainee disability competence: Implications for training
Conference Strand
Research and Theory
Abstract
Individuals with disabilities (IWDs) comprise 12.8% of the U.S. population, and their number is expected to increase. However, inadequate attention has been given to IWDs in multicultural training and research. The presenter will discuss the design and results of her quantitative study examining counselor trainee disability competence and inclusion of IWDs in multicultural coursework. Implications for training will be address.
Evidence
Cross, L., Lauer, E., Coleman, R., & Houtenville, A. (2018) 2017 Disability statistics annual report. Institute on Disability, University of New Hampshire. Retrieved from https://eric.edugov/?id=ED583258
D’Andrea, M. Skouge, J., & Daniels, J. (2006). Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness: Expanding the multicultural-social justice family to include persons with disabilities. Guidance and Counseling, 21(2), 70-78.
Feather, K. A. & Carlson, R. G. (2019). An initial investigation of individual instructor’s self-perceived competence and incorporating disability content into CACREP accredited programs: Rethinking training in counselor education. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 47(1), 19-36. Doi:10.1002/jmcd.12118
Nicpon, M. F. & Lee, S. (2012). Disability research in counseling psychology journals: A 20-year content analysis. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 59(3), 392-398. Doi:10.1037/a0028743
Priester, P. E., Jones, J. E., Jackson-Bailey, C. M., Jana-Masri, M., Jordan, E. X., & Metz, A. J. (2012). An analysis of content and instructional strategies in multicultural counseling courses. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 36(1), 29-39. Doi:10.1002/j.2161-1912
Strike, D. L., Skovholt, T. M., & Hummel, T. J. (2004). Mental health professionals’ disability competence: Measuring self-awareness, perceived knowledge, and perceived skills. Rehabilitation Psychology, 49(4), 321-327. Doi:10.1037/0090-5550.49.4.321
Sue, D. W., Sue, D., Neville, H. A., & Smith, L. (2019). Counseling the culturally diverse: Theory and practice (8th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley & Sons.
Format
Individual Presentations
Biographical Sketch
Dr. Melissa D. Deroche is a second year tenure-track Assistant Professor in the Division of Counseling, Rehabilitation, and Interpreter Training at Troy University. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Alabama and Louisiana, an LPC approved supervisor (LPC-S) in Louisiana, and she holds certifications as an Approved Clinical Supervisor (ACS) and a National Certified Counselor (NCC). In 2014, Dr. Deroche was one of twenty-two doctoral students awarded a fellowship from the NBCC Minority Fellowship Program. She has extensive experience counseling individuals with severe mental illness and those with sensory, physical, and cognitive disabilities. She has presented on the topic of ability/disability in counselor training, as well as the needs and concerns of individuals with disabilities at state, regional, national, and international conferences, and she has co-authored a book chapter addressing the benefits and challenges associated with the use of technology to assist in supervision that included access considerations for supervisors and supervisees with disabilities. Her research interests include multicultural training, preparation, and competence related to persons with disabilities, as well as the social justice concerns of this population.
Location
Session Three Breakouts: Hampton C
Start Date
2-7-2020 2:30 PM
End Date
2-7-2020 3:45 PM
Recommended Citation
Deroche, Melissa D., "Counselor trainee disability competence: Implications for training" (2020). National Cross-Cultural Counseling and Education Conference for Research, Action, and Change. 16.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/ccec/2020/2020/16
Counselor trainee disability competence: Implications for training
Session Three Breakouts: Hampton C
Individuals with disabilities (IWDs) comprise 12.8% of the U.S. population, and their number is expected to increase. However, inadequate attention has been given to IWDs in multicultural training and research. The presenter will discuss the design and results of her quantitative study examining counselor trainee disability competence and inclusion of IWDs in multicultural coursework. Implications for training will be address.
Description
Individuals with disabilities (IWDs) comprise 12.8% of the U.S. population, and their number is expected to increase as the population ages, making it likely that counselor, regardless of specialization, will encounter clients with disabilities. However, the needs and concerns of IWDs have typically been relegated to the field of rehabilitation and given inadequate attention in other areas of counselor training. Over the past 15 years, scholars have asserted that disability competence should be integrated into the multicultural and social justice frameworks and included within the tripartite structure of multicultural competence (i.e., self-awareness, knowledge, and skills).
The minority model of disability and the multicultural and social justice counselor competencies (MSJCC) provide a foundation for discussing Multicultural disability competence. The minority model of disability contends that disablement is the result of negative societal attitudes, environmental barriers, and lack of accommodations; while, the MSJCC identifies attitudes and beliefs, knowledge, skills, and actions as areas for competency. To provide increased guidance, the American Rehabilitation Counselors Association (ARCA) recently published disability-related competencies pertinent to both counselor training and practice.
The presenter will use the MSJCC framework and the minority group model of disability to discuss how multicultural counseling coursework and cross-cultural contact experiences impacted master’s-level counselor trainees perceived multicultural disability competence. A summary of findings regarding the extent to which CACREP accredited programs are addressing the topic of ability/disability in their multicultural counseling courses and the instructional strategies used in their curricula will be covered. Implications of the research findings on multicultural training will be discussed with participants in an interactive format. Instructional strategies that coincide with the ARCA disability-related competencies will also be addressed.