Postmodern Perspectives on Contemporary Counseling Issues ― Approaches Across Diverse Settings

Postmodernism is one of the most revolutionary and transformative ideological movements to emerge in the history of counseling and psychotherapy. However, descriptions of postmodernism are often abstract and philosophical, thereby making it difficult for practitioners to discern concrete ways that the ideology might enrich their ability to help clients. In Postmodern Perspectives on Contemporary Counseling Issues, contributions from expert scholars and practitioners clearly detail the implications of postmodern ideology for counseling practice. Contemporary issues such as trauma, addiction, social justice advocacy, couples counseling, and education are conceptualized within a postmodern context, and creative treatment options are illustrated with numerous case examples. Although the broad, conceptual details of postmodernism are reviewed, the primary focus of this text is on innovative ways to help clients with solution-focused, narrative, and other postmodern approaches. The rich descriptions of the implementation of postmodern approaches and techniques make it an invaluable training tool for supervisors and counselor educators. The book is also ideal for counselors, psychotherapists, and other helping professionals who would like to bolster and enliven their practice with cutting-edge methods, tools, and techniques derived from postmodern ideology.

Mark B. Scholl, PhD, MEd, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Counseling at Wake Forest University. He is a past two-term Editor of The Journal of Humanistic Counseling and Past President of the Association for Humanistic Counseling (AHC). His research interests include constructivist career counseling, counselor identity development, and the counseling needs of community ex-offenders. In 2017 he began a three-year term as AHC's ACA Governing Council Representative.


James T. Hansen, PhD, MA, is a Professor in the Department of Counseling at Oakland University. His primary scholarly interests are philosophical and theoretical issues in counseling and critical examination of contemporary mental health culture. Dr. Hansen has published over fifty articles in leading counseling journals and several books. Two of his books have won awards for their contributions to humanistic philosophy in counseling. Dr. Hansen has over twenty-five years of experience as a practitioner, supervisor, and consultant.