Personality differences and expectations about counseling.

We assessed the relation between conceptual system functioning and expectations about counseling and extend earlier research in 2 ways: (a) Client expectations are linked to a stable personality dimension, and (b) the conceptual system, rather than the conceptual level, model provided the theoretical rationale. Implications of these extensions are discussed. Measures of client conceptual stage and their expectations were taken immediately prior to initial meetings with counselors. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and a discriminant analysis of data from 60 clients revealed theoretically consistent separation between the 4 stages of conceptual functioning on 2 dimensions of expectations about counselor characteristics, attitudes and behaviors. The need to consider the influence of conceptual functioning in counseling process research is supported. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Client stages of change and expectations about counseling.

The relation between client stages of change and client expectations about counseling was examined in a sample of 88 clients seeking services from a university-based outpatient clinic. Results of a canonical correlation indicated that the composite of the contemplation, action, and maintenance stages of change was significantly related to the expectation factors of Personal Commitment and Facilitative Conditions. The composite of the contemplation and maintenance stages of change accounted for additional variance in expectations for Facilitative Conditions, Counselor Expertise, and Nurturance. The significance and implications of these findings for counseling are briefly discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counseling psychologists' perceptions of the occurrence and effects of unrealistic expectations about counseling and psychotherapy among their clients.

Surveyed counseling psychologists working in practice settings regarding their perceptions of the occurrence and effects of their clients' unrealistic expectations about counseling. A majority perceived some of their clients as having unrealistically high expectations about the need for concreteness; the likelihood of counselor nurturance, directiveness, and empathy; and the probability of a beneficial outcome. Most responded that some of their clients have unrealistically low expectations about the need for immediacy, motivation, openness, and responsibility, and the likelihood of confrontation. Psychologists view most unrealistic expectations as having a detrimental effect on counseling. Exceptions that can have a facilitative effect on counseling are unrealistically high client expectations about the needs to be motivated and open and to assume personal responsibility and unrealistically low expectations for counselor directiveness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counselor gender, type of problem, and expectations about counseling.

100 male and 100 female college students were assigned to 1 of 4 experimental conditions—female counseling psychologist (CP)/career or vocational concern (CVC); male CP/CVC; female CP/person concern (PC); or male CP/PC—and responded to an expectations-about-counseling questionnaire that included sex of CP and type of problem. Results of a MANOVA revealed a significant main effect for S Gender; no other main effects were found. Females had significantly higher expectations for the client attitudes/behaviors of motivation, openness, and responsibility and for the CP attitudes of acceptance, confrontation, and genuineness. Females also expected more attractive and trustworthy CPs than did males, expected more immediacy in the counseling process, and had a more positive outcome expectancy. Males expected CPs to be more directive and self-disclosing than did females. The 2 groups did not differ in their expectations for CP empathy, expertness, and concreteness. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clients' pretreatment counseling expectations as predictors of the working alliance.

Because research suggests that counseling expectations are malleable and that alliance ratings predict clinical outcomes, the relationship between this pretreatment client characteristic (expectations) and the quality of the alliance early in treatment deserves further attention. This study examined the relationships between 57 clients' pretreatment role expectations and 3rd-session client-rated alliance in a naturalistic setting. Prior to intake, clients completed the Expectations About Counseling-Brief Form (H. E. A. Tinsley, 1982), and clients completed the Working Alliance Inventory-Short Form Revised (R. L. Hatcher & J. A. Gillaspy, 2006) following the 3rd therapy session. Results indicate that clients' expectations for personal commitment predicted the task, bond, and goal dimensions of the alliance. Expectations for facilitative conditions and counselor expertise did not predict clients' perceptions of the alliance. Clinical implications and research directions are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clients' perceptions of helpful experiences in counseling.

The question of what clients experience as helpful in counseling was examined via concept mapping, a methodological approach combining qualitative and quantitative strategies. The purpose of the study was to clarify the scope and interrelations among elements of the retrospective experience of helpfulness among 36 clients who had completed counseling after an average of 11 sessions. Five thematic clusters consistent with previous research were identified: Counselor Facilitative Interpersonal Style, Counselor Interventions Generating Client Resources, New Perspectives, and Client Self-Disclosure. Four new thematic clusters were also identified: Emotional Relief, Gaining Knowledge, Accessibility, and Client Resolutions. The structure of the concept map generated by the participants in this study was found to be consistent with an integrative, pantheoretical model of the counseling process. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Level of psychosocial development, perceived level of psychological difficulty, counseling readiness, and expectations about counseling: Examination of group differences.

