Guidance & counseling are twin concepts & have emerged as essential elements of every educational activity. Guidance & counseling are not synonymous term. Counseling is a part of guidance. Guidance, in educational context, means to indicate, point out, show the way, lead out & direct. Counseling is a specialized service of guidance. It is a process of helping individuals to learn more about themselves & their present & possible future situations to make a substantial contribution to the society. Guidance is an assistance given to the individual in making intelligence choices &adjustments. Counseling is the central aspect of the whole guidance programme.

All the activities and Services of the guidance programme leads to and help in the counseling process. According to Jones counseling is the intimate and vital part of entire guidance. Though many a times the terms Guidance and Counseling is used interchangeably there are some differences between them. In Counseling, a counselor is trained to be able to listen to people and to encourage them to explore their thoughts and emotions freely and openly. He will ask probing and pertinent questions that will enable the client to be able to consider things that perhaps they had never thought of before. A counselor will also, through exploring, be able to help the client see things in a different perspective and to be able to come to terms with whatever is affecting them. The purpose of counseling is not to tell people how to live their lives, or what to do next, but to let people see for themselves what the options are so they can work things through themselves.

Guidance, on the other hand, will do lots of things that counseling will do, but there is an extra element to it as much as the person who is doing the guiding will advise, and guide. This means that the person doing the guidance must not have any agenda in relation to the person they are guiding, and should be completely neutral in the whole matter. Options that are available need to be explored so that the person can be sure that they are making the right decision for them.

Difference between guidance and counseling

The significant difference between the Guidance and Counseling stem from the manner in which the problems are dissected and tackled. Guidance and Counseling is differentiated in the following way,

• Counseling is a more inward analysis, whereas guidance is much more external.
• Counseling is in-depth, narrowing down the problem until the client understands his/her own problem, but guidance is broader and comprehensive.
• Counseling is mostly on personal and social issues, whereas guidance is generally education and career related.
• Focus on counseling is not on the solution but on understanding the problem as it allows the counselor to bring about emotional change or change in feeling. But in guidance the focus is on finding a solution, which may or may not bring a change in attitude of the client.
• Guidance is required by all. Counseling is for people who have psychological, acute or chronic problems.
• Guidance is found in only at schools/colleges. But counseling is given in places other than educational institutions. People go to a psychiatrist, psychologist, or Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) when they need counseling, which is not only at a school but in hospital or any other place.
• In the process of guidance, the client’s problems are listened carefully and readymade solutions are provided by the expert whereas in the process of counseling the client’s problems are discussed and relevant information is provided in-between. In the end of the counseling process, the client himself/herself develops insight to the problem and become empowered to take own decision.
• Guidance embraces all aspects of life. It tries to assist individuals to discover his strong points and thus help himself. Although counseling also covers wide aspects of an individual`s life, yet it does not cover as much ground as guidance does.
• Guidance is an inclusive term while, counseling is a part of over-all guidance programme.
• Guidance is adjustment oriented process, on ther hand in counseling more emphasis is given on learning. Counseling is learning oriented process.
• Guidance while given in a group situation or in individual setting is found to effective. It is a group process if provided to a group of individual. But counseling is considered to be a one to one relationship basis of which is mutual respect and depth understanding of client.

Relationship between guidance and counseling

Guidance helps a person take right decision at the right time and counseling is also done to help a person take the right decision at the right time. The relationship between Guidance and Counseling can be understood by following points,

• Guidance and counseling is a continuous process extending all through life.
• Both co-operatively work to recognize needs of individual for making satisfactory relationship with others.
• Guidance and Counseling is need-based voluntarily accepted service. Things are not to be accepted compulsorily by the client.
• Both mean help and assistance to the individual.
• Activities are planned; suggestions are given in Guidance and Counseling process based on well accepted principles.
• Guidance and Counseling is concerned with the total individual in his psychological and physical setting.
• Counseling is considered as the heart of guidance service and both go hand in hand.

Principles of Guidance

Guidance is based on certain principles. It is mandatory that we should understand the basic principles of any discipline before attempting to gain and utilize the knowledge of various operations involved in the application of knowledge to human life. Before we study these principles, it’ll be desirable to keep in view the following statements. “Guidance includes the sum total of efforts and influence of all those who assist an
individual through association, counsel, dissemination of facts, employment of \ appropriate and special techniques and control of environment, to reach one’s optimum, personal, social, vocational, cultural and spiritual development.”

