Date of Award

Spring 2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Counseling & Human Services

Committee Director

Judith Wambui Preston

Committee Director

Brittany G. Suggs

Committee Member

Shuntay Z. Tarver

Committee Member

LaConda G. Ambrose Fanning

Abstract

Counselor educators embody multifaceted professional roles across teaching, supervision, research, leadership, and service, exerting a profound influence on the formation of counselors and the ongoing development of the profession (CACREP, 2024; Calley & Hawley, 2008). While wellness is recognized as a core professional value in counseling (ACA, 2014), research has focused almost exclusively on emotional and psychological dimensions, leaving the physiological consequences of chronic stress largely underexplored (Bovee, 2024; Faheem et al., 2025; Lewis et al., 2022). In neighboring fields, such as public health and medicine, chronic stress has been linked to dysregulation in cardiovascular, neuroendocrine, immune inflammatory, and metabolic systems (Evans et al., 2025; McEwen, 1998). Understanding how counselor educators experience and perceive physiological stress is critical to fully appreciating how wellness is embodied and modeled within the profession.

This study explored how counselor educators experience and perceive the impact of chronic stress on their physiological wellness using a qualitative multiple-case study design informed by Merriam’s (1998) approach. Five full-time counselor educators at CACREP accredited institutions across various regions of the United States participated in semi-structured interviews. Additional data sources included an analysis of CACREP standards and a demographic questionnaire. Analysis was guided by allostatic load theory (McEwen, 1998) and the Indivisible Self wellness model (Myers & Sweeney, 2005).

The study identified five themes: (a) structural production of chronic stress through institutional and accreditation demands; (b) amplification of stress through role overload and internalized expectations; (c) relational dynamics and professional vulnerability; (d) physiological embodiment of stress over time; and (e) adaptive wellness practices within ongoing conditions of stress. Participants described chronic stress as cumulative, systemic, and deeply embodied, with physiological disruption often serving as the primary indicator that stress had become unsustainable.

Findings suggest that chronic stress in counselor education is not solely an individual experience but reflects a structurally embedded condition sustained by institutional demands, accreditation requirements, and a professional culture that espouses wellness without consistently supporting it. These findings have implications for CACREP, institutional policy and practice, and the broader counseling profession, and provide direction for future research on counselor educator wellness.

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DOI

https://doi.org/10.25777/nj17-8z93

ISBN

9798197810304

ORCID

0009-0003-6950-8574

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