Multivariate analyses of variance and multiple regression analyses were performed to examine the relation between students' expectations about counseling and three measures of students' psychosocial development. A sample of 172 undergraduate college students completed the Expectations About Counseling Questionnaire—Brief Form (EAC—B) and the Developing Purpose scale of the Student Developmental Task Inventory (2nd edition; SDTI—2), the Counseling Readiness Scale (CRS) of the Adjective Check List, and the Career Counseling Diagnostic Inventory (CCDI). Significant relations between students' expectations about counseling and their scores on the SDTI—2 were found after the variance in expectations attributable to gender, age, and year in school had been extracted. No significant relations were found between scores on the EAC—B and scores on the CRS or CCDI. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Semantic communication and expectations for counseling across three theoretical orientations.

Using excerpts taken from 2 time periods in each interview from the film series, Three Approaches to Psychotherapy, the language of the counselors (C. Rogers, F. Perls, and A. Ellis) and the client was compared to determine whether relations exist between participants' speech in the interview and the counselor's prior stated intentions for the interaction. Language was analyzed by means of the Computer-Assisted Language Analysis System; the dependent measures were verb phrases classified into types of inherent semantic relators. Counselors differed significantly in their use of verb phrases defining (a) states or properties of objects, (b) actions initiated by agents, and (c) a compound of experiential states and actions. In contrast, the client's language was remarkably consistent from interview to interview, with 1 exception: The client's use of verbs defining experience was significantly more frequent when talking with Rogers than when talking with Ellis. Results are discussed in terms of how structural analyses of language may help counselors (a) identify treatment policies mutually formulated and implemented at different stages of the counseling process and (b) relate these policies to the needs of clients whose cultural background is different from that of the counselor. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Women's perceptions of personal versus sociocultural counseling interventions.

Two videotaped simulated counseling interventions focusing on weight and body-image concerns were shown to 79 female college students. One of the interventions portrayed the counselor as attributing the weight issues to external, sociocultural causes (i.e., society's unrealistic expectations of women), whereas the other intervention showed the counselor as attributing weight issues to personal causes (i.e., poor eating habits related to a negative self-image). The women's perceptions of and preferences for the intervention were hypothesized to vary as a function of (a) traditionality of sex role attitude, (b) severity of disturbance, and (c) concern for weight and body image. It was hypothesized that women with nontraditional sex role attitudes would prefer the sociocultural intervention, whereas women with traditional sex role attitudes would prefer the personal intervention. The results obtained were opposite those hypothesized. Women with nontraditional sex role attitudes (especially those with highly nontraditional sex role attitudes) preferred the personal intervention. Women with traditional sex role attitudes preferred the sociocultural intervention. This result was more dramatic with those women for whom weight concern was a salient issue. No results were found for severity of disturbance. The results are discussed with respect to feminist counseling and changing sex role expectations in society. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of locus of control on counseling expectations of clients.

Investigated the relation between clients' locus of control and expectations of therapeutic outcome among 67 clients (mean age 29 yrs) with mild neurotic problems. Clients were asked to estimate their likely success with therapists presented in a series of videotaped role plays. The role plays depicted the locus of control, sex, and social class of therapists. Results indicate that there was a significant interaction between clients' and therapists' locus of control in relation to clients' judgment of clinical success: Internal clients anticipated greater success with internal therapists, and external clients expected greater success with external therapists. Implications for the counseling process are discussed. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Student and faculty perceptions of student needs and the services of a university counseling center: Differences that make a difference.

800 university students and 400 faculty members were telephoned and asked to estimate how common 14 areas of concern were in the student body and to indicate how likely they would be to refer students to the university counseling service for assistance with those same concerns. Analyses revealed significant differences between the 2 groups on 8 of the 14 items. The 2 groups also differed significantly in their reasons for referring students to counseling. Students were more likely to refer on the basis of a pragmatic need such as finances and career planning. Faculty would refer for personal–social issues. (14 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A warning about the use of a standard deviation across dimensions within ratees to measure halo.

Monte Carlo data show that the unstandardized standard deviation measure of the halo effect is affected by both the intercorrelation among rating dimensions and differences among the means of the rating dimensions as used by individual raters. The relationships between 4 different halo measures are analyzed, and the results of 2 studies using the unstandardized measure are examined to determine the degree to which the problem seems to have affected published data on the halo effect. It is recommended that each rater's average observed intercorrelation among the dimensions be used as a halo measure. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A delay discounting measure of great expectations and the effectiveness of psychotherapy.