The principles of Guidance and counseling:

1. Guidance is a life long process: Guidance is a continuous process, which starts from childhood and continues till death. It is not a service which begins and terminates at specified time or place.
2. Guidance lays emphasis on individualization: It emphasizes that each individual should be given freedom to shape his/her personality and he/she should be guidedmwhenever be need arises. The democratic point was stressed by Truman L. Kellys when he said, “Guidance should capitalize the high points of each students’ profile of abilities add aptitudes ‘rather than basing the advisement of his/her general average”. For individualizing the education at different levels so that each individual develop his/her abilities, interests and aptitudes in unique ways, proper organization of guidance services is very essential.
3. Guidance gives importance to self-direction: The main idea of Guidance is to develop the individual so that she/he no longer finds it necessary to seek guidance. Guidance makes the individual better adjusted to her/his environment and leads her/him to self-reliance and self-direction.
4. Guidance is based on co-operation: Guidance depends on lnutual co-operation of individuals. No one can he forced to seek guidance without the consent of the individual her/himself.
5. Guidance is for all: Guidance looks towards the development in each individual’s potentialities. Although maladjusted students receive more of counselor attention but basic principle of guidance is that it should not be available to the few but rather to many. It’ll be of great use to devote attention to normal and superior children also in an attempt to stimulate their intellectual growth.
6. Guidance is an organized activity: Guidance is not an incidental activity. Inspite of being a broad based programme, it has a definite purpose to achieve. It is therefore a systematic and well-organized  activity.
7. Guidance workers need special preparation: It is generally agreed that in addition to general survey course in guidance, which should certainly be regarded as a minimum essential in the preparation of all the teachers. The specialists need considerable background study in Psychology including child and adolescent development, mental hygiene some course work with practical experience.
8. Guidance gives respect to individual differences: No two individuals are alike. Guidance understands these individual differences among students and it is concerned with the uniqueness of needs, problems, and developmental characteristics of individuals
9. Guidance takes into consideration reference to salient facts: The most dangerous of all guidance practices is to having no pertinent data at hand. Guidance in the absence of data is quackery. To administer guidance intelligently and with as thorough knowledge as possible, programmes of individual evaluation and research should be conducted and accurate cumulative records of progress and achievement should be made available to guidance workers.
10. Guidance is flexible: An organized guidance programme should be flexible according to individual and community needs.
11. Guidance is an interrelated activity: Effective guidance needs complete information about the individual because it is difficult to see any problem in isolation with  out relating it with the total programme.
12. Guidance is a persons code of ethics: The ethical applications of guidance include respect for the personality of the individuals being counseled.

TYPES OF GUIDANCE

Guidance is a continuous process and it deals with all aspects of life. Hence guidance is needed in aspects of life.
According to W. M. Proctor there are the following types of guidance:

1. Educational Guidance
2. Vocational Guidance
3. Guidance in social and civic activities
4. Guidance in health and physical activities
5. Guidance in the worthy use of leisure time
6. Guidance in character building activities

As per John M. Bremer guidance are of ten types. They are:

1. Educational
2. Vocational
3. Religious
4. Guidance “for on line relationships”
5. Guidance “for citizenship”
6. Guidance “for leisure and recreation”
7. Guidance ” in personal well being”
8. Guidance “in right doing”
9. Guidance “in thoughtfulness and co-operation”
10. Guidance “in wholesome and cultural action”

Patterson et. al. have mentioned five kinds of guidance, the types are:

1. Educational
2. Vocational
3. Personal (including social, emotional, and leisure time guidance)
4. Health guidance
5. Economic guidance

Form the above we can conclude, the major types are:

1. Educational
2. Vocational
3. Personal

Educational Guidance
It is a process of helping the individual to place him/herself continually in the most favorable setting or environment For his/her education. “It is concerned with helping the individual to plan wisely his/her educational programme and to put him/herself in position to carry forward successfully that programme along lines that society considers wholesome both for itself and for his/her “. It is primarily concerned with the problems related to courses, curriculum and study.

Vocational Guidance
Vocational guidance is the process of assisting the individual to choose an occupation, prepare for it, enter upon and progress in it. Vocational guidance concerns itself with students in the academic courses in high school, college, in the trade and commercial courses categorizes as vocational courses.

