PASTORAL COUNSELING

Pastoral Counseling
from American Association of Pastoral Counselors website  http://aapc.org
 

 
Mission
The mission of the American Association of Pastoral Counselors is to bring healing, hope, and wholeness to individuals, families, and communities by expanding and equipping spiritually grounded and psychologically informed care, counseling, and psychotherapy
 
What is Pastoral Counseling
Pastoral counseling moves beyond the support or encouragement a religious community can offer, by providing psychologically sound therapy that weaves in the religious and spiritual dimension. "It is interesting to note that not only is this a time of increased emphasis on therapy, but also a time of increased interest in spirituality," said Gerald DeSobe, PhD, past president of AAPC. "Combining these two areas in a person’s life in helpful and healing ways is what pastoral counselors do."
 
"AAPC affirms as a moral imperative that the American people, without exception, must have access to quality health care," says Roy Woodruff, PhD, past executive director of AAPC. "That imperative refers not only to mental health resources, but also the quality of services."

Under the auspices of AAPC, pastoral counseling adheres to rigorous standards of excellence, including education and clinical training, professional certification and licensure. Typical education for the AAPC-certified pastoral counselor consists of study that leads to:
 
 

• a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university
• a three-year professional degree from a seminary
• a specialized masters or doctoral degree in the mental health field
•  

A significant portion of this education is spent in clinical training. Post-graduate training involves completion of at least 1,375 hours of supervised clinical experience (that is, the counselor provides individual, group, marital and family therapy) and 250 hours of direct approved supervision of the therapist’s work in both crisis and long-term situations.
 
"As a result of this extensive study, pastoral counselors are among the most educated of mental health professionals," notes Woodruff. "Pastoral counselors also possess a depth of training that is significantly more intense than that of many other mental health professionals of the core disciplines."
 
Beyond education and training, certification is also key in ensuring excellence in pastoral counseling. Candidates seeking certification as a pastoral counselor by AAPC are thoroughly tested and evaluated to assure that AAPC certifies only the most competent individuals who not only have the required education and clinical training but who possess the highest personal standards.
 
History note
The American Association of Pastoral Counselors was founded in 1963 as an organization which certifies Pastoral Counselors, accredits pastoral counseling centers, and approves training programs. It is an interfaith organization representing in pastoral counseling work more than 80 faith groups including the Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish faiths. It is non-sectarian and respects the spiritual commitments and religious traditions of those who seek assistance without imposing counselor beliefs onto the client.
 
"It only makes sense that religion and psychology - each of which is concerned with the fullness of the human experience - should be recognized as partners, because they function as partners within the human psyche," said Dr. Arthur Caliandro.
 
Today, pastoral counseling accounts for three million hours of treatment annually in institutional and private settings. In addition, the number of AAPC-certified pastoral counselors has tripled in the last 20 years.
 
 
Pastoral Counseling Today
 
Pastoral Counseling Today Gaining Momentum
Demand for spiritually based counseling is on the rise. Indeed, interest in spirituality is on the rise. A recent report, Religion and the Public Interest, incorporating the research findings of groups including the Gallup Organization and Lilly Endowment, Inc., reported that 96% of the population - 242 million Americans - say they believe in God. A 1996 USA Today survey found that 79% of Americans acknowledge that faith can help recovery from illness. According to another survey, 77% of patients feel their physician should consider their spiritual needs. In a 1994 Newsweek poll, 58% of respondents said they feel the need to experience spiritual growth.
 
Despite increased interest in psychotherapy and increasing numbers of therapists, the advent of managed mental health care has brought a reduction to many people of counseling services available to them. As a result, many people still turn to clergy for help with personal, marital and family issues as well as faith issues. Additionally, many working poor have no insurance benefits at all and need to seek free or low-cost counseling from their pastors.
 
Because of the missional nature of pastoral counseling, most counselors make every effort to ensure services are available to those who seek them. While most centers and counselors charge a standard fee for counseling services, adjustments can often be made according to financial need. Others provide a sliding scale.
 
Pastoral counselors and counseling centers often work in partnership with congregations and community centers. Educational programs are often offered as part of a congregation’s adult education or a hospital’s community education programs. Some programs are free, while others involve multi-session courses on marriage preparation, divorce adjustment or coping with grief. In developing new services, pastoral counselors are sensitive to national and local issues. Nationwide, pastoral counselors are breaking ground in individual counseling for victims of sexual abuse.
 
