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The 8th International Conference on Educational Technology of Adi Buana (ICETA 8) 111
SELF-AWARENESS: A PERSONALITY COUNSELOR
Cindy Asli Pravesti
Faculty of Teacher Training and Education
University of PGRI Adi Buana Surabaya
Elia Firda Mufidah
Faculty of Teacher Training and Education
University of PGRI Adi Buana Surabaya
ABSTRACT
Counseling is a relationship, a repertoire of interventions, a psychological process, and in
terms of goals and clienteles. The intimate private counseling works with qualified counselors
doing with clients. It is vitally important that a counseling professional is fully self-aware.
Being able to self-reflect enables a counselor to identify and develop personal awareness, and
to remain emotionally detached from the relationship he/she is developing with a client. The
relationship of counselor and client has a significant value for a successful counseling.
Counselors will naturally draw their own conclusions about self-awareness. Their work with
clients may present many personal challenges, but also an on-going opportunity to assess
personal strengths, feelings, thoughts and limitations, as they relate to other people.
Understandably a counselor may also experience a sense of personal familiarity, whilst
counseling clients must remain emotionally detached at all times. Self-awareness is something
that grows over a period of time and with exploration. Techniques, to access information about
oneself, can be learned, and personal experiences can affect personal thoughts and feelings. A
counselor will experience all of these issues and concerns, and must use the knowledge gained
to help their clients overcome their own personal issues. A person‟s growth and understanding
can only be assessed through self-awareness, and it is no different for those working in a
therapeutic profession. Being continually open to personal, and career development will help a
counselor fully understand their values and self.
Keywords: self-awareness, counselor
INTRODUCTION
Because of the intimately private counseling work that qualified counselors and
psychotherapists do with clients, it is vitally important that a counseling professional is fully
self-aware. Being able to self-reflect enables a counselor to identify and develop personal
awareness, and to remain emotionally detached from the relationship he/she is developing with
a client. Counselors will naturally draw their own conclusions about self-awareness. Their work
with clients may present many personal challenges, but also an on-going opportunity to assess
personal strengths, feelings, thoughts and limitations, as they relate to other people.
Understandably a counselor may also experience a sense of personal familiarity, whilst
counseling clients, but must remain emotionally detached at all times. Relating to clients, in a
positive, open manner, encourages the client to disclose in a comfortable, confidential
environment and provides the counselor with the ideal setting in which to communicate in a
supportive way. Using their own life experiences, a counselor can demonstrate empathy,
compassion and understanding without becoming personally involved in the counseling process.
Self awareness includes both a content dimension (what) and a process dimension
(how). The components listed above are of what the counselor can be aware. The process
dimension taps aspects of how the counselor reveals awareness through components such as
concreteness or specificity (Carkhuff, 1969; Egan, 1975), ownership or responsibility (Livitsky
& Perls, 1970; Miller, Nunally & Wackman, 1975) immediacy and experiencing (Gendlin,
112 The 8th International Conference on Educational Technology of Adi Buana (ICETA 8)
1962) and integration and assimilation (Polster & Polster, 1973). These process components
have been traditionally investigated as elements of client exploration (e.g., Schauble & Pierce,
1974), but apply equally well to the assessment of counselor awareness. Counseling courses,
however carefully constructed or theoretically well-informed, do not adequately prepare the
counselor to face the exigencies of clinical practice. Courses cannot achieve, within a limited
period, and when faced with competing demands, the complex process of forming a counselor.
Becoming a counselor, and growing as a counselor, requires me to reduce my defensiveness and
increase self-awareness, in short, to take a closer look at myself, the self that I bring to the
counseling room. Counselor self-awareness is considered an important aspect of counseling
effectiveness according to the American Counseling Association and the American
Psychological Association and in numerous studies and articles within the counseling literature.
A comprehensive review of the literature on self-awareness revealed that there is little
discussion of the construct of self-awareness and/or it is outdated, making its definition difficult
(Richards, Campenni, & Muse-Burke, 2010). Jevne‘s (1981) survey provides a useful focus for
efforts to clarify the nature of self awareness and the effective counselor. From our experience
in counselor education, training and practice, self awareness is essential in the cognitive and
emotional development of an effective counselor. Self-awareness (SA) refers to an individual‘s
awareness of his or her feelings, as well as an understanding from where these feelings
originated and how these feelings impact, and are impacted by others. Burwell-Pender and
Halenski (2008) declare that with increased levels of self awareness, a counselor is able to
differentiate and put aside personal needs in order to best serve the client while maintaining
professional boundaries. This idea of counselors being able to differentiate and put aside
personal values while working with clients is closely associated with counter transference.
Self-Awareness: a Personality Counselor
Self-awareness is also an intrinsic component of the counselor‘s characteristics and thus
the therapeutic alliance. The need for counseling professionals to increase their self-awareness
can be traced back to Freud himself who asserted that it was necessary in order to minimize the
potential detrimental effects of counter-transference on the counseling process (Oden, Miner-
Holden, & Balkin, 2009).
