Call for Proposals: Special Issue - Humanistic Counseling Supervision

The Journal of Humanistic Counseling

Humanistic counseling traditions have long shaped the heart of professional counselor identity through rich conceptualizations of change, human potential, and the conditions that foster healing relationships, such as presence, authenticity, empathy, and meaning-making. While these principles remain central to ethical and effective counseling practice, there is a growing need for deeper scholarship that explores how humanistic values are embodied, taught, and evaluated within the supervisory relationship.

This special issue of the Journal of Humanistic Counseling will spotlight supervision through a humanistic lens, honoring the developmental, relational, and ethical complexities of preparing the next generation of counselors. Much like the journey of counselor development, supervision is an evolving process of identity formation, value integration, and intentional relational practice. We invite submissions that contribute innovative perspectives, research, and tools that extend the theory, pedagogy, and lived experience of humanistic supervision in counselor education and clinical training.

We welcome submissions including (but not limited to):

• Theoretical or conceptual models that define the distinct features of humanistic counseling supervision or distinguish it from other models in current use.
• Lived experiences of supervisors or counselors-in-training that illuminate relational dynamics, meaning-making, and growth within supervision.
• Innovations in pedagogy and training, including frameworks or strategies for teaching and embodying humanistic values in supervisory practice.
• Empirical research (qualitative, quantitative, mixed-methods) that advances the evidence base for humanistic supervision, including scale development and replication studies.
• Gatekeeping and evaluation practices grounded in humanistic ethics, including non-punitive feedback models, culturally responsive mentorship, and professional identity development.

We encourage proposals that are conceptually rigorous, methodologically sound, and practically applicable to counselors, supervisors, and counselor educators. Manuscripts should demonstrate a clear contribution to advancing humanistic supervision as a vital dimension of counselor identity development and training.

Proposal Submission Guidelines

Interested authors should submit the following materials:

• Statement of intent (½ page)
• Detailed summary of the proposed manuscript (1-2 pages)
• Rationale for contribution to humanistic supervision scholarship (½ page)
• Current curriculum vitae

Following review and invitation from the special issue editors, full manuscripts will undergo a double-blind peer review process in accordance with JHC policies.

Please submit materials to:

Dr. Alfredo Palacios: palacios@uccs.edu
Dr. Jessica Tyler: jessica.tyler@vanderbilt.edu
Dr. Darius Green:

Timeline

March 16, 2026: Manuscript Proposals Due
April 13, 2026: Proposal Decisions Delivered
July 31, 2026: First Manuscript Draft double-blind
September 30, 2026: Peer Review Decisions Delivered
November 20, 2026: Revised Manuscript Due
January 11, 2027: Final Decisions Delivered
February 2027: Planned Publication Date