Including spirituality in counsellor education: Issues for consideration, with illustrative reference to a New Zealand example

Giving Spiritual Meaning to Career Choice, Path and Experience

This quote suggests that there are many ways to give meaning to one's career; it can be seen as a utilitarian function, an expression of skills and craftsmanship and a spiritual expression. It is this last meaning that we know very little about. Is this important to those who have a spiritual belief system and does it express itself in career choice, path and experience? This article suggests it is important both for the person who has a spiritual belief system and the career practitioner who will try to assist the client in making a career choice that is closely aligned to his/her personal values.

Examining the Relationship between Religious Spirituality and Psychological Science

Scientific interest in religious spirituality and mental health has increased dramatically. However, many researchers have tended to ignore the historic incompatibility between spirituality and traditional science. A review of the spirituality research suggests that important themes of this historic incompatibility persist in contemporary theories of spirituality. Yet, many spirituality researchers have proceeded as if this incompatibility does not exist. Indeed, there is evidence that spiritual conceptions have been altered to fit the requirements of science. No alteration would seem necessary if scientific method were a neutral tool of investigation that did not affect the conceptions themselves. However, if method has philosophical commitments, and if these commitments are incompatible with the conceptual foundations of spirituality, then spirituality researchers may be undermining their own conceptions in science. We outline the philosophical commitments of traditional scientific methods and the philosophical commitments of contemporary conceptions of spirituality to begin a conversation about this possibility.