Date

4-7-2026

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy in Counselor Education and Supervision (PhD)

Chair

Kristy Ford

Keywords

counselors in training, values-based conflicts, cognitive flexibility, religiosity, supervision, religious harm and abuse

Disciplines

Counseling

Abstract

This quantitative study sought to understand the relationships between counselor religiosity, cognitive flexibility, supervisory relationship, and cognitive dissonance related to values-based conflicts. The sample consisted of 175 clinical mental health counselors still in their master’s program, in clinical residency, or licensed less than five years. Participants must have been enrolled in or graduated from a CACREP accredited program to foster consistency in clinical training. A series of demographic questions and four previously developed assessments provided data to analyze four research questions. Results suggested counselor religiosity had a significant, positive relationship with values-based conflicts, with cognitive flexibility emerging as a potential protective factor. The quality of supervisory relationship did not emerge as a significant factor in this dataset, which was contraindicated by standing literature. Findings suggest the benefit of future research exploring the benefits of values-based conflict models in assisting religious counselors navigating challenging clinical situations. Study results suggest the benefit of identifying educational tasks and supervisory interventions that foster cognitive flexibility to further support counselors in training navigating values conflicts, particularly in cases involving religious harm and abuse.

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