Perry’s theory of development has had a significant impact on the field of psychology and is essential to understanding the cognitive development of college students. This chapter provides an overview of Perry’s theory and describes the ways in which it still applies to college students on a diverse, pluralistic college campus. The chapter discusses how Perry’s theory continues to apply to the diversified college student population common in modern American institutions of higher education. It outlines the ways in which Perry’s scheme applies to Fatima, the contextual and pluralistic challenges faced at each position, and future development, should Fatima continue to courageously accept responsibility for her moral development and overcome the ambiguities of relativism. The chapter describes utilizing Perry’s scheme as a lens through which to view Fatima’s development, anticipate deflections from growth, and identify strategies and campus and community resources to foster inclusivity, personal exploration, and continued development.

This chapter describes the interacting forces, understanding the self, identity and emotions. It examines adolescent self and identity, which will serve as a basis for understanding much about the social and emotional world of adolescents. The adolescent years bring with them the long process of departing childhood and emerging into adulthood. Similar to many aspects of development during adolescence that proceed somewhat differently based on gender, males and females differ in the process of self-exploration and identity formation as well. Sexual experimentation is common during adolescence as part of this gender identity struggle. An inability to develop a mature ethnic identity may entail denying one’s culture of origin, whereas a healthy identity process may result in adolescents who are proud of both their culture of origin and the culture they find themselves in currently.

Today, although most counseling center directors are clinical or counseling psychologists, some are psychiatrists and some centers are merged with health services. In the 1980s, staff at counseling centers at small schools began to notice a higher demand for services and greater severity of problems. Staffing trends in the 1980s called for more broad training of staff. By far, psychologists are the largest group of counseling center directors, with counseling psychologists still representing the highest percentage within the group. More psychologists and social workers staffed counseling centers with psychiatrists providing part-time hours, sometimes in a strictly consultative role. Peer counselors or educators are usually undergraduate students who provide basic helping services to other students. Advancement of staff would be considered an important aspect of professional development to staff counselors with career aspirations of working in college counseling centers as a career.

Women are very familiar with the experience of being evaluated by their physical attractiveness. This socialization intersects across all stages of a woman’s development beginning in early childhood. Too often, college women’s beliefs about their own attractiveness influence their self-worth. This chapter provides an overview of the “beauty pageant effect”, a phenomenon in which college women compete against one another based on their physical appearance. In addition, exploration of the beauty pageant effect suggests that social comparison theory, evolutionary psychology, and realistic comparison theory play a significant role in the interactions of college women. The chapter presents negative impacts of this type of competition and discusses a brief overview of clinical implications. Prevention work needs to target all women on campus and especially any at-risk populations, such as women with a history of mood disorder, socially isolated students, and those with a personal or family history of eating disorders.

The college counseling center provides a diverse clinical experience to graduate trainees. Counseling centers have the ability to provide training for a range of disciplines, including counselors, psychologists, social workers, psychiatrists, and other professionals. Master’s-level internship experiences differ from practicum experiences in the number of hours required, the comprehensive nature of training, and the building of a professional identity as a counselor. The doctoral practicum is also an opportunity to amass clinical hours in preparation for applying to a predoctoral internship. Obtaining an internship is an intensive, costly, and at times confusing process. Postdoctoral fellowships in counseling centers can be either formal or informal. Supervision is one of the most critical aspects of counseling center training. Professional development opportunities allow trainees to develop in their professional identities, connect with other trainees and professionals in the community, and build a framework for active postgraduate professional participation.