Personal-Social Guidance
This includes social, emotional and leisure time guidance. It concerns with personal guidance which includes the prohle~ns01 ‘ health, emotional adjustment, social adjustment, etc. Purpose of personal guidance is to help the individual to help him/herself in regard to his/her physical, emotional, social, moral and spiritual development.

The Other Types
Recreational guidance can he given to help in choosing recreation which are suited to his/her personal characteristics. Community guidance involves assistance to individual in planning a programme of activities which his/her balances with his/her personality traits and his/her other activities.

Types of counseling approaches

• Directive counseling approach
• Non directive counseling approach
• Electic counseling approach

Directive counseling approach

It is also known as prescriptive counseling or counselor-centred approach of counseling.

• This approach of counseling is advocated by E.G. Williamson, a professor at University of Minnesota.
• In directive counseling, the counselor plays a leading role & uses a variety of techniques to suggest appropriate solutions to the counselee’s problem.
• This approach also known as authoritarian  or psychoanalytic approach.
• The counselor is active & help individuals in making decisions & finding solution to their problems.
• The counselor  believes in the limited capacity of the patient.
• The patient makes the decision but the counselor does all he can to get the patient make decision keeping with his diagnosis.
• The counselor tries to direct the patient’s thinking by informing, explaining, interpreting & advising.

The basic assumptions related to directive counseling approach are

• it is a need based approach
• problem focused rather than counselee focused approach
• used for counselee incapable of solving problems
• task of a competent counselor makes the best possible use of counselee’s intellectual abilities and resources

E.G. Williamson has suggested six steps in providing directive counseling which include information gathering as starting point, followed by synthesis, diagnosis, prognosis, counseling and follow up at the end.

Advantages of directive counseling approach

• This approach save time.
• It emphasizes the problem & not the individual. The counselor can see the patient more objectively than the patient himself.
• It lays more emphasis on the intellectual rather than the emotional aspects of an individual’s personality.
• The methods used in directive counseling are direct, persuasive & explanatory.

Limitations of the directive counseling approach

• The patient does not gain any liability for self analysis or solve new problems of adjustment by counseling.
• It makes the counselee over dependent on the counselor.
• Problems regarding emotional maladjustment may be better solved by nondirective counseling.
• Sometimes the counselee lacks information regarding the counselee, leads wrong counseling.
• It does not guarantee that the counselee will able to solve the same problem on his own in future.

Non directive Counseling Approach

The chief exponent of this counseling approach Rogers. It is also known as the permissive counseling approach where the counselor’s role is passive & the counselee’s role is active. It is a counselee-centred or patient-centred humanistic approach. The counselee makes the final decisions as individuals are thoughts to have full right to make final decisions for the self & solve their problems. The counselor has to accept the counselee’s capacity to make adjustment & adapt. The principles of acceptance & tolerance are extremely important in this approach.

The basic assumptions related to nondirective counseling approach are

• counselee is given importance than the counseling directions & investigations
• emotional aspects are more significant than intellectual aspects.
• creation of an atmosphere where patients can work out their understanding is more important than cultivating self-understanding in the patient.
• counseling leads to a voluntary choice of goals & a conscious selection of courses of action.

Steps of the nondirective counseling approach

Rogers given five steps for nondirective counseling. It starts with defining the problem situation, continued to giving an opportunity to the counselee to express his feeling about the situation, from which the feelings of counselee are identified, based on which the insight for the ounselee will be developed and finally terminates the counselee.

Advantages of nondirective counseling approach

• It is a slow but sure process to make an individual capable of making adjustments.
• No tests are used so one avoids all that is laborious & difficult .
• It removes emotional block & helps an individual bring repressed thoughts on a conscious level thereby reducing tension.

Limitations of nondirective counseling approach

• It is a slow & time-consuming process.
• One cannot rely upon one’s resources, judgment & wisdom as the patient is immature in making the decision himself.
• It depends too much on the ability & initiative of the patient.
• Sometime difficulty to control pace of the interview discussion.
• This approach is individual centric, it may not possible for counselor to attend every patient equally well.
• It require high degree of motivation in the patient.

Eclectic Counseling Approach

• This approach is based on the fact that all individuals are different from one another.
• The techniques are elective in nature because they have been derived from all sources of counseling.
• This approach is based on selecting the best & leaving out what is least required.
• The basic assumption related to eclectic counseling approach:
• There is objectivity & co-ordination between counselor & the patient during the counseling experience.
• The patient is active & the counselor remains passive in the beginning.
• The principle of low expenditure is adopted.
• The counselor makes use of all the tools & methods in his armour.
• The counselor enjoys the freedom to resort to directive & nondirective counseling methods.
• The counseling relationship is built during the counseling interview. This helps the patient gain reassurance & confidence.

