Abstract: This paper proposes a calling that it is necessary to develop new approach of psychological counseling based on Confucian thought. This calling was based two facts: The mechanism of mental problem deeply involves cultural factors. Confucianism has been the mainstream of Chinese culture and the spirituality for most Chinese people，which has determined the nature of Chinese society.
The article highlighted that Confucian thought could be applied into nine areas of psychological counseling: (a) Meaning of life. Confucian thought regarded that human beings had some natures with birth, which were different from animals. Human beings were potential kindness. Every one could develop to be virtuous, even can reach the stage of sage. Human beings naturally had to be socialization. In this process, the meaning and obligation of life could be experienced for human beings. This theoretical orientation was deeply different from the West, which was based on the conception of God. (b) Stress coping. Confucian coping emphasized that adversity or stress events could help individuals growing by which it was chance to develop trait and ability of human beings to become an achievement or virtuous person. The features of Confucian coping were pro-frustration, spiritual, whole and developmental. (c) Life and death education. Life and death is the basic issue related with many mental problems in psychological counseling. Confucian thought regarded that life and death were nature phenomena. Human beings should regard the death as nature. The important for human beings was doing their best when living. The foreverness of human being was by the virtue of person, not his body. (d) Grief counseling. Confucian thought advocated that facing the death of loved person one should hui-bu-mie-xing. It meant that grief should not harm yourself when you lost the intimate person although you love them and were deep grief. These ideas were from the theory of nature of human beings and Li(Ritual) and Zhongyong (Golden Mean) of Confucian thoughts. (e) Self regulation. The goal of Confucian thought was to make human beings become full person. The important way to get it was by oneself. For that Confucian developed the thoughtful theory of self-regulation, such as insight, introspection，self-examination, even regulated breathing, quiet-sitting and so on. (f) Interpersonal skill. To Confucian thought the principle of interpersonal skill was Zhongshu, which meant that one should understand other person based on one understanding to himself. That was the process of “from me to you”. Which was different from the empathy, which focuses “from you to you” in the West culture, especially in psychology. (g) Social skill. Confucian thought emphasized that facing different interests from different group, one should take the principle of zhongyong(Golden Mean or split the difference), which meat that one should positively copy the problems with fully consideration other interests and the action can be accepted be other sides. (h) Personality development. To Confucian thought, the key factors of personality were Benevolence (ren), Ritual (li), and Intelligence (zhi). The three factors were reciprocal and shown the feature of virtue. If they developed fully, it can made individual to seek ultimate spirituality of Way (Ren tao) and had the social function of understanding fate (zhiming): facing the fate (Ming), realized that it was “shiming”(unexpected and uncontrolled, no relation with virtue), what individual should do was to pursuit inner sage when without fate, to administrate society with benevolence police when having fate. The personality development was the process of transcendence of Jingjie, which means the same thing had been sensed as different meaning in different life stage. This idea was different from the West approaches of personality. (i) Technique of counseling. Confucian thought had thoughtful theory of self-study. For example, Zhu Xi, who was great Confucian philosopher, gave the four steps of self-study. Firstly getting the instructions from book or teacher, secondly empathy understanding what your getting, thirdly thinking yourself with empathy understanding, fourthly acting with your new experience or tasting. There are a lot of methods for psychologist to help Client, but few for client how to understand the helping. Confucian idea of self-study could give some implications to it.
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Key words: Confucianism, Confucian thought, psychological counseling, mental health, culture