The Value of Hope in School Counselling

Abstract

A trend towards increasing accounts of anxiety conditions amongst children and adolescents as witnessed by school counsellors has given educators and mental healthcare professionals across many domains a call to action. Several researchers have turned their attention to the value of examining, witnessing and promoting a sense of hope within individuals that would serve as both a therapeutic treatment modality and a supplement to building resiliency. This paper will provide some operational definitions of “Hope”, review a brief history of hope, then summarize the significant findings from various recent hope-focused research studies and positive psychology theorists. It will propose ways in which counsellors and therapists can work with clients to uncover and amplify their hope using hope-focused questions, as well as address the limitations of hopebased interventions. Finally, it will turn its attention to school counselling and discuss implications and suggestions for promoting hope among children and adolescents.