Relational-Cultural Theory For Middle School Counselors
Relational-Cultural Theory For Middle School Counselors
Relational-Cultural Theory For Middle School Counselors
Traditional models of human growth and development focus on separation and individuation as
core components of healthy maturation. In contrast,
Catherine Tucker, Ph.D., is an assistant professor with
Indiana State Universitys Counseling Area Programs,
Terre Haute, IN. E-mail: catherine.tucker@indstate.edu
Sondra Smith-Adcock is an associate professor in
Counselor Education with the University of Florida,
Gainesville, FL. Heather C. Trepal, Ph.D., LPC-S, is an
associate professor of Counseling and Educational
Psychology at the University of Texas San Antonio, San
Antonio, TX.
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RELATIONAL-CULTURAL THEORY
At the core of RCT is the notion that all people,
throughout the lifespan, grow in connection with
others. When people are able to be authentic in relationships, and when others are able to be authentic
in return, a cycle is created in which mutual empathy, connection, and growth are possible. Mutual
empathy, or the two-way ability to put oneself in
anothers position and allow others through the selfboundary (Jordan, 1991), leads to mutual empowerment and growth. According to Ruiz (2005),
through this process, individuals realize that they
have an impact on each other (p.35). RelationalCultural Theory further purports that growth
through connections fosters what are referred to as
the five good things (Miller, 1986, p. 2). Miller
(1986) defined these five good things as 1) each person feels a greater sense of zest (vitality, energy),
2) each person feels more able to act and does act,
3) each person has a more accurate picture of
her/himself and the other person(s), 4) each person
Disconnection is
viewed as the
primary source of
human suffering,
while healthy
connections are
seen as key
components of
satisfaction and
growth.
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Dramatic changes
in physical,
cognitive, and
relational abilities
of the middle
school child mean
that interventions
should address
topics such as anger
management,
decision making,
and conflict
management.
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Counselors who
adhere to this
model work to
enable their clients
to help themselves
in terms of their
relational patterns
and relational
images.
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Although growth
occurs through
connection,
individuals need to
establish empathy
for self and then
empathy for others
in order for healthy
growth to occur.
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pared to examine her patterns of connection and disconnection (Jordan, 2009). In a rush to solve the
frequent disputes among students in middle schools,
many counselors might be inclined to skip these
important first steps in relationship building. But in
this relational, non-blaming environment, students
are free to examine the self in relationship to the dispute with their friends. To foster self-empathy, the
counselor might ask: How do you view yourself and
your friendships? What words do you use to describe
yourself? If Gabrielle expresses self-blame, the counselor might ask her how she would view the situation
if it involved a friend or loved one, thus allowing her
observing self to have compassion and empathy for
what she experienced. Then with compassion for
herself and the advantage of a relational view of what
happened between her and her friends, she is able to
recognize and name the self-destructive behaviors
that have contributed to her present situation.
Explore relational images. According to RCT
(Miller & Stiver, 1997), people develop mental
models (or templates) based on past relationships
that inform future relationships. The counselor
might consider multiple relationships in a young
persons lifefamily, peers, and authority figures.
Gabrielles relational templates influence the situation with Neveah and her other friends. A next step
in RCT with Gabrielle, therefore, is to examine her
own notions of connection and disconnection in her
relationships. A beginning point in examining
Gabrielles relational template is to help her examine
key relationships in her life up to now. How connected are they (authentic, empowering, and mutual)? In what ways does she experience disconnection
in any of her relationships (alienation, disapproval,
inauthenticity)? Which relationships mean the most
to her and why?
Millers (1986) characteristics for growth-fostering
relationships, known as the Five Good Things, are
also easily adaptable to help Gabrielle examine her
past and current relationships. Counselors can readily illustrate these definitions of relational/non-relational qualities to early adolescent children. Using
this framework of good things in relationships, the
counselor and Gabrielle can brainstorm to come up
with specific examples of connection in her relationships. Working through the five good things, she can
relate these definitions to her everyday experience in
friendships and other significant relationships.
Likewise, she can examine in detail the type of disconnections she experiences in her relationships and
her strategies for disconnecting (including the gossiping that she has recently experienced). To do this,
the counselor might ask Gabrielle to think of another time when she gossiped about someone (or felt as
if she needed to retaliate for being hurt). What was
going on for her? What were her fears, hopes, and
Acknowledging
issues of difference
or privilege openly
allows young
people to begin to
develop mutual
empathy and
empowerment, to
appreciate each
others experience,
and to work
through their
differences.
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Waging good
conflict allows
adolescents the
freedom to
express anger,
disappointment,
and frustration
with others in a
way that is honest
and egalitarian,
and teaches
healthy connection.
School counselors can begin to infuse the principles of RCT into an existing guidance curriculum in
a variety of ways. For example, if the school counselor uses any of the widely available anti-bullying
curricula, the principles of mutual empathy, strategies
of disconnection, and power dynamics might be
added or highlighted to reflect RCT ideas. If the
focus of the lesson sequence is career exploration, the
school counselor might discuss interpersonal characteristics that help people to be successful at work,
along with how to engage in healthy conflict.
Likewise, if the focus is on academic development,
the school counselor could add discussions about the
importance of nurturing healthy connections in
mentoring relationships and providing mutual social
support in managing stress and improving academic
performance.
Counselors also might see the need to create a
classroom guidance unit specifically on the five Es.
Dividing the five Es into five short guidance lessons
would allow counselors to discuss each of the major
concepts in some detail with students, and allow time
for students to practice the skills during and between
each of the five lessons. Role playing and modeling
could be infused into each lesson in order to concretely demonstrate the concepts discussed. These
lessons can also be used throughout the school year
as a universal or primary prevention curriculum.
CONCLUSION
Relational-Cultural Theory has been well-established
in the field of psychology and is emerging as a viable
option in the counseling field (Duffey & Somody, in
press). Given that the counseling profession is
anchored in the concepts of development, wellness,
and multiculturalism, this approach fits easily into the
developmental matrix of school counseling programs
(Duffey & Somody). RCT gives school counselors a
well-defined framework for discussing complex issues
such as power in relationships, empathy, and relational well-being. Furthermore, as middle school
children navigate myriad identity, social-emotional,
and cognitive developmental milestones, using a relational lens to provide school counseling interventions
seems particularly critical. Relational-Cultural
Theory is easily adaptable to counseling young people and can be used to inform individual, smallgroup, group, large-group, and peer programming
interventions in schools. In addition, as school counselors strive to positively impact the school environment, RCT may provide them with additional strategies to do so. This article illustrates the implementation of RCT in middle schools using a case example.
As school counselors implement RCT into their
developmental programs, they should collect and
analyze data to validate its use. Future works might
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