Author Description

International Lay Counselor Training: A Short Term Training-the-Trainers Program for Christian Leaders and Workers in Developing Countries David K. Carson, Ph.D., David L. Lawson, Psy.D., Montserrat Casado-Kehoe, Ph.D., and David A. Wilcox, Ph.D. Despite the variation in mental health issues globally, the experience of human pain and suffering is universal, including that caused by mental, emotional, and relational disturbances. Mental health is the least developed and most neglected area of health care in the world, especially in developing countries, and Christians there are not exempt from experiencing the full range of psychiatric disorders and marriage and family difficulties. In an age of strained and broken relationships, abuse and neglect, marital strife, troubled youth and families, various kinds of addictions, and rising incidences of mental and emotional illness throughout the life span, the need for lay counselors within the local church and larger Christian community has never been greater. Increasing people's awareness of the mental health needs of children, adolescents, and adults, and the church's role in addressing them, opens up endless possibilities for believers to become more psychologically, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually healthy, and for local church bodies everywhere to become more caring, supportive, and growth-promoting environments. Given the extreme scarcity of mental health professionals and services available in developing countries, and the resources to develop and support them, the authors contend that these needs within and beyond the church will only be met through a comprehensive lay counselor training approach.The most effective lay counselor trainers no doubt come from within the culture in which they are teaching and training. However, assistance from professionals in other parts of the world to train lay counselors may be needed and requested by church and ministry organization leaders in