Tag Archives: @TechCounselor

@Tech Counselor: Fighting the fake news and misinformation onslaught

By Adria S. Dunbar and Meghan Manfra November 6, 2020

Unplugging is hard. So much of our lives are tied to technology. We use it to manage our schedules, to keep up with our social acquaintances, to research our questions. The important, the urgent, and the things that can wait all reach us in a similar way, making it difficult to differentiate between the three.

Unplugging means disconnecting from our people. At a time when there is already so much social distance in the world, the idea of unplugging can feel overwhelming or impossible. For most of us, the positive aspects of social media certainly outweigh the negative ones, so it is more important than ever that we consider our own media literacy to differentiate facts from fake news and misinformation.

Our online identities are an extension of ourselves, so it is not surprising that the way we interact online, and our exposure to online content, impacts our sense of self in real life. As a country, we are experiencing a vulnerable time in which people are unsure who or what to trust, particularly online. Anxiety, depression and substance use are all rising during this global pandemic, and online misinformation campaigns have the potential to exacerbate symptoms for some clients. Counselors might find themselves in situations where they need to address clients’ mental health concerns without straying too far into politics.

Here are some recommendations and resources that might help counselors in this work, particularly over the next few weeks or months, as the results of one of the most contentious elections in American history draws to a close. Regardless of our political leanings, our ethical responsibility to empower our clients toward wellness creates a need for new media literacy tools in our toolboxes.

Recommendations

Read laterally: Use fact-checking sites like snopes.com to research news items and social media posts. They can usually tell you if the item is misinformation, malinformation (i.e. propaganda) or an outright hoax. For example, search Snopes for “shark on highway after Hurricane Harvey in Texas.”

Conduct a reverse image search: Hover your mouse over the image, right click on the image and select “search Google for image.” You will see other places the image has been used. Again, you will find out pretty quickly if the image is credible.

Determine the perspective of the source: Look for the “about us” page. Keep an eye out for “paid content.” And, when visiting news sources, look for their editorial ethics page.

The following resources can help you strengthen your social media skills:

Pew Research Center —- A nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world
The Sift —- A free weekly newsletter published by The News Literacy Project, a nonpartisan national education nonprofit, that explores timely examples of misinformation, addresses media and press freedom topics and discusses social media trends and issues
Spot the Troll — An interactive game that allows players to read a brief selection of posts from a single social media account or “profile” and then decide if each is an authentic account or a professional troll. After each profile, you’ll review the signs that can help you determine if it’s a troll or not.
Lamboozled: The Media Literacy Card Game — A card game designed to help youth develop media literacy skills.

Image from the United Nations COVID-19 response page at unsplash.com

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@TechCounselor’s Instagram is @techcounselor.

Adria S. Dunbar is an assistant professor in the Department of Educational Leadership, Policy and Human Development at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. She has more than 15 years of experience with both efficient and inefficient technology in school settings, private practice and counselor education. Contact her at adria.dunbar@ncsu.edu.

Meghan Manfra is an associate professor in the Department of Teacher Education and Learning Sciences at North Carolina State University. She lives in Raleigh with her husband and two daughters. Contact her at mmmanfra@ncsu.edu.

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Opinions expressed and statements made in articles appearing on CT Online should not be assumed to represent the opinions of the editors or policies of the American Counseling Association.

@TechCounselor: Managing the culture of breaking news

By Adria Dunbar March 23, 2020

In the very beginning, social media sites, such as Facebook and Instagram, were more about connecting with people you know in real life or updating your profile to reflect the ways in which you hoped others would see you. The addition of the Facebook newsfeed (and its Instagram equivalent), however, changed everything.

The definition of news is “newly received or noteworthy information, especially about recent or important events.” I don’t know about you, but in my experience it has become harder to filter that which is noteworthy and important from that which is not. My newsfeeds are filled with everything from sponsored advertisements to photos of random acquaintances’ travel adventures. Mixed in, there are local events that I’m interested in attending, close friends’ and family’s announcements of major life events, and comments addressed to me. The problem is a newsfeed treats each of these pieces of information with the same attention. It’s all breaking news, and we receive it as such, and this has an impact.

