Brief Pastoral Counseling

Most pastoral counselors assume that truly effective counseling requires months or even years. Research suggests otherwise. Studies have provided two startling findings. First, most persons come in for four or fewer counseling sessions, whatever the counseling method employed. Second, the majority of any counseling’s effectiveness occurs in the opening few sessions. Howard W. Stone is professor of pastoral counseling, Brite Divinity School, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth.