The Professional, the Quest for Licensure and the Value of Certification
Michael C. Lazarchick, Ph.D.
The purpose of this document is to provide a brief history of counseling as a
concept, discuss the licensure process and shed light on certification in relationship
to both.
Counseling has probably existed since the dawn of civilization. Undoubtedly, ancient leaders and humans in general have always sought direction to help deal with every day problems, decision making, crises or the general demands of life. We would think those most likely called upon were the most sensitive, empathic, prudent and wisest people in the community. We can easily suggest that there have been excellent counselors long before formal programs and accreditation processes ever developed in our modern times. The process of counseling is clearly very old. Indeed, it has been argued that counseling is interwoven within the role of religious leader, doctor, confessor, lawyer, ambassador, spouse, parent, nurse, monk, consultant, political advisor, and arguably, also that of valet, maid, chauffeur, barber, waitress, and bartender.
Jonathan Plucker (2003) offers a
history of Psychology. William Wundt, the German
Philosopher & Psychologist, is often referred to as the “Father of Modern
Psychology.” During 1870, he founded an experimental psychology laboratory at
the
During 1943, the American Psychological Association
Division 17 came into existence, originally named the Division of Counseling
and Guidance. The founding was impacted by Carl Rogers and it focused on
vocational guidance, exploring experiences and the use of tests. During 1951,
C. Gilbert Wrenn coined the term, "Counseling
Psychology," separating it from other psychology fields in an effort to
help define its purview. APA Division 17 changed its name to Counseling Psychology
and, for all intents and
purposes, made a claim on “counseling” as a psychological field, needing a PhD
degree.
John J. Schweska in the Ancient root of counseling (1999) tells us another story about counseling, “At the turn of the century, the counselor emerged out of the educational system: new school and competence testing, youth activity/career programs, health care/ hygiene and advisement regarding everyday problems and goals.”
Indeed, during 1913 the National Vocational Guidance Association (NVGA) was founded, to advocate for professional standards in the field that would eventually lead to guidance counseling and today be called school counseling.
During 1951, while APA was claiming counseling, NVGA
joined together with the National Association of Guidance and Counselor Trainers
(NAGCT), the Student Personnel Association for Teacher Education (SPATE), and
the American College Personnel Association to form the American
Personnel and Guidance Association. That name was changed to the American Association of
Counseling and Development during 1983 and on
We can of course include Social Work in the historical perspective (Murry, 1996-97). Back in 1889, Jane Addams, who is credited with starting the field of social work, opened Hull House to Chicago immigrants crowded into a residential and industrial neighborhood, providing services such as kindergarten and daycare facilities for children of working mothers, an employment bureau, an art gallery, libraries, and music and art classes. During 1920, the Association of Training Schools of Professional Social Work was founded. During 1952 it became the Council on Social Work Education, which today is recognized as the accrediting body for Social Work education. During 1955, the National Association for Social Workers (NASW) was established. NASW recognizes professional Social Work at the Master’s Degree level, however does certify those that have completed some bachelor of social work programs.
The term “profession” is defined by the Merriam Webster dictionary (Merriam Webster On Line) as “an act of openly declaring or publicly claiming a belief, faith, or opinion or a calling requiring specialized knowledge and often long and intensive academic preparation.” From the short history above, we can see that psychology, social work and counseling were seeking identity, the acknowledgement of their names, just before and at the turn of the century. With the establishment of professional associations and certainly the activities of the 1950s, I see a clear shift towards establishing “Professional Identity.” Professional associations are advocates for their members, offer opportunity for continuing education, eventually establish standards of practice, publish ethics and competencies, offer certifications and lobby for licensure. However, it would be worthwhile looking at licensure before we continue the discussion of professional associations and certifications.
The Licensure movement can be traced back to 1945 when
the state of
In 1967, the Licensed Clinical Social Worker Program was
established. In 1970, a licensing program for Educational Psychologists was
added and the Board then became known as the Board of Behavioral Science
Examiners. During 1976,
From national perspective, psychology was the first of these three professions to attain widespread licensure, and supposedly not without arguments against their qualifications to practice from Psychiatrists and the American Medical Association. Psychologists, following the same pattern, supposedly argued against the licensure of social workers and counselors, again questioning their qualifications to practice. It is fair to say that those who call themselves psychologists and social workers, as professionals, have had a longer history of name identification within the general public than individuals who call themselves counselors. It is quit common to say, “I am a licensed professional counselor” and hear, “you mean a psychologist” or “school counselor” or perhaps even, “lawyer?” Despite supposed arguments for or against, progressively, during the past couple of decades, social worker and counselor advocates have won their battles as more and more states pass licensure laws.