Through partnerships with clergy, pastoral counselors are a significant resource in pastoral care, connecting pastors with appropriate consultation and referrals. Additionally, AAPC offers a special membership designation of "Pastoral Care Specialist" to parish clergy who participate in an approved training program to enhance their pastoral care skills.
 
AAPC also includes in its membership mental health practitioners interested in exploring the creative interaction between spirituality and the behavioral sciences.
 
Persons interested in joining the Association should visit the membership section of this website, or contact AAPC.
 
Whether an individual is in crisis, or looking for personal growth, a pastoral counselor can provide the guidance, skill, longer-term relationship and information needed to promote wholeness, with the context and support a person needs to make changes to live life more fully.
  
 

Public Opinion Poll

Survey Findings
November 8, 2000

American Association of Pastoral Counselors & The Samaritan Institute Report

 
The American Association of Pastoral Counselors (AAPC) and the Samaritan Institute set out to explore attitudes toward the role of spiritual values and beliefs in the treatment of mental and emotional problems. The research aimed to follow up on a 1992 Gallup survey that examined preferences about seeking help from professional therapists who integrate spirituality with treatment.
 
More specifically the AAPC aimed to gauge popular support for its proposal that pastoral counselors be included in the roster of Medicare approved care givers. This formal recognition will serve to increase access for the medically undeserved and the elderly populations to mental health professionals, as well as to amplify the prominence of the AAPC and its members.
The results are drawn from questions appended to a national political survey of one thousand likely voters conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Research from October 30-31, 2000. The margin of error is +/- 3.2 percent.
 
 

Summary of Findings

The research found that an overwhelming number of Americans recognize the close link between spiritual faith, religious values and mental health, and would prefer to seek assistance from a mental health professional who recognizes and can integrate spiritual values into the course of treatment.
 
 

• 83 percent feel their spiritual faith and religious beliefs are closely tied to their state of ental and emotional health.

• 75 percent of respondents say it is important to see a professional counselor who integrates their values and beliefs into the counseling process.

• 69 percent believe it to be important to see a professional counselor who represents spiritual values and beliefs if they had a serious problem that required counseling.

• 77 percent say it would be important for an elderly parent or relative who was in need of treatment to get assistance from a mental health professional who knew and understood their spiritual beliefs and values.

• More people mention pastoral counselors and others with religious training than any other professionals (29 percent).

Integrating Beliefs with Treatment

The public sees a clear link between the strength of one's spiritual faith and the status of one's mental health-an attitude that puts pastoral counselors in a strong position as the AAPC advances its goals. When asked about the relationship between spiritual faith and religious beliefs and mental and emotional health, 83 percent of respondents said they are closely related - with 55 percent saying they are very closely related. This is an extraordinary level of intensity and speaks strongly to attitudes toward the importance of mental health treatments that include spirituality as well as psychotherapy.
 
Following up on a 1992 Gallup survey, respondents were asked to answer questions about preferences for seeking treatment from a professional counselor who represents spiritual values and beliefs, and about seeing a professional counselor who integrates the client's values and beliefs into the counseling process. To gauge intensity and gain further understanding, half the respondents were asked how important having the spiritual background is, while the other half were asked if they would prefer it. Additional questions addressed delivery of mental health services and the link between mental and emotional health and spiritual faith.
 
In 1992, the Samaritan Institute and AAPC commissioned Gallup to ask questions about Americans and their attitudes toward pastoral counseling. This strong level of support shown then for pastoral counselors continues eight years later. At that time, 66 percent said they would prefer to receive counseling from a person who represented their spiritual values. In the most recent findings, 63 percent they would want to receive counseling from a professional counselor who represented spiritual values and beliefs. Eight in ten (81 percent) said they wanted their own spiritual values respected and integrated into the counseling process. Most recently, 72 percent said they would prefer to see a professional counselor who integrated their values and beliefs into the counseling process.
 
The current research went further, however, to examine the level of importance that respondents assign to having people with training in spirituality and faith provide counseling. Almost seven in ten respondents (69 percent) said it was important to them to see a professional counselor who represented spiritual values and beliefs - with 44 percent of respondents indicating it would be very important to them. Fully three quarters (75 percent) said it was important to have faith incorporated with the process of working to overcome a serious emotional or mental problem; 47 percent said it would be very important to them. This type of intense support demonstrates the potential impact pastoral counselors could have as they attempt to serve the American public.