Advantages of eclectic counseling approach

• It is more cost effective & practical approach.
• It is a more flexible approach of counseling.
• It is more objective & coordinated approach of counseling.

Limitations of eclectic counseling approach

• The role of counselor & the counselee are not predetermined.
• It requires more skilled counselors to handle the dynamic feature of this counseling approach.

Other types of counseling

A)Based on length of the counseling session:

• Short-term counseling
• Long-term counseling

B) Based on number of counselees involved:

• Individual counseling
• Group counseling

C) Counseling for educational & professional purposes:

• Student counseling
• Educational counseling
• Vocational counseling
• Career counseling
• Placement counseling

Counseling Process

Phase I: Establishing relationship

• It is an ice breaking session during which the counselor & counselee introduce each other & establish a primary rapport.
• Good rapport building provides the respect, trust & sense of psychological comfort to the counselor-counselee relationship for progression to the counseling process.
• Strategies to establish an effective relationship:

Introduce yourself
Being the phase with adequate social skills
Always address the individual by his or her name
Ensure physical comfort of the counselee & self.
Do not interrupt the individual when he/she is talking.
Listen attentively.
Observe nonverbal communication.

Phase II: assessment

• The second phase of counseling is basically a data collection phase, where the counselor motivates the counselee to provide complete information about the problem.
• The type of information collected from counselee like general data, physical data, psychological data, social/environmental data, achievement data, educational & vocational data.
• After the collection of information, diagnosis related to the counselee’s behavior is made.
• Various tools & techniques used for data collection like intelligence tests, achievement tests, aptitude tests, interest tests, personality tests, questionnaires, interview, observation, autobiography, anecdotal records, rating scale, cumulative record & case studies.

Phase III: Setting goals

• During this third phase of the counseling process, goals are set co-operative by both the counselor & the counselee.
• While setting goals, the counselee’s strengths, weakness, constraints & available resources must be kept under consideration.
• The goal could be immediate & ultimate which directs the counselor & the counselee to further progress in the counseling process.
• Effective & reliable goal setting requires following skills in counselors:
• Multifaceted knowledge related to the problem of counselee
• Ability to think critically & inference-drawing skills.
• Judgment, planning & management skills
• Skills to segregate &differentiate the provided information
• Ability to each individuals to think critically & realistically
• Help the counselee set feasible, reliable & achievable goals

Phase IV: Intervention

• This stage of counseling is an operational phase where the counselee is suggested the best possible options for the management of the present problem.
• The phase is affected by the counselor’s own thoughts about the counseling process.
• The intervention will depend on the approach used by the counselor, the problem & the individual.
• The choice of intervention is a process of adaptation & the counselor should be prepared to change the intervention when the selected intervention does not work.

Phase V: Termination and follow-up

• This is the final stage of the counseling process, where counseling comes to an end.
• Termination must be planned well ahead so that the counselee may feel comfortable at the departure & gradually able to handle the problem independently.
• Some follow-up sessions may be required to help the counselee further to handle the problem independently.

References

1.Aggrawal, J.C., Educational & Vocational Guidance & Counseling, 7th edition, Doaba House, New Delhi, 1991
2.http://www.differencebetween.net/language/difference-between-guidance-and-counseling/
3.Kochhar, S. K., Educational and Vocational Guidance and Counseling in Secondary Schools, Sterling Publishers, New Delhi, 1987
4.Madhukar Indira, Guidance & Counseling, Authors Press, N. Delhi, 2005
5.Okumu Auma, Introduction to Guidance and Counseling, African Virtual university, under the conditions of the Creative Commons, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_Commons
6.Sharma, Ram Nath and Sharma, Rachana. Guidance and Counseling in India, Atlantic Publishers, Delhi, 2007
7.Sharma, R.A., Fundamentals of Guidance & Counseling, R. Lall Book Depot, Meerut, 2014

Assignment

1. Visit any guidance/counseling centers in vicinity and prepare case study interms of approaches and methods followed by them.
2. Prepare data base of diet counseling/child guidance/consumer guidance centers in your campus.