| dc.description.abstract | Counsellors have different types of powers, which can be applied to help or influence behaviour change of their clients like learners with behaviour problems. This however does not seem to have worked for learners with behaviour problems in inclusive primary schools in Embu County. The form of counselling being administered in these institutions is still not commensurate with school expectations on the category of learners as many of those who have gone through counselling have in some instances never changed or even got negative outcomes. The purpose of this study was to establish the relationship between counsellor’s powers and counselling outcomes of learners with behaviour problems in inclusive primary schools in Embu County. Mixed methods and concurrent triangulation design were applied. The study’s target population encompassed 3,572 teachers, 49,440 learners drawn from classes five to eight, 412 counsellors and 412 contact teachers all from 412 regular primary schools while 38 counsellors and 38 contact teachers were sampled. Stratified and purposive sampling techniques were used to get 56 learners with behaviour problems. Close-ended item questionnaires were used to collect data from counsellors and assisting teachers, while self-reporting interview schedules were used for learners. Validity of instruments was enhanced through consultation with supervisors, experts, professionals and colleagues. The internal reliability was ascertained through Cronbach’s alpha coefficient where counsellor’s knowledge power had a coefficient of .786; counsellor’s professionalism power had .701; counsellor’s legitimate power with .918; counsellor’s referent power with .723 and counselling outcomes of learners had a coefficient of .841 and the overall counsellor’s power had a coefficient of .7938. The quantitative data was analysed descriptively through frequency counts, means, percentages and standard deviation and results presented on tables and figures. Qualitative data was analysed thematically and results presented in a narrative form. The data analysis was done using Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 23. The chi square analysis results revealed that there was an association between counsellor’s powers; counsellor’s knowledge power, counsellor’s professionalism power, counsellor’s legitimate power and counsellor’s referent power and counselling outcomes of learners with behaviour problems in inclusive primary schools in Embu County which was significant (X2 =7.829, ρ<0.05). Based on these results, the study therefore concluded that there was a statistically significant relationship between counsellor’s powers which were counsellor’s knowledge power, counsellor’s professionalism power, counsellor’s legitimate power and counsellor’s referent power and counselling outcomes of learners with behaviour problems in inclusive primary schools in Embu County. Study recommendations are that the Ministry of Education and other training institutions to deliberate on reviewing the current training curriculum and policies on the counselling content of primary schools counsellors so as to include the topics of power bases, their relationship and counselling outcomes as end results of leaner’s with behaviour problems in inclusive primary schools in Embu County. That primary school counsellor try to use their knowledge, expertise, legitimacy and all other forms of power that they may have so as to create a counselling environment that honor clients and gives them the best opportunity to grow and heal as forms of changed behaviours. Primary school counsellors to be trained on how to apply different theoretical orientations in counselling due to their different interpretations of power and outcomes in modifying behaviours. The findings of the study may benefit various stakeholders in educational fraternity and training institutions. The study may be helpful to head teachers of primary schools in especially in assessing the quality and effectiveness of counselling processes in their schools. The findings are relevant to counsellors working in private contractual arrangements. | en_US |
