Open Center Counseling – The Need is Great …………………..p.3

Early Recollection Data Bank …………………..p.4

Article Submission Guidelines …………………..p.5

If you have an article or an idea for an article, please submit it to us! Submission guidelines are outlined at the end of this journal.

Quote of this Journal

It is easier to fight for one's principles than to live up to them. -- Alfred Adler
EDITOR’S COMMENTS

J. Slava Thaler

Welcome to the first Electronic Journal of the NASAP Theory & Research Section! To start this wonderful and exciting endeavor, you will find an article about open center counseling. This article may help to better understand open center counseling, as well as quell some fears about ethical concerns regarding dual counseling roles.

We hope that this journal sparks some interest and starts the creative juices flowing within NASAP Theory & Research Section members. This journal will grow, form, and take shape over the next few months, and I would really appreciate and enjoy your help in this process!

OPEN CENTER COUNSELING - THE NEED IS GREAT

Eva Dreikurs Ferguson and J. Slava Thaler

Recent developments have made it clear that renewed interest exists in the

Adlerian model of 'open forum counseling centers.' Adler developed the model and procedures in Vienna in the 1930s and Dreikurs actively developed and promoted them in the USA and elsewhere between 1940 and his death in 1972. The method has many advantages over traditional methods of counseling. Currently there is some confusion about the intent of this approach and some concern about its effectiveness. Three communications on a ListServe illustrate both the concerns and the advantages of this approach. The present brief article presents comments on this topic. More articles, with references, will appear on this topic.

Question: I would like to (at some point) do open forum family counseling in a public setting. I think that it is a powerful tool that can be beneficial to a large audience. My question is this: Does anyone see anything potentially problematic ethically? I would be very interested if anyone has confronted this problem, or if anyone has suggestions to minimize the risk of being taken to task for "exploitation" "dual roles" (say if this was/is a client), etc. I could see other professionals possibly being uncomfortable with the idea of using "real" clients rather than have people "acting a role." (Paul R. Peluso, Ph.D.)

Answer 1 : I have heard the concern about the ethics of this raised from time to time. I frankly don't see the problem. The family understands the context of the situation and has agreed. Also you are doing "family counseling" not therapy (I don't see a huge difference, but on the surface it seems less invasive). You are not forcing anyone to come and watch. Of course you want to be careful to preserve the dignity of the family. I have been concerned in watching some open forum meetings that the audience sometimes seems interested in a game of "gotcha" with the family. I think you want to emphasize that there are no perfect families, and that ALL families make errors in raising their children. You want to normalize the experience for the family and the audience. (Tim Hartshorne)

Answer 2 : When my dad brought this type of counseling to Chicago, he made it an important point that the reason for the open center approach is that ALL families can learn from each other and that raising children involves a whole community. The community values need to become Adlerian, and the family who is being counseled is helping the community to learn. They are helpers, and the audience shares concerns with and is thankful to the helpers. To deride the family 'on stage' is completely alien to the concept and goals of Open Center Counseling.
That Tim has observed "I gotcha" in such settings means the counselor has missed the opportunity to enunciate and promulgate the bottom-line goals of this procedure, which are:

1. Build a sense of community as part of building Social Interest!
Building Social Interest is key to all Adlerian rehabilitation, and the audience and 'up front' family are forging a strong sense of community and sharing and mutual help.

2. Sharing problems, so all present can learn from the examples brought up.

3. The Audience not only learns but serves as ENCOURAGERS!

If audience members play "I gotcha" they seriously violate all three basic goals of the open center counseling, and the counselor needs to implement (if necessary, to re-read) what Dreikurs wrote about open center counseling -- and all of us can review what Dreikurs wrote regarding why Open Center counseling is so effective and in many cases the preferred model for counseling. (Eva Dreikurs-Ferguson)

Final Note : I appreciated the almost instantaneous feedback to the question, especially from such learned individuals, as well as the encouragement. I would have hoped to hear more voices in the discussion, especially anyone willing to play “devil’s advocate” and discuss the potential pitfalls from clinicians who may be uncomfortable with public demonstrations. I know that such individuals exist, and I would like to be able to provide a cogent defense to any accusations. Again, though, I was pleased with the responses that I did get, and hope that others use this as a tool to address issues related to the use of Individual Psychology in our workplaces. (Paul Peluso).

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EARLY RECOLLECTION DATA BANK

Bob Willhite, Olga Evans, and J. Slava Thaler

Similar to the concept of a Blood Bank, we have started an “Early Recollection Data Bank” in order to collect ER’s, which any Adlerian Researcher may use in their research. Everyone currently doing ER’s is encouraged to submit the ER's that they collect to this bank (of course, with the name of the person who “donated” the ER taken out).

We are interested in donated ER's of any type, but if they are of a specific method (i.e., The Willhite, Kopp Method, "before and after" therapy, etc) please let us know and they will be filed in that particular category. Please donate your ER's in electronic format (Microsoft Word Documents preferred) directly to Slava Thaler at sthaler@reachapex.com, and ER's on paper can go directly to Bob Willhite at the Adler Graduate School, 1001 W. Hwy 7, Suite 311, Hopkins, MN 55305.

Thank you in advance for your participation in this project!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ARTICLE SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

To submit an article to this electronic journal, please e-mail it in Microsoft Word format to the editor, Slava Thaler, at sthaler@reachapex.com. PLEASE NOTE that only original articles will be considered for publication. Most articles will be between 2 paragraphs and 2 pages long (abstracts are optional), and have wide enough interest for NASAP Theory & Research Section members. You are encouraged to include your name and contact information with each article, and if you like, include a short biography of the author(s).

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

THANK YOU for reading this edition of the Electronic Journal of the NASAP Theory & Research Section!! Please look for the next edition, scheduled to come out within 2-3 months.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------