The purpose of this study was to create a brief strength of religious
onreligious

worldview scale that has language inclusive for nontheistic populations. An exploratory

factor analysis was conducted using 207 participants from a major public southwestern

university and a public midwestern university in the United States. It was determined

that the Strength of Worldview Scale (SOWS) is a single-factor measure, which also

demonstrated high test-retest reliability. It was hypothesized that scores on the SOWS

would be negatively correlated with the Depression, Stress, and Anxiety Scale (DASS),

positively correlated with the Purpose in Life Subscale, and not correlated with the

Extraversion Subscale of the Big Five Inventory (BFI). Only a modest statistically

significant correlation between the SOWS and Purpose in life was found. A regression

analysis was also conducted with theistic/atheistic belief as a predictor of scores on the

SOWS. A curvilinear relationship was found, indicating that strong theists and atheists

score more highly in the SOWS than those who are unsure of their beliefs on the

existence of a God, Gods, or Higher Power. Preliminary results suggest that the SOWS

may be a promising measure for assessing strength of belief in both theist and nontheist

populations.

The focus of this project is developing a business plan for faith-based counseling for college students. Renewed Living Counseling Center (RLCC) is a faith-based counseling center in the Tempe area serving Arizona State University students. RLCC strives to bring healing and wholeness to each student who comes through the doors, to empower them to realize and live out their potential, by providing them with the skills to accomplish their dreams and live full lives, through counseling, motivation, education, and treating studentʼs behaviors to become whole and successful. Research indicates that the proposed center, Renewed Living Counseling Center (RLCC), has great potential for success because:

1. Spirituality and faith are increasingly recognized as important aspects in a personʼs life. National research shows that 66% of people feel counseling should include spirituality. Research with ASU students found that students reflect this statistic, as they feel spirituality is an important part of counseling. Students also feel spirituality is appropriate to include as part of counseling services offered by centers referred to by ASU.

2. There is a need for counseling at ASU. Nationally,approximately1,100 college students commit suicide each year. At ASU, almost one-third of students reported feeling so depressed that it is difficult to function, and 0.9% report having attempted suicide within the past year.

3. Surveys of ASU students indicate that students who describe themselves as being religious are more desirous that counseling include a spiritual dimension. Surveys of campus pastors indicate that over 80% believe there is a need for faith-based counseling and would refer students to a local center.

4. Price is an issue. Indeed, a survey of campus pastors indicated that they believed cost of counseling to be one of the primary deterrents to students seeking help. One way to control costs is to use a mixture of residents and licensed counselors. As in medicine, students must complete coursework along with a period of residency or internship to obtain licensing. Both religious and secular masters programs in counseling exist in the greater Phoenix area. Thus, there is a potential supply of students who could work as residents, permitting RLCC to offer counseling services at reasonable prices.

Over the last few decades the number of international students in the U.S. has increased considerably. According to Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) statistics, the number of international students reached 1.18 million as of May 2017 (Smith, 2017). Whereas both first year international and domestic students experience difficulties associated with their status as university students, international students appear to be more vulnerable to experience psychological distress, as compared to their domestic peers (Edmond, 1997). Research has shown, that international students report higher levels of stress related to social difficulty as opposed to domestic students (Edmond, 1997). Given these patterns, it is not surprising that international students entering U.S. universities may be more likely to seek and receive counseling services than before. A study conducted with students, both international and domestic, compared trends from 2004 to 2006 of students utilizing counseling services; results revealed a 10 percent increase in international students' utilization of counseling services. (Cheng, Mallinckrodt, Soet, & Sevig, 2010). Such increase in the number of international students seeking counseling services appears to necessitate current and future practitioners to be well-equipped to work with this unique and diverse client population of international students. The goal of this study is to explore the experience of two current day American counselors working with international students using grounded theory of analysis to analyze the transcriptions of semi-structured interviews and to ultimately inform current and future practice in the treatment of international students undergoing counseling