The increasing prevalence of marital breakdown in the United States has been met by the proliferation of premarital counseling programs in professional counseling centers and churches. As increasing masses of couples turn to premarital counseling to prevent future interpersonal problems, and as communities and churches across the United States deem it necessary to require them to do so, the rhetoric of premarital counseling, I argue, is becoming a significant force in constructing contemporary meanings of marriage. Utilizing rhetorical criticism as a new method for examining premarital counseling, this study addresses two key issues: a) the images of marriage constructed in these programs; and b) the process by which these images are created. An extensive analysis of two national programs, messages embodied in their counseling materials, themes, symbols, and clusters of terms that facilitate persuasion and epistemic functions. Applying a Burkean dramatistic perspective, I contend that a more complete understanding of premarital counseling is advanced if such discourse is treated as "drama" and the participates in such discourse as "symbol-using animals." The dramatistic analysis of both programs reveals that a "rhetoric of rebirth" best explains the process of persuasion that occurs in these programs. This research is an example of how premarital counseling programs can be analyzed from a fresh perspective--namely, premarital counseling as rhetoric. Such analysis ultimately leads to a new way of explaining how these programs attempt to modify couples' beliefs and actions. The last chapter summarizes the thesis, discusses the ethics of rhetoric in programs, as well as the limitations and contributions of the study and implications for future research. / Graduation date: 1997

No description available.

Thesis (M.A.)--The Master's College, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 175-185).

This research provides a historical account of the American Personnel and Guidance Association and provides a continuation of McDaniels’ 1964 study of the Association’s first eleven years. The purpose of this study is to describe the major years of diversification and redefinition within the Association between April 1963 and July 1983. The foci of this research consist of the major trends and issues throughout the period under study and include: membership trends, governance/leadership, professional issues, legislative activities, and Associational responses to societal issues. Data for this study comes directly from Association archival records of meetings, reports, documents, and Association correspondences and interviews with Association employees and leaders. Information is collected, synthesized and presented in a straight forward manner. The process involves organization of information followed by narration of explanations and conclusions. Data is organized chronologically. Recently renamed the American Counseling Association in July 1992, the Association remains the major national professional organization for counselors in the United States. This historical account incorporates fragmented information into one document so that a more accurate picture of the development of the Association and its role in relation to the counseling profession will be preserved. / Ed. D.

Family enrichment for the purpose of improving family relationships is a new method that has not yet been explored in depth. The materials available for family enrichment are quite limited and need to be expanded before their use can be validated. The purpose of this project was to develop and evaluate a leader's manual for family enrichment following an Adlerian activity approach. Family enrichment is a process of intervention based on a prearranged, programmed manual dealing with interpersonal relations between and among family members. A manual was developed that was practical, action-oriented, and based on Adlerian theory. The materials in the manual were designed specifically for use by whole family units. The methods described in this manual are suitable both for weekend retreats and weekly growth groups. The Adlerian concepts presented in the manual were based primarily on materials from Systematic Training for Effective Parenting (STEP) by Dinkmeyer and McKay (1976) and Teaching With Confidence: How to Get Off the Classroom Wall by Hillman (1980). Most of the activities used in each of the enrichment sessions were developed by the author. After the manual was completed, it was evaluated by a panel of five judges, and by seven families who participated in a family enrichment weekend retreat, where the leader's manual was utilized. The evaluation instruments consisted of three questionnaires that were devised by the author. A panel of judges rated the manual favorably in all categories of the evaluation. The subject of family enrichment, the Adlerian concepts and activities, and the format used in the manual received positive ratings. Participants in the family enrichment weekend also favorably rated individual sessions in the program. The eight topics were considered to be appropriate for families working toward the improvement of family relationships. They indicated that the warm-up presentations, activities, and follow-up discussions fit together well and that the activities were appropriate in length and age level. The experience was rated as being pleasurable for the whole family, and the activities as appropriate for future use at home. An overall evaluation of the total enrichment program showed it helped to: (1) increase positive feelings about family members, (2) increase understanding of family values, (3) create more family cooperation in decision-making, (4) recognize family strengths and individual strengths, and (5) improve family relationships. Evaluation by the panel of judges and the participants in the family enrichment program supports the usefulness of the leader's manual. Many reactions by these two groups were similar and in agreement. Both sets of evaluators responded favorably to the idea of families working together as total units to improve relationships, and supported the use of activities in this process. The overly full schedule was noted by both groups as a problem area in the manual. The lack of structured learning experiences for the young children and the inadequate sleeping accommodations were also cited as problem areas by the weekend participants. This project suggests that the family enrichment manual appears to be a useful tool for leaders to use when conducting family enrichment programs. It also appears that the family enrichment weekend retreat, that utilized the manual, was a worthwhile experience for the families involved.

Among the social sciences, guidance is relatively young, having evolved out of the American social experience with its concern for the welfare of the individual. As an independent discipline, guidance is about seventy years old. However, the foundations for guidance are imbedded in the nation's historical past. Beginning with seventeenth-century New Englanders, who stressed religious and economic reasoning, a systematic approach to occupational selection began. By the close of the colonial period, the precedent of freedom of choice of vocation and educational opportunity was well established.

Thesis (Psy. D.)--Wheaton College Graduate School, 2003. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 115-134).

Thesis (Psy. D.)--Wheaton College Graduate School, Wheaton, IL, 2003. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 115-134).

Thesis (Psy. D.)--Wheaton College Graduate School, Wheaton, IL, 2003. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 115-134).

Co llege enrollment rates in the U.S. have increased over the last 40 years, yet students from undcrservcd communities remain underrepresented. Families in these communities aspire for their children to go to college, but often lack access to the necessary social capital to transform aspirations for their children into action. Federal 6 initiatives focused on increasing educational attainment for students in underserved comn1tmities emphasize the critically important role of the school counselor. The school counselor is ideally positioned to reduce barriers to family engagement in the college access process. Yet, there is a lack of focused support and professional development resources for school counselors. To gain more in sight into how professional development might improve counselors' abilities to support family engagement in college access, I employed an action-oriented qualitative case study to critically consider how urban school counselors took action to address local educational inequities and engage families as partners in the postsecondary process.