Breaking news! Someone I haven’t spoken to in 20 years made pancakes for breakfast.

Breaking news! A close friend is in need of help finding a counselor for her daughter.

Breaking news! A piece of legislation that impacts counselors and other mental health professionals has been introduced and needs counselor support.

How do we, as counselors, regain control of our newsfeeds? How do we help clients do the same? The first step is reflecting on the impact of this breaking news culture on your personal and professional life. Consider the following:

How much time do you spend filtering through your newsfeed? Is this an amount you feel comfortable with?
After reading your newsfeed, how do you feel? Happy? Productive? Or distracted and stressed?
In what ways do you find yourself mindlessly or mindfully interacting with your newsfeeds?
How do you access your newsfeed? Does the context affect your behavior? For example, I do not have the Facebook mobile app on my iPhone. I only check my newsfeed from my laptop to ensure that I am not filling random 5-15 minute downtime intervals with mindless scrolling.
Think about the timing of when you ingest breaking news. For example, checking a newsfeed first thing in the morning can set the tone for your day or decide how you direct your morning energy and attention.

The next step is to make changes that help you manage breaking news, such as:

Consider removing apps with newsfeeds from your mobile device.
Hide your newsfeed completely from the desktop version of social media sites.
Eliminate—or hide– people, pages or accounts that are not having a positive impact (both Twitter and Facebook allow you to “mute” rather than unfriend or unfollow).
Narrow your follow or friend list to 25-50 people and pages that are most meaningful to you.
Turn off notifications to avoid constant distraction

Technology, while helpful in many ways, has created a daily existence that calls for our attention to be pulled in many different directions at once. This can leave us, and our clients, feeling distracted, scattered, and stressed. By intentionally filtering our newsfeeds to better match our values, we can stop the relentless breaking news from breaking through so only that which is most important gains our attention.

Now, more than ever, it is imperative that we take care of ourselves when filtering information through social media and traditional media outlets. Let’s all please take care of ourselves so that we can continue to do the work of taking care of others. It’s OK to set boundaries, create buffers, and take breaks.

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Related reading, from Counseling Today: “Helping clients develop a healthy relationship with social media”

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@TechCounselor’s Instagram is @techcounselor.

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Opinions expressed and statements made in articles appearing on CT Online should not be assumed to represent the opinions of the editors or policies of the American Counseling Association.

@TechCounselor: Navigating social media with teens

By Adria Dunbar February 5, 2020

I recently did a presentation for a group of high school parents on social media use. Instead of focusing on their children, I began by asking parents about their own use of social media sites like Instagram and Facebook. As a counselor, I believe my reflections on this experience might be helpful to other practitioners when working with adolescent clients or their parents. To begin our discussion, I asked the following questions:

How many of you use social media?
How many of you have thought about changing your habits around your social media use?
What keeps you from making these changes?
How often do you feel pressured to post, like, or comment on someone else’s posts?
How many of you have had similar conversations with your children?

This was one of the most eye-opening discussions of social media use I have ever had with parents. I had assumed parents periodically reflect on their own use of social media and were having conversations with their children about navigating the digital world. Every parent in attendance said they participate in social media sites. They all had considered leaving or changing the ways in which they use social media, but maintained their connections for a wide range of reasons, such as staying in touch with family and friends; using the marketplace; monitoring children’s use; getting news; or learning about events in the community. In addition, almost all of the parents had even felt pressured to participate in an online social media platform in order to maintain relationships, support someone in their social circle or avoid awkward interactions. However, none of them had considered having conversations with their children about their social media use. Why is that?

