2.2

• Goal-setting


  An important aspect of many endeavors in life, including counseling
• Goals


  The desired result of a process
• Goals of Counseling (Gibson and Mitchell 2003)


  • Developmental
  • Preventive
  • Enhancement
  • Remedial
  • Exploratory
  • Reinforcement
  • Cognitive
  • Physiological
  • Psychological
• Developmental Goal


  • Developing human growth (social life, personal life, psychological and physical well-being)
  • Examples: developing a growth mindset, developing a reading habit
• Preventive Goal


  • Avoiding undesirable outcomes, behavior, or habits
  • Example: managing test anxiety the next time the client will take an exam
• Enhancement Goal


  • Enhancing special skills or abilities → self-actualization
  • Example: improving public speaking skills
• Remedial Goal


  • Overcoming and treating an undesirable development
  • Example: overcoming alcohol addiction
• Exploratory Goal


  • Exploring new fields, activities, and skills
  • Example: being involved in adventure sports (e.g., rock climbing, hiking) to avoid gambling addiction
• Reinforcement Goal


  • Adopting or maintaining psychologically helpful actions, thoughts, and feelings
  • Example: managing one's anxiety when talking to new people
• Cognitive Goal


  • Acquiring foundational skill of learning and other cognitive skills
  • Example: improving sustained attention or focus on an activity for a long period of time
• Physiological Goal


  • Learning and developing habits for good health
  • Example: setting an exercise routine
• Psychological Goal


  • Controlling emotions, having a positive self-concept, and developing interaction skills
  • Example: learning to properly express anger without hurting oneself or others
• Aims of Counseling (McLeod 2003)


  • Insight
  • Relating with others
  • Self-awareness
  • Self-acceptance
  • Self-actualization or individuation
  • Enlightenment
  • Problem-solving
  • Psychological education
  • Acquisition of social skills
  • Cognitive change
  • Behavior change
  • Systemic change
  • Empowerment
  • Restitution
  • Generativity and social action
• Insight

  • Understanding origins and development of emotional difficulties
• Relating with others


  • Developing behavior or habits that can help create and maintain meaningful and satisfying relationships with others
• Self-awareness


  • Gaining awareness and recognizing thoughts or feelings, avoiding denial of these thoughts and feelings
• Self-acceptance

  • Accepting and acknowledging the whole self
• Self-actualization or individuation


  • Achieving one's full potential and overcoming conflicts within oneself
• Enlightenment


  • Achieving spiritual awakening or having a clearer perspective in life
• Problem-solving


  • Finding a solution to a certain dilemma, issue, or problem that one cannot handle alone
• Psychological education


  • Acquiring ideas and strategies that can help understand one's behavior
• Acquisition of social skills


  • Acquiring, learning, and mastering certain skills that are necessary for social and interpersonal interactions (e.g., maintaining eye contact)
• Cognitive change


  • Modifying or replacing unnecessary thoughts and irrational beliefs
• Behavior change


  • Modifying or replacing self-destructive behavior
• Systemic change


  • Changing patterns of behavior within a certain system such as the family → more productive and meaningful interactions
• Empowerment


  • Developing or acquiring certain skills and to gain knowledge and awareness of one's capabilities → full control of one's life
• Restitution


  • Making up for previous destructive behavior
• Generativity and social action

  • Encouraging to do work for the collective good of society or a community
• Scope of Counseling


  • Individual or personal counseling
  • Family counseling
  • Community counseling
  • Career counseling
  • Behavioral counseling
  • Health counseling
• In counseling, goals are established by the counselor and the client to create a roadmap of progress and a step-by-step process. Goal-setting helps both the counselor and the client achieve their desired outcome.