Counseling is one profession where the practitioner is in fact the tool of his or her trade.
It is our character, and our self-awareness, that enables effective, competent practice.
Counseling is finding out that who I am dictates how I journey with a struggling client. What
has emerged from the literature on counselor training and clinical practice is an
acknowledgment of the importance of the personal development of the counselor as an integral
part of professional development. Unhelpful beliefs, unrealistic expectations of self, and
acceptance of an unreasonable level of responsibility towards the client are accelerators of
stress. The practice of counseling, with its emphasis on confidentiality, can be of itself an
isolating experience. Self-awareness, which contributes to counselor development and
effectiveness, can have an unnerving effect when the impact is not managed by self-care and in-
session strategies to reduce the impact. Self-disclosure, which used appropriately, builds trust
and rapport, can leave us feeling vulnerable and exposed. Self-exploration, self-disclosure and
asking for feedback are means of heightening self-awareness and essential to our facilitating the
same process for clients, however, these often exact a price, one of increasing our stress levels,
with predictable consequences for our relationships and ourselves.
Counselor educators historically have considered counselor self-awareness to be an
important aspect of counseling effectiveness (American Personnel and Guidance Association,
1965; American Psychological Association, 1954; Bernard, 1989; Blackburn, 1979; Drapela,
1983; Eppinger, 1996; Kagan, 1980; Krumboltz, 1966; Locke, 1993; Ohlsen, 1970; Truax &
Carkhuff, 1967. The American Counseling Association‘s (ACA, 2000) code of ethics referred to
awareness several times, including the following (a) Counselors are aware of the intimacy and
responsibilities inherent in the counseling relationship. b) Counselors are aware of their own
values, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors and how these apply in a diverse society, and avoid
imposing their values on clients and (c) Counselors are aware of their influential positions with
respect to clients, and they avoid exploiting the trust and dependency of clients. Carl Rogers
The 8th International Conference on Educational Technology of Adi Buana (ICETA 8) 113
(1978) viewed awareness in operational terms and described it in the following passage, there is
a formative directional tendency in the universe, which can be traced and observed in stellar
space, in crystals, in microorganisms, in organic life, in human beings. This is an evolutionary
tendency toward greater order, greater interrelatedness, and greater complexity. In humankind,
it extends from a single cell origin to complex organic functioning, to awareness and a sensing
below the levels of consciousness, to a conscious awareness of the organism and the external
world to a transcendent awareness of the cosmic system including people.
The construct of counselor self-awareness has historically been considered important
within the counselor education literature, along with studies conducted in other areas of mental
health practices (American Personnel and Guidance Association, 1964; American Psychological
Association, 1954; Bernard, 1989; Blackburn, 1979; Eppinger, 1996; Kagan, 1980; Krumboltz,
1966; Ohlsen, 1970; Truax & Carkhuff, 1967). Recently, other personal aspects of the counselor
including the need for increased cognitive complexity have been emphasized instead of the need
for counselor self-awareness (Sexton, Schofield, & Whiston, 1997). Additionally, there is
increased emphasis in the counseling literature for counseling within decreased periods, that is,
brief therapy models. When considering the need for counselors to provide their clients with
models for developing adaptive skills and strategies that can be used in dealing with
increasingly more complex personal and environmental demands, the current values and
relationships between counselor self-awareness and counseling effectiveness need further
definition.
Although self-awareness in therapist is considered important, and since many
psychotherapists spend time attempting to promote self-awareness in their patients, it is
surprising that so little formal promotion of self-awareness in therapists takes place (Blackburn,
1979; Chen, 1998; Salmon, 1972; Shub, 1994). Moore (1987) stated that no formal model has
been advanced to develop this portion of clinical training, and very little subsequent published
research addresses the development of counselor self-awareness. The importance of self-
awareness is widely acknowledged in the counseling profession as one of the few constructs
embraced by nearly all theoretical orientations (De Stefano et al., 2007; Hansen, 2009; Miller et
al., 2008). Self-awareness (SA) is defined as counselors-in-training understanding of how their
past and current personal lives, as well as their attitudes, biases, and values, affect their clinical
practice, so that they can use their emotional responses to their patients and own benefit
(Saunders et al., 2007). Richards, Campenni, and Muse-Burke (2010) refer to self-awareness as
knowledge about the self; an internal awareness of one‘s behaviors, emotions, and cognitions.
Self-awareness is an evolving process of self-observation, happening in both the here-and-now
and then-and-there (Yalom, 1980). As an individual increases his/her level of self-awareness,
she/he will better understand why and what one feels, as well as the behaviors that follow. This
understanding of what we as therapists feel and why and consequently how we respond and act
during the therapeutic process is critical (Aponte & Carlsen, 2009; Guiffrida, 2005, Yalom,
2005).
