COUN5004
Abstract
This paper discusses the importance of both social justice and consultation in the field of counseling. The introduction is an explanation of social justice advocacy, consultation, how it is related to the Marriage and Family counseling, and the different strategies and steps counselors take to advocate for their clients. Next, I discussed how advocacy is related to myself while I become a professional counselor in the area of specialization and my beliefs about advocacy and consultation having similarities and differences. Next, I discussed how advocacy benefits the care provided for children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families related to the specific specialty area in which I am planning on practicing. Lastly, I described a hypothetical situation of a child, adolescent, adult, couple, or family, and addressed how a counselors’ knowledge of consultation and advocacy could interact with the progression of their counseling experience based on the specialization of Marriage and Family therapy.
Scholars propose that integrating a social justice advocacy role into the core identity of professional counselors will help redress past and current societal oppression of marginalized population (Constantine, Hage, Kindaichi, & Bryan, 2009). Many counselors believe that social justice and advocacy has no positive outcome in the field counseling. However, scholars in the article, “Are Consultation and Social Justice Advocacy Similar?: Exploring the Perceptions of Professional Counselors and Counseling Students,” propose many knowledgeable reasons of why they believe that advocacy and social justice is a fundamental premise for professional counseling in the 21st century. Social justice in counseling takes place when counselors strive to concurrently promote human development and the common good through addressing challenges to both individual and distributive justice (Crethar & Ratts, n.d.). Counselors