Rather than digress into a formal discussion of why and how governments
came into existence, I will simply suggest that human who chose to live
in communities eventually accepted a leader and some type of system to set down
rules and regulations that would allow all members of the community to interact
with reasonable harmony. For
psychologists, social workers and counselors, the license clarifies scope of
practice and excludes individuals who do not meet fairly well defined
parameters and of course, also exists to protect the public. Licensing
requirements are established by state legislatures in the
In its quest to identify counseling as more than one of the things done
by psychologists and social workers, the American Counseling Association (ACA On Line) defines
The Practice of Professional Counseling as, ”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.” John J. Schweska (1999) also states that The Journal of Counseling
and Development describes the counselor as “a hybrid born from a relationship
between psychology and education with ties to core health care
disciplines.”
They assist clients to help themselves by identifying and mobilizing strengths, and developing skills that carry them beyond the resolution of the immediate issue. Professional counselors truly practice health care rather than solely the treatment of disorders, abnormalities, or diseases alone.”
Returning to the role of professional associations, we might say they
first come into existence to organize a profession, to provide a forum for
discussion for all who wish to participate. Associations go through a
process of defining who they represent and set about making rules and
regulations to define their scope of practice.
Eventually they get to the concept of certification which is nothing
more than a piece of paper that announces that the recipient has achieved a
prescribed set of “goals” that in essence define the piece of paper. This is an
important concept for this discussion. Certifications are not regulated by law.
Any association, any organization or any person has the right to provide
certifications that they in essence define. From a professional organization
perspective, interested in eventual licensure law, those certifications may
indeed be quite rigorous. One could argue that the American Psychological
Association defined professional counseling at the PhD level to support their
parity with the American Medical Association in the eyes of the legislature.
From personal experience, being involved with the licensure efforts of the New
Jersey Counseling Association, we instituted a
Registry of Professional Counselors back in 1982, and did discuss setting
standards that we felt necessary to achieve parity with psychologists and
social workers in the eyes of the legislature. However, we are not here to
argue politics or what might or might not have happened on the journey towards
license. What is clear is that licensure is a goal of strong organizations
because the legislature makes laws that are defended in our courts.
Other than those who were grandfathered into licensure based on
experience and years of practice, who may or may not
have been otherwise eligible under the law, the existing requirements are
substantial for social workers and counselors. Furthermore we see the emergence
of the clinical social worker and clinical mental health counselor, designations
which clearly are meant to suggest parity with PhD psychologists involving
diagnosis in an effort to achieve insurance coverage. Our purpose here however
is not to discuss the politics or evolving licensure for these three
professions, but rather to use the process described thus far to help us
understand the myriad of certifications that seem to be appearing on a fairly
regular basis.
Fortunately ACINET lists the criteria it feels important in determining
the value of a credential. Below, italicized, is an example using the Pastoral
Counseling Certification.
|
Certification
Requirements |
Training and
Experience |
|
Exam Required? |
No |
|
Certifying
Organization |
American Association
of Pastoral Counselors |
|
Certifying
Organization Address |
|
|
Certifying
Organization Webpage |
|
|
Certifying
Organization Phone |
7033856967 |
|
Certifying
Organization Fax |
7033527725 |
|
Certifying
Organization Email |
|
|
For More Information,
Visit |
View
all
certifications offered by this organization.
Utilizing this system, we can quickly determine how difficult the
certification is to acquire and have direct links to analyze the certification
organization and do more in depth research on any issues of concern.
In conclusion, professionals are people who profess to have specialized
knowledge not possessed by the general public. Becoming licensed to practice a
profession is fairly well defined by law and is most certainly desired by those
who hold the qualifications. Between declaring that a profession exists and
becoming licensed, falls the certification process. It may be quite extensive
and on par with the eventual licensure law or as uncomplicated as declaring
your competence and accepting a mail order certificate for a fee. With a lot of
variations in between, the ACINET Certification Finder proves to be a very
useful tool.
References
American Counseling Association. ACA On
Line. Retrieved
Association of Social Work Boards.
On-Line Retrieved
5 Lazarchick
Certification Finder. (1999). ACINET On Line. Retrieved
Harrington, Kate. (2001-2002). Hugo Munsterberg.
Retrieved
Helpguide.org.(1996-2004 ). Licensed Mental Health
Professionals. Retrieved
History of Psychology (387 BC to Present). Psychology Timeline. Retrieved July3, 2004, from http://allpsych.com/timeline.html
Hull
House Museam Home Page. (1997). Jane Addams Biography . Retrieved
Merriam
Webster On-Line. Dictionary. Retrieved
Murray, Jill (MSW).
(1996-97). The Social Work History
On-Line Time-Line. Retrieved
National
Board for Certified Counselors. (2002). Largest
Certification Service of the Counseling Profession. Retrieved
Plucker, J. A. (Ed.).
(2003). Human intelligence: Historical influences, current controversies,
teaching resources. Retrieved
Pope, Mark ( Ed.D.). (1997).
History of Counseling. Retrieved
Raabe,
Peter B (Ph.D.). (1999) Philosophical Counseling.
Retrieved
Schweska,
John J (L.P.C.). (1999). The Ancient Roots of
Counseling. Retrieved
State
of