First Advisor

Black, Linda L.

Document Type

Dissertation

Date Created

12-2020

Abstract

While there is a growing evidence on the value of contemplative practice within counselor preparation (Christopher & Maris, 2010; Leppma & Young, 2016; McCollum & Gehart, 2010), research to date has focused on studying specific contemplative practices and their benefits to clients and CITs rather than guidelines of implementation. As a field, we are lacking information on how contemplative practice informs pedagogical strategies and approaches. Scant research exists on how contemplative practices and perspectives inform the roles of counselor educators, their way of being in the classroom, and how they situate contemplative practices and perspectives into student learning. This dissertation study addresses this gap in the literature through a constructive grounded theory exploration of 17 counselor educators’ experiences on the integration of contemplative practices and perspectives in the training of counselors. Results indicate that this integration involves several distinct components, including contemplative pedagogy as a way of being, contemplative elements in the classroom that do not involve direct practice, and the use of contemplative practices in the classroom. These results informed an emergent theory that details authenticity, teaching presence, relational teaching, components of a contemplative environment, and pedagogical approaches and strategies that are supported by contemplative practices and perspectives. These findings support implications for counselor educators who wish to integrate contemplative practices into their pedagogy. Specific recommendations for counselor educators who are interested in using contemplative practices in the classroom are included.

Extent

301 pages

Local Identifiers

Cigrand_unco_0161D_10899

Rights Statement

Copyright is held by the author.

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