Peace Innovation for Enhancing the Potential of Family Counselors in the Department of Wamen’s Affairs and Family Development

Abstract

The research article consisted of the following objectives: 1) to analyze the context, problems, needs, concepts, and the Buddhist peaceful means conducive to enhance the potential of family counselors; and 2) to propose the peace innovation for enhancing the potential of family counselors in the Department of Women’s Affairs and Family Development. The study used a mixed-method approach, employing an exploratory sequential design. The data were collected via in-depth interviews with the following 65 persons: 1) administrators and officers from the Department of Women’s Affairs and Family Development; 2) experts in family counseling; 3) experts in Buddhism and Buddhist peaceful means; 4) experts in providing psychological counseling; 5) experts in curriculum development; 6) experts in potential development; and 7) those requesting for counseling. The data were also collected through a focus group discussion with 6 experts. A pilot experiment was conducted with a sample group of 15 persons. The assessment form, observation, and recording of learning outcomes during training were used to evaluate the experiment results. T-test was used to analyze the data. The results were summarized using descriptive method.

From the study, the following results are found: 1) Problems in family counseling include style, principles, and tools. The potential that needs to be improved includes mindfulness to achieve awakening states, inner peace, counseling through an online platform, and resolving relationship problems. The modern science concepts used are family counseling based on Satir, adult learning, transformative learning, and coaching. The Buddhist peaceful means used are: Brahmavihāra (the four sublime states of mind), Ariyasacca (the four noble truths) as a counseling concept, and Satipaṭṭhāna (the four foundations of mindfulness)  2) Peace innovation for enhancing the potential of family counselors in the Department of Women’s Affairs and Family Development covers nine major topics: awakened in one's self, awakened in people, awakened in models, awakened in counseling, awakened in thinking, awakened in relationship communication, awakened in emotions, awakened in system, and awakened in networks. The program is based on mindfulness and includes both online and onsite versions. The training includes 5 days of theory session and 29 days of workshop. The potential development and counseling principles are ‘awakening, opening, determining, changing, closing, and sharing’ with the 11 stages of counseling process called “Love and Peace Space Process”. The tool kit is also used to cultivate one's potential in order to prepare oneself to provide holistic counseling. Volunteers who participated in the experiment have a higher posttest mean of counseling potential than the pretest, with a statistical significance of 0.05 and a t-test of 6.47.

 A new body of knowledge from the study is called “Hybrid Mindfulness Based Learning for Peace Counselors”, with the following content: Love, Awakening, Counseling Knowledge, Family Problem Analysis, and a Mindfulness and Peace Toolkit for Counselors. This will enable counseling to understand themselves and others, as well as the ability to resolve relationship problems in families in a more peaceful way.