By Linda Webster, Ph.D. University of the Pacific
Caplan's (1970; 1993) theory of mental health consultation is widely recognized as one of the most authoritative guides to principles and techniques of psychological consultation (Brown, Pryswansky, & Schulte, 2001). One of his more popular concepts is that of consultee-centered case consultation, in which the consultant focuses his or her energies on understanding and remediating any deficits in the consultee's professional functioning. This focus is conducted obliquely through the consultee's presentation of the client, and not directly upon the consultee's shortcomings.
Caplan delineates four different kinds of consultee-centered case consultation: lack of knowledge, lack of skill, lack of self-confidence, and lack of professional objectivity. Of the four, lack of professional objectivity has received the most critical scrutiny, although Caplan argues that this is the most common form
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