Abstract


THE WELL-STAR MODEL OF WELLNESS, APPLICATIONS AND EVALUATION
Central to counseling is the promotion of personal development and effective functioning. The concept of “wellness” has emerged over the past decades as a multi-dimensional construct encompassing far more than the absence of illness or injury. Current models portray wellness as a multi-faceted construct with five or more domains. This paper describes the development and application of a wellness model, called Well-Star Model (WSM), to promote and facilitate positive change among a Turkish population. The paper discusses the theoretical foundation for WSM, examples of how this model can be used in counseling and finally, the results of a limited study into the WSM. The WSM is constructed of five dimensions of wellness: Physical, psychological/emotional, social, intellectual/occupational/ and spiritual. After multiple presentations and workshops the star metaphor has emerged as an easily comprehended concept. Participant evaluations of the WSM have described the model as easy to understand, enjoyable, personally meaningful and a good mechanism for structuring future personal change. This model is currently undergoing continuing empirical evaluation.

Keywords
Wellness, metaphor , WELSTAR Model



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