A PSYCHOLOGICAL TRAINING MODEL FOR ENHANCING COUNSELING SKILLS OF GRADUATE ADVISORS, SCHOOL OF EDUCATION SUKHOTHAI THAMMATHIRAT OPEN UNIVERSITY

Abstract

The objectives of this research were (1) to study counseling skills of counseling instructors at the graduate study level in the School of Educational Studies, Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU); and (2) to compare levels of counseling skills of counseling instructors at the graduate study level in the School of Educational Studies, STOU before, after being trained with the psychological training model, and during the follow-up period. Two research sample groups were employed in the two stages of the research. In the first stage, the research sample group employed in the study of counseling skills of counseling instructors at the graduate study level in the School of Educational Studies, STOU consisted of 28 instructors who were appointed as counseling instructors at the graduate study level in the School of Educational Studies, STOU during the 2021 academic year, obtained by simple random sampling. In the second stage, the research sample group employed in the experiment with the psychological training model consisted of 8 instructors with the experience of being instructors at the graduate study level for not more than 5 years who were appointed as counseling instructors at the graduate study level in the School of Educational Studies, STOU during the 2021 academic year.The employed research tools were (1) a scale to assess counseling skills of counseling instructor at the graduate study level, with reliability coefficient of .74; and (2) a psychological training model to develop counseling skills of counseling instructors at the graduate study level. Statistics employed for data analysis were the percentage, mean, standard deviation, and Friedman test. Research results revealed that (1) counseling skills of counseling instructors at the graduate study level in the School of Educational Studies, STOU, were rated at the moderate level; (2) the post-training level of counseling skills of counseling instructors at the graduate study level in the experimental group after being trained with the psychological training model was increased over their pre-training counterpart level; and (3) no difference was found between the counseling skills level of graduate study level counseling instructors at the end of the experiment and the follow-up period.