5 credits
Students in this course are introduced to evaluating professional counseling research and provided with a foundation in program evaluation. Analysis of counseling literature is used to demonstrate the importance of research in advancing the counseling profession, including how to critique research to inform counseling practice. Students learn to distinguish between quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods designs, the strengths and limitations of each method, and under what circumstances each design would be most appropriate. Additionally, students consider the ethical and cultural issues associated with research involving human subjects. Through evaluating professional literature, students will gain an understanding of designs used in research and program evaluation and the use of data in counseling.
Additionally, students explore the ethical underpinnings of program evaluation, approaches to evaluation, and techniques used to perform the assessment of program effectiveness. Students examine the procedures involved in evaluating the needs of a specific group or organization and gain hands-on experience conducting a search for professional counseling literature, developing an annotated bibliography, and identification of evidence-based counseling practices.