bookwomble's review
4.0
Written in 1996, the issues covered seem (sadly) to be just as relevant today.
Taking a person-centred view of class politics as it relates to counselling, the author argues that seeking to maintain a politically-neutral stance and ignoring class and any counsellor/client class differences, leaves unexamined whole dimensions of experience, the influence of which, being unacknowledged, cannot be dealt with congruently.
The author's own political leanings are left-wing, with much criticism made of Thatcherite and Blairite policies. To me, these criticisms read convincingly, but then I lean leftwards myself.
As well as developing her argument for an open recognition of class and the political environment in counselling and counselling training, (though, to be fair, she does not specify any partisan position in this), the author also provides a number of activities for trainee counsellors and training groups.
Where I feel the author could have improved her argument would be by providing more detailed references in the text. Some few are supplied, and there is a reasonably extensive reference list and bibliography in which to try to hunt stuff down, however the relative dearth of in-text references gives an air to much of her argument of being personal opinion, rather than evidenced by research of relevant literature.
Taking a person-centred view of class politics as it relates to counselling, the author argues that seeking to maintain a politically-neutral stance and ignoring class and any counsellor/client class differences, leaves unexamined whole dimensions of experience, the influence of which, being unacknowledged, cannot be dealt with congruently.
The author's own political leanings are left-wing, with much criticism made of Thatcherite and Blairite policies. To me, these criticisms read convincingly, but then I lean leftwards myself.
As well as developing her argument for an open recognition of class and the political environment in counselling and counselling training, (though, to be fair, she does not specify any partisan position in this), the author also provides a number of activities for trainee counsellors and training groups.
Where I feel the author could have improved her argument would be by providing more detailed references in the text. Some few are supplied, and there is a reasonably extensive reference list and bibliography in which to try to hunt stuff down, however the relative dearth of in-text references gives an air to much of her argument of being personal opinion, rather than evidenced by research of relevant literature.
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