The counseling profession is quite unique. It‘s profession that requires
practitioners to employ interventions beyond learned knowledge or acquired
skills. Counselors are also required to incorporate self into their counseling practice, a task not
easily accomplished. Counselor educators have the difficult role of training individuals to
become competent in profession of counseling. In fact, the Council for Accreditation of
Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP; 2009) states competent
professionals are individuals who have mastered the knowledge and the skills to practice
effectively and who have developed a professional identity. Comstock (2005) asserts the need
for developing self-awareness for the purpose of increased authentic relating and the
development of an understanding of one‘s relational movements; done in, not out of,
engagement. This includes recognition of our personality, our strengths and weaknesses, and
our likes and dislikes. Self-awareness is often a prerequisite for effective communication and
interpersonal relations, as well as for developing empathy for others (Hansen, 2009).
The idea that higher levels of counselor self-awareness are related to enhanced
counselor therapeutic effectiveness has appeared in the professional mental health literature,
CACREP standards, theoretical writings, and research articles since Freud (Oden et al., 2009).
114 The 8th International Conference on Educational Technology of Adi Buana (ICETA 8)
A qualitative study conducted by Norem et al. (2006) revealed stellar supervisees possess high
levels of self-awareness; defined as having the ability to identify weaknesses and strengths, self-
monitor, and being acutely aware of their emotional experiences and reactions in sessions with
clients. They found the personal qualities of counselors are better predictors of clinical
performance than intellectual ability.
The American Counseling Association‘s (2005) code of ethics and CACREP‘s (2009)
standards state a need for counselors to become aware of their values, biases, beliefs, and
interpersonal dynamics in order to best serve culturally diverse clients (Sue & Sue, 2003).
Yalom (2005) asserts counselors are only able to serve clients needs by first being acutely aware
of one‘s own struggles, strengths and weaknesses. This study provides insight into determining
how well counselor education programs pay attention to cultivating self-awareness and which
methods, strategies, and processes are best at doing so. Counselors will naturally draw their own
conclusions about self-awareness. Their work with clients may present many personal
challenges, but also an on-going opportunity to assess personal strengths, feelings, thoughts and
limitations, as they relate to other people. Understandably a counselor may also experience a
sense of personal familiarity, whilst counseling clients, but must remain emotionally detached at
all times.
CONCLUSION
The greater the awareness counselors possess about their own selves, the greater their
ability to develop a deeper knowledge and/or acceptance of their clients (Ronnestad & Skovholt,
1993). Raising self-awareness is essential for counselors to be authentic and genuine because
they cannot teach what they do not know (Yalom, 2005). The arena of the counselor‘s self has
been under researched, particularly from a trans-theoretical perspective Reupert, 2006).
Schaeffer (2007) declared graduate training programs do not sufficiently address counselors‘-in-
training personal issues, despite the fact that developing self-aware counselors is essential
during training. Hansen (2009) claimed there has been no critical appraisal in the counseling
professional literature of how counselors become self-aware.
The American Counseling Association stresses that counselor self-awareness (SA) is a
critical aspect of counselor effectiveness (ACA, 2005). Counselors are responsible for their
personal wellness and awareness of their impact on clients (ACA 2005; AMHCA, 2010;
CACREP, 2009). The code of ethics of the American Mental Health Counselors Association
(2010) requires counselors to have self-awareness of their knowledge, values, skills, and needs
when entering into a helping relationship. Counselor education programs, supervisors, and
counselor educators have a professional responsibility to foster self-awareness in CITs (ACA,
2005). CACREP supports the idea of the saliency for Counselor Education Programs to provide
space for CITs to cultivate SA (Oden, et al., 2009). The 2009 CACREP standards state students
must ―demonstrate self-awareness, sensitivity to others, and the skills needed to relate to diverse
individuals‖. ACA‘s (2005) code of ethics and CACREP‘s (2009) standards clearly state a need
for counselors to become aware of their values, biases, beliefs, and interpersonal dynamics in
order to best serve culturally diverse clients (Sue & Sue, 2003). Yalom (2005) asserts
counselors are only able to serve clients needs by first being acutely aware of one‘s own
struggles, strengths and weaknesses.
Although self-awareness in therapist is considered important, and since many
psychotherapists spend time attempting to promote self-awareness in their patients, it is
surprising that so little formal promotion of self-awareness in therapists takes place (Blackburn,
1979; Chen, 1998; Salmon, 1972; Shub, 1994). Moore (1987) stated that no formal model has
been advanced to develop this portion of clinical training, and very little subsequent published
research addresses the development of counselor self-awareness. The importance of self-
awareness is widely acknowledged in the counseling profession as one of the few constructs
embraced by nearly all theoretical orientations (De Stefano et al., 2007; Hansen, 2009; Miller et
al., 2008).
The 8th International Conference on Educational Technology of Adi Buana (ICETA 8) 115
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BIODATA
Cindy Asli Pravesti is a lecturer of Guidance and Counseling
Department, University of Adi Buana Surabaya. She received her
Master Degree in State University of Malang. Her major interest
guidance and counseling.
Email: [email protected]
Elia Firda Mufida is a candidate of lecturer Guidance and Counseling
in University of Adi Buana Surabaya. Currently, she‘s postgraduate at
State University of Malang. Her major interest guidance and
counseling.
Email: [email protected]
