College Student Mental Health Counseling: A Developmental Perspective

Using a unique developmental focus, this clinical handbook provides college counselling professionals and trainees with strategies for addressing the most pressing and frequently encountered issues presented by college students. These problems are considered from the perspective of biological, psychological, and social development and include issues faced by the student population according to both college year (freshman, senior, etc.) and the academic calendar, such as spring and winter breaks and exam periods. The text also addresses the particular needs of non-traditional students and the impact of cultural identity on the way in which a disorder manifests or is best treated. The only text to focus on both the developmental and clinical concerns of contemporary college students, it provides detailed information on such prevalent presenting issues as major depressive disorder, anxiety, substance abuse and addiction, eating disorders, grief, self-injury, social adjustment concerns, and intimate relationships. The text examines how a disorder usually presents and manifests in college students, addressing the role of gender, cultural identify, and age. It provides best practice treatment strategies that take into account the time-limited nature of treatment in most college counselling centres, and discusses the use of individual and group counselling. The text also addresses such issues as crisis management, teaming up with faculty and staff to develop preventive care programming, and developing alliances with parents. Case studies and descriptions of symptom presentation are derived from composites of students treated by the authors. College Student Clinical Mental Health Counseling will be useful as both a text and a go-to reference for counsellors to use when working with students.