Positive Hustle to Student Guidance: Student Counselors’ Perceptions of Implementing a New Strengths-Based Student Guidance Method

This research focused on a new strengths-based guidance model and its implementation among Finnish ninth graders. The purpose of this research was to analyze student counselors’ perceptions of how the new strengths-based guidance model worked and benefitted schoolchildren according to the implementation experience of student counselors. The following research questions were set for this research: (1) How do the student counselors implement the strengths-based guidance method as a part of student counseling in basic education? and (2) What are their perceptions of the usefulness and benefits of the application? The data collection method was an online survey in which 28 counselors (27 women and one man, aged 40-49 years) participated in the research. Their perceptions were categorized into actual use, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use of the strengths-based guidance method. The specific viewpoint was in the strengths-based guidance model, which was based on the wide conception of strengths. According to the student counselors’ assessment, the method meets the objectives of student guidance and also succeeded in motivating students to reflect on their own skills, abilities, strengths, and values.