Counseling: the reactionary profession

Abstract

Traditionally counselors have functioned as agents and apologists for the established system. Current counseling theory and practice place the onus for change on the individual. The existing social order is absolved of responsibility for individual and group problems that exist within the structure of its institutions, and persons and groups who express attitudes or who demonstrate behavior inconsistent with the prevailing norms are labeled “deviant” or “abnormal.” If counselors are to become more responsive to their clients' needs, they must acknowledge the negative effects that society and its institutions can have on individuals and begin to effect changes at the institutional level.