Many adults and parents assume that tweens and teens know more about social media than we do. And this may be true. But, at the same time, adults can help children process their experiences in these environments. Younger people may know how to post stories, use filters, and increase followers more than their parents, teachers, coaches, or counselors; however, this does not make them experts in social media. Young people need help navigating the uncharted territory these online environments create. Most counselors and parents are aware of safety concerns involving online activity, but there are other big-picture aspects they should also consider asking about, such as:

Tell me more about the social media platforms and apps you use. How do they work? What do you like about them?
What are your interactions like? Are they positive, or do you sometimes get caught up in negativity or conflict?
What kinds of pressure do you feel equipped to handle on your own? What types of pressure leave you feeling unsure how to handle?
How do you filter who you allow into your social media and who you deny entrance?
What is your ideal number of followers or likes? What would reaching that number mean to you?
What will you do if someone you know from school or work sends a follow or friend request, but you question their intentions? How would you feel about blocking or unfriending someone?
How would you react if you saw something inappropriate or unkind on one of the more publicly accessible platforms such as Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter or Facebook? Would your reaction change if you knew that your response could resurface in the future or in a different app?

Keeping up with the ways in which technology is changing our relationships and world can be a lot of work, but we cannot allow ourselves to take our hands off the wheel. Although not all counselors choose to participate in social media sites, such as Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, or Snapchat, it is crucial to stay up to date on the ways these social media platforms impact clients’ lives and relationships. For those who work with child and adolescent clients, it is equally important to find reputable resources to share with clients’ caregivers. Websites like commonsense.org can be helpful as a starting point. Local libraries and schools often hold workshops or sessions focused on navigating digital spaces as well.

Just as we cannot expect parents to navigate the digital world without guidance, nor can we expect that adolescents will understand all the social nuances of the online social world without our help. By partnering with adolescents, and allowing ourselves to find vulnerability in our lack of expertise, we may be able to help them think through some big questions about who they are, what they represent and how they want to show up in the world—not just online but IRL (in real life).

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Related reading, from the Counseling Today archives: “#disconnected: Why counselors can no longer ignore social media”

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@TechCounselor’s Instagram is @techcounselor.

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Opinions expressed and statements made in articles appearing on CT Online should not be assumed to represent the opinions of the editors or policies of the American Counseling Association.

@TechCounselor: Retaking ownership of your time

By Adria S. Dunbar April 15, 2019

For those of us who are counselors or counselor educators, it may feel like we are constantly juggling and, dare I say, multitasking during our days. As wellness experts, we know this is not healthy or productive. Even so, with so many possible distractions and so many things competing for our time and attention, sometimes we find ourselves being pulled (reluctantly) toward these counterproductive habits.

I’ve invested a significant amount of time over the past few months investigating my own use of time. In fact, for the first time in my life, I committed to pursuing a New Year’s resolution for 2019. I want to be more intentional with how I choose to spend the time I have each week. I don’t know about you, but I want to have greater ownership over my calendar rather than allowing my calendar to have ownership over me. I suspect that other counselors might also be struggling to find an ideal balance. So, here it is — a brief summary of some of the tools that are helping me increase my awareness around time.

1) I highly recommend a podcast called Hurry Slowly hosted by Jocelyn K. Glei. Listening regularly has been a great way for me to explore my own productivity habits related to time management, creativity, efficiency and balance. Glei describes the podcast in the following way: “Hurry Slowly explores how we make smarter decisions, feel more comfortable taking risks, and manage our attention more intelligently when we learn to take our time.” Counselor practitioners may particularly enjoy episodes by Jason Fried (“Whose schedule are you on?”), Cal Newport (“Using technology with intention”), Alex Pang (“Prioritizing rest and reflection”) and Fanny Auger (“Conversation isn’t about talking”). One of my personal favorites is Glei’s “Creativity vs. efficiency”.

2) I’ve also been using an online tool called Toggl. I have the app on my phone and downloaded on my MacBook. Toggl allows me (and reminds me) to track my time when I am working. For example, I had no idea how much time I was spending responding to email. Seeing the patterns allows me to make more intentional decisions about how to prioritize and block my time so that the time I am spending on tasks aligns with my work mission.

3) Laura Vanderkam is one of the leading experts on time tracking. She is the author of several books, including 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think and Off the Clock: Feel Less Busy While Getting More Done. She also has a Free Time Makeover Guide (a pdf is available on her website), which is an eight-step framework to help you reconsider how you spend your time.

