Doctoral Students’ Perceptions and Competencies Regarding Spiritual Strategies in Counseling

Research supporting the importance of spirituality in counseling has led to development of competency areas for addressing spiritual issues within therapeutic practice. It remains to be determined, however, whether doctoral students, as the future educators and supervisors of counselors-in-training, perceive themselves to be competent in integrating spirituality within their teaching and supervision. This study utilized survey research methods to assess current counseling doctoral students’ perceived abilities to implement spiritual counseling strategies into their practice and teaching. The authors discuss the results and outline implications for further research and practice.