Following a qualitative research frame, this study used a case study
approach to describe and understand the life career experience of counsellor
trainees' from Non-Western Culture (NWC). An ethnographic or in-depth interview
methodology was utilized to acquire narrative data that was re-written as an
analytical description of this particular experience. Eight NWC counsellor trainees
who were studying in a Canadian university, and who were originally from
countries in Asia, Africa, and South America, participated in this study. The
interviews became the primary source of information upon which an individual
story was developed. After being validated by the respective
participants/informants, the major themes highlighting the turning points and
critical plots of the eight individual narratives were synthesized into a general
narrative. This general narrative reflected both the commonly-shared and varied
experiences and perspectives of these individuals during the transition period.
Becoming engaged in counsellor training was not an event, but rather a
process over time which often started when the NWC trainees seriously
considered the need for change in their lives. They defined their options, and
decided to either immigrate to, or study in Canada. They then took concrete
action to implement their plans.
The NWC trainees endeavoured to make an initial adjustment after coming
to Canada. Most of them coped with many issues and challenges in adapting to
the sociocultural environment of the host country, while searching for the best life
career direction. Acquiring counsellor training appeared to be a viable career path
and they actively pursued this new career option.
The concluding part of the narrative described the NWC trainees'
engagement in professional training in counselling psychology and counsellor
education. The trainees were committed to this new career goal, aiming at
graduate level training. They dealt with a series of emerging issues and challenges
including English language difficulty, adjustment to the new educational system,
and other dynamics in the training process. The trainees also had to cope with
issues such as family and financial concerns. These issues interacted with their
academic and professional training. Having gained a sense of personal growth, the
trainees found their involvement in counselling training both challenging and
inspiring. Not only did their training provide them with a deep experience of selfexploration
and self-understanding, it also helped them project their future career
plans.
This study generated several theoretical implications. It supported the three
broadly-defined theoretical perspectives of career development, i.e., career as life
process, career as individual agency, and career as meaning making. The study
also echoed the three major constructs that compose the transition of adult
learners' lives when they return to universities for continuing education. These
three aspects included identity negotiation, social connectedness, and academic
competence. With regard to cross-cultural adjustment, the study offered some
support for the common factors affecting NWC students' cross-cultural
iv
adjustment in colleges and universities in North America but also was at variance
with some of the literature regarding the problem of racism and prejudice.
The implications for practice focused on a comprehensive helping approach
addressing both the psychological and the tangible needs of NWC counsellor
trainees. Aiming at building a positive and supportive learning climate, such
implications included the need to enhance the trainees' personal agency, to avoid
failure of communication, to use constructive feedback, to understand and
address special needs, and to remain open and flexible while training and
supervising NWC trainees.
Several implications for future research were discussed. They included
consideration of the relevance of the narrative approach in related studies, as well
as an exploration of the broader applicability and representativeness of the
evidence presented in the current study. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UBC/oai:circle.library.ubc.ca:2429/11192 |
| Date | 11 1900 |
| Creators | Chen, Charles Pintang |
| Source Sets | University of British Columbia |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, Thesis/Dissertation |
| Format | 12962660 bytes, application/pdf |
| Rights | For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use. |
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