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In addition to these resources, or perhaps as a result of using them, I have also set some new norms for how I want to conduct the business of living my life. This has required quite a bit of self-reflection on my part, and technology has certainly impacted these results. Here is a list of a few of my new norms:

1) Plan for the next week on Fridays using (wait for it …) ANALOG tools. Typically, I was trying to make weekly plans on Sundays. There were several reasons this was not working for me, but two stand out. First, planning on Sunday meant that my work week was creeping into my weekend time. Second, it is much easier for me to plan for the following week when I’m still in work mode rather than weekend mode. I’ve been using a Clever Fox Planner to reach this goal. I still use Google Calendar for appointments, but my planner helps me prioritize and budget my time, while helping me stick to my focus for the week.

2) Once my schedule is set for the week, I try very hard not to make changes. I realized I was adapting too much to other people’s requests for meetings, phone calls, appointments, etc. I was rescheduling based on other people’s requests A LOT. Now that my schedule is set, I can better prioritize my time and feel an increased sense of control over my calendar, which allows me to spend my time in ways that align with my goals.

3) I’m still working on an earlier bedtime and wake-up time. This actually may be a lifelong growth edge for me. However, I have implemented a Screen Time curfew of 9 p.m. My iPhone settings have helped me stay committed to this practice.

I’d love to hear some of the strategies counselors are using to manage their own time, or feedback on any of the tools that you are trying to practice in your own life.

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@TechCounselor’s Instagram is @techcounselor.

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Opinions expressed and statements made in articles appearing on CT Online should not be assumed to represent the opinions of the editors or policies of the American Counseling Association.

@TechCounselor: Counselors as innovators

By Adria S. Dunbar August 9, 2018

Have you ever been at work using a software system and thought to yourself, “It would be so nice if this software would let me do ___________”?

Maybe you wish collaborative comments were possible when a team of providers is involved in client care. Perhaps you’d like it if calendar reminders included a two-sentence summary of your last session so you could avoid opening a laptop between sessions. Maybe you’ve thought about how nice it would be if emails and faxes could be sent directly from the electronic health record you are using. Maybe you wish you could streamline aspects of your counseling practice or have more automated systems for tasks that are repetitive day after day. Perhaps you’d like to collect data from clients in a way that would help them reach their goals faster.

Stop for just a moment and think about your biggest frustrations (or pain points) at work. Are they universal issues that others in the counseling profession also experience? Could there be an innovative solution?

Typically, when counselors have a problem to solve or a thought to increase efficiency, we begin searching for innovative solutions that already exist — and hope that these solutions won’t be too expensive to adopt. Sometimes, we are even lucky enough to find a solution that mostly fits our needs as counselors. Although the innovation was actually created for health care professionals, the business world or other types of practitioners, we make due, find workarounds or settle for almost perfect. In some cases, finding and using these solutions seems to go well enough, but there also are many examples of ways in which borrowing technology from other fields falls short.

Now imagine what might be different if counselors and counselor educators were the innovators behind innovative technology solutions. How might software be different if it was created by a counselor? What are some counseling concepts that might find their way from our practice into the software we create? Mindfulness? Digital health? A strength-based focus? Wellness models?

How might the user experience be different? How might the content be more applicable to our work? How might our practice be improved through innovation that runs in the background and allows us to do the work we love instead of spending so much energy on the logistics of running a practice, providing supervision or training counselors?

As a counselor educator who values innovation and tech development, I spend a lot of time considering the ways in which our work could be improved if more counselors felt empowered to take their innovative ideas and turn them into something we could all use in our practices.

If you have examples of counselor-created software or other innovations that are working well for you, please contact me. I’d love to share them with readers here at CT Online.

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@TechCounselor’s Instagram is @techcounselor.

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Opinions expressed and statements made in articles appearing on CT Online should not be assumed to represent the opinions of the editors or policies of the American Counseling Association.