Licensed Professional Counselor Interns' Level of Self-Efficacy Relating to Graduate Program of Study and institution Type

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (Ed.D)

Department

Higher Edu and Learning Technology

Date of Award

Fall 2012

Abstract

In the state of Texas, Licensed Professional Counselors (LPCs) work to provide mental- health services designed to meet the needs of those who are dealing with a variety of affective, cognitive, and behavioral issues. Multiple educational pathways are available for obtaining the LPC license, with primary distinctions being among the graduate programs of study and institution type. Specific graduate programs of study range on a continuum from counseling to clinical psychology while the type of institutions can be broadly separated into the following categories: public, private nonprofit, or private for-profit. The graduate program of study and institution type could influence the development and effectiveness of future counselors. The purpose of this non-experimental, quantitative, correlational study was to examine the perceptions Licensed Professional Counselor-Interns (LPC-Interns) have concerning counseling self-efficacy and compare participants' self-efficacy scores across multiple educational pathways and institution types. A postcard containing introductory information was mailed to 2,862 LPC-Interns, directing them to LPCSurvey.com to take an online survey. The postcard also requested recipients refer other LPC-Interns, and an online referral tool was provided for this purpose. The online survey began by collecting demographic information, graduate school information, and internship details. The survey concluded with the Counselor Activity Self-Efficacy Scales (CASES) instrument used to measure three levels of self-efficacy. Descriptive and MANOVA statistics were used to determine the differences, if any, among the three forms of self-efficacy according to programs of study and institution types. Results indicated a statistically significant difference in overall counseling self-efficacy between the means of graduate program of study and comparing clinical and counseling programs. Further examination of graduate program of study found no statistically significant difference between the mean scores across specific domains of counseling self-efficacy. When comparing counseling self-efficacy across institution types, no statically significant differences were found.

Advisor

L. Rusty Waller

Subject Categories

Education | Educational Technology

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