This Virtual Field Experience TM (VFE®) Assignment is designed to promote your understanding of the use of affirmative therapy with a client who is questioning her sexual orientation. You observe a simulated counseling session and then listen to a professional dialogue about what took place; this is considered a reflected practice and explains some of the reasoning behind the counselor’s actions. The VFE® also demonstrates the power of reflective practice, or the power of reflecting on what one says and does during a counseling session.
For this Assignment, read the Pachankis article on affirmative therapy. Review the APA guidelines for working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) clients in counseling. Then, review the VFE® course media Affirmative Therapy. Take detailed notes on the competencies outlined in the APA guidelines.
The Assignment:
In a 3- to 4-page paper, write a summary of the VFE® session, noting the competencies and practices that were effectively demonstrated by the counselor. Use the Learning Resources, APA guidelines, and the Pachankis article on affirmative therapy to support your summation. Include the following:
• Explain how the counselor effectively applied at least three competencies outlined in the APA guidelines and the article. Provide examples.
• With regard to each competency you selected, share insights that you gained about the application of this competency from the dialogue between the two counselors (in other words, that you did not gain from observation of the session alone).
• Explain how the counselor demonstrated effective cultural competency, providing examples to support your response.
• Based on your current level of knowledge and skill, suggest one recommendation you might make to the counselor to improve his or her effectiveness.
Sample Solution
