Identifying Factors Influencing the Efficiency of School Counselors: A Thematic Analysis Study

Background: School counselors are expected to induce changes in schools and to help improve and promote students’ academic, personal/social, and professional development. Accordingly, this study aimed to identify the factors underlying the efficiency of school counselors.Methods: This qualitative st...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Dariush Azimi, Hossein Ghamari Givi, Ali Rezaeisharif, Ali Sheykholeslami
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Kerman University of Medical Sciences 2024-12-01
Series:Journal of Qualitative Research in Health Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://jqr1.kmu.ac.ir/article_92603_bfe6799667ec65e55e392718009d2039.pdf
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850034452509491200
author Dariush Azimi
Hossein Ghamari Givi
Ali Rezaeisharif
Ali Sheykholeslami
author_facet Dariush Azimi
Hossein Ghamari Givi
Ali Rezaeisharif
Ali Sheykholeslami
author_sort Dariush Azimi
collection DOAJ
description Background: School counselors are expected to induce changes in schools and to help improve and promote students’ academic, personal/social, and professional development. Accordingly, this study aimed to identify the factors underlying the efficiency of school counselors.Methods: This qualitative study was conducted using a descriptive and exploratory design. Data were collected through semi-structured exploratory interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis. The participants in the study were 13 school counseling professors and experts with research and academic experiences in school counseling. The participants were selected using purposive non-probability (judgmental) sampling and sampling continued until data saturation.Results: The findings showed that factors underlying the efficiency of school counselors included psychological skills (communication and interaction skills, trust-building and persuasion skills, motivational skills, and cognitive skills), technical skills (learning and teaching skills, problem-finding and problem-solving skills, knowledge skills, and research skills), personality traits (responsibility, adherence to human and moral values, initiative, ideation and creativity, effort and patience, risk-taking spirit, and adaptability), and management skills (planning and time management, monitoring the surrounding environment, and decision-making).Conclusion: Addressing the factors contributing to school counselors’ efficiency helps improve their professional competencies and leads to the effectiveness of counseling services offered in schools. Moreover, taking into account these factors can contribute to recruiting more qualified counselors in the educational system.
format Article
id doaj-art-edb9412da3964ce486e39f59f3809c7c
institution DOAJ
issn 2645-6109
language English
publishDate 2024-12-01
publisher Kerman University of Medical Sciences
record_format Article
series Journal of Qualitative Research in Health Sciences
spelling doaj-art-edb9412da3964ce486e39f59f3809c7c2025-08-20T02:57:48ZengKerman University of Medical SciencesJournal of Qualitative Research in Health Sciences2645-61092024-12-0113419420310.34172/jqr.2024.2892603Identifying Factors Influencing the Efficiency of School Counselors: A Thematic Analysis StudyDariush Azimi0Hossein Ghamari Givi1Ali Rezaeisharif2Ali Sheykholeslami3Department of Counseling, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, IranDepartment of Counseling, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, IranDepartment of Counseling, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, IranDepartment of Counseling, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, IranBackground: School counselors are expected to induce changes in schools and to help improve and promote students’ academic, personal/social, and professional development. Accordingly, this study aimed to identify the factors underlying the efficiency of school counselors.Methods: This qualitative study was conducted using a descriptive and exploratory design. Data were collected through semi-structured exploratory interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis. The participants in the study were 13 school counseling professors and experts with research and academic experiences in school counseling. The participants were selected using purposive non-probability (judgmental) sampling and sampling continued until data saturation.Results: The findings showed that factors underlying the efficiency of school counselors included psychological skills (communication and interaction skills, trust-building and persuasion skills, motivational skills, and cognitive skills), technical skills (learning and teaching skills, problem-finding and problem-solving skills, knowledge skills, and research skills), personality traits (responsibility, adherence to human and moral values, initiative, ideation and creativity, effort and patience, risk-taking spirit, and adaptability), and management skills (planning and time management, monitoring the surrounding environment, and decision-making).Conclusion: Addressing the factors contributing to school counselors’ efficiency helps improve their professional competencies and leads to the effectiveness of counseling services offered in schools. Moreover, taking into account these factors can contribute to recruiting more qualified counselors in the educational system.https://jqr1.kmu.ac.ir/article_92603_bfe6799667ec65e55e392718009d2039.pdfschoolcounselingcounselorthematic analysis
spellingShingle Dariush Azimi
Hossein Ghamari Givi
Ali Rezaeisharif
Ali Sheykholeslami
Identifying Factors Influencing the Efficiency of School Counselors: A Thematic Analysis Study
Journal of Qualitative Research in Health Sciences
school
counseling
counselor
thematic analysis
title Identifying Factors Influencing the Efficiency of School Counselors: A Thematic Analysis Study
title_full Identifying Factors Influencing the Efficiency of School Counselors: A Thematic Analysis Study
title_fullStr Identifying Factors Influencing the Efficiency of School Counselors: A Thematic Analysis Study
title_full_unstemmed Identifying Factors Influencing the Efficiency of School Counselors: A Thematic Analysis Study
title_short Identifying Factors Influencing the Efficiency of School Counselors: A Thematic Analysis Study
title_sort identifying factors influencing the efficiency of school counselors a thematic analysis study
topic school
counseling
counselor
thematic analysis
url https://jqr1.kmu.ac.ir/article_92603_bfe6799667ec65e55e392718009d2039.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT dariushazimi identifyingfactorsinfluencingtheefficiencyofschoolcounselorsathematicanalysisstudy
AT hosseinghamarigivi identifyingfactorsinfluencingtheefficiencyofschoolcounselorsathematicanalysisstudy
AT alirezaeisharif identifyingfactorsinfluencingtheefficiencyofschoolcounselorsathematicanalysisstudy
AT alisheykholeslami identifyingfactorsinfluencingtheefficiencyofschoolcounselorsathematicanalysisstudy