Thinking and Acting Like a Cognitive School Counselor

How people think affects how they behave. Because of this fundamental connection, cognitive therapy can produce rapid and effective treatment results. In this concise how-to guide, Richard D. Parsons presents theory, analysis, and practical suggestions to support a cognitive counseling framework and shows school counselors how to use that framework when working with students.


This book offers clear strategies for helping new and experienced counselors understand how thoughts connect to feelings and how to discern functional from dysfunctional thinking. To assist readers in developing their skills as cognitive school counselors, the author provides:

•A reflective, meaning-making model as a basis for effective school counseling
•An introduction to the fundamental principles of cognitive counseling
•Clinical illustrations of intervention strategies targeting dysfunctional cognition
•In-depth, verbatim case studies and guided practice exercises