The perspectives of the pastoral counsellor and pastoral counselling in South Korea : a postfoundational practical theological journey

Abstract

This research was done from a Postfoundational practical Theological position and I made use of the narrative approach as my methodology. The focus of this research was to come to a better understanding of what the perspectives are of the pastoral counsellor and pastoral counselling in the South Korean context. This was done by listening to the narratives of four academics that was either teaching and/or practicing pastoral counselling in South Korea. These four professors became my co-researchers in this journey of discovering.

These narratives were looked at by making use of the Social Constructionist point of view. Therefore, because I was doing research about a culture, I gave an overview of the history, the culture etcetera.

To come to a better understanding of the narratives of my co-researchers and what the perspectives are of the pastoral counsellor and pastoral counselling, I have made use of an interdisciplinary team of helpers. The narratives that were shared by my co-researchers were summarised as a “neutral co-researcher’s narrative” and was commented on by the interdisciplinary team.

By coming to a better understanding concerning the pastoral counsellor and pastoral counselling in South Korea, many of my pre-conceived biases were deconstructed. This in turn allowed me, with the help of my co-researchers and the interdisciplinary team, to make valuable contributions towards pastoral counselling and the pastoral counsellor in South Korea.