Religious and Spiritual Issues in Counseling Psychology Training

To explore the kind of training counseling psychology programs provide with respect to religious and spiritual issues, surveys were distributed to training directors or designated representatives of 69 counseling psychology programs in the United States. Responses were received from 40, or 58%, of the programs. Results indicated that programs offered relatively little in the way of formal course work in religious or spiritual issues. In addition, participants indicated that in their programs (a) religion and spirituality were often but not always considered a diversity issue; (b) knowledge about religious and spiritual traditions was not generally seen as important to the expertise of faculty members, practicum supervisors, and therapists; (c) religious and spiritual issues received variable attention in didactic and practicum training; and (d) there was considerable openness to research on religious and spiritual topics. Results are discussed in terms of their relevance to counseling psychology practice, research, and professional identity.