Many clients prematurely terminate therapy before they have recovered. One possible explanation for treatment dropout is unmet expectations. Although the effects of unmet role expectations have received much attention in the literature, little is known about unmet outcome expectations. Two studies were designed to look at duration and effectiveness outcome expectations held by individuals within a primary referral base for a training clinic setting--a setting with a slower rate of recovery than other outpatient settings. Study 1 (N = 110) used a delay discounting method to find rate-of-recovery expectations associated with differing treatment lengths. Results indicated expectations much higher than the demonstrated effectiveness of therapy associated with training clinics. Study 2 (N = 307) replicated Study 1 and examined the possibility of altering outcome expectations through education. Study 2 results indicated that outcome expectations may be altered through client education. Both studies' results are discussed in terms of reducing premature termination and overall treatment outcome. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Structure and dimensions of maternal perceptions of Japanese infant temperament.

Using a new temperament inventory (the Japanese Temperament Questionnaire) developed from the free response of Japanese mothers asked to describe their infants' behavioral styles, mothers (N?=?469) rated behaviors observed in their 1-, 3-, or 6-mo-old baby. The ratings were factor analyzed and the dimensions generated by the factor analysis were labeled by an independent maternal group. Results support the conclusions that mothers' perceptions of infant temperament were both pancultural and culture specific. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Validation of a self-report measure of unrealistic relationship expectations.

Cognitive models of intimate partner aggression implicate maladaptive relationship beliefs as antecedents to aggression and targets for intervention. However, existing self-report measures of relationship beliefs have failed to differentiate aggressive and nonaggressive individuals, raising questions about their assessment of and role in understanding aggression. To address these concerns, the authors developed and tested a new measure of unrealistic relationship beliefs in a sample of 453 community couples. Structural validity, concurrent validity, discriminant validity, internal consistency, and temporal stability of the new measure were examined. The final scale demonstrated adequate internal consistency (αs=.83-.84), test-retest reliability (rs=.68-.74), and concurrent validity (small to moderate associations with predicted variables). Unrealistic relationship beliefs significantly differentiated aggressive and nonaggressive men, and this association remained significant after the authors controlled for other related variables. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived counselor characteristics, client expectations, and client satisfaction with counseling.

Examined (a) the relationship between perceived counselor expertness, attractiveness, and trustworthiness and client satisfaction; (b) the relationships between specific client expectations on perceived counselor characteristics and client satisfaction; and (c) the effects of actual counselor experience level on perceived counselor characteristics and client satisfaction. The 55 counselors who participated in the study were either beginning or advancing practicum students, doctoral-level interns, or PhD counselors; clients were 72 students who sought help at a university counseling center. Clients completed an Expectations About Counseling (EAC) questionnaire before entering counseling, as well as the Counseling Evaluation Inventory (CEI) and Counselor Rating Form (CRF) after several weeks of counseling. CRF and CEI were correlated, but EAC scores were not strongly related to the CEI or CRF scores. Actual counselor experience level did not differentially affect CEI or CRF scores. Findings are discussed in terms of several variables (e.g., legitimate power, source variables, and client satisfaction) that may differentially affect the influence process over time. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Generalizing from counseling analogue research on subjects' perceptions of counselors.

Examined Ss' causal attributions of counselor (CO) behavior and ratings of CO characteristics, as affected by 3 variables related to counseling analog methodologies: (a) analog type (quasi vs audiovisual), (b) instructions given to Ss (before vs after exposure to CO), and (c) audiovisual perspective (CO only vs CO and client). 64 female undergraduates talked with or viewed 1 of 4 COs in various counseling analog settings and were asked to make causal attributions and ratings relating to the COs. Hypothesized results concerning attribution data, based on predictions from E. E. Jones and R. E. Nisbett's (1971) attribution theory, were not supported. However, upon exploratory analysis of characteristic rating data, some unhypothesized main effects were found. Quasi analog Ss tended to rate COs more positively than did audiovisual analog Ss. Also, audiovisual Ss who saw only the CO tended to rate CO more positively on trustworthiness and expertness than did audiovisual Ss who saw both CO and client. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Implementing individualized counseling programs: Staff perceptions of important activities.

Staff perceptions of activities that may facilitate implementation of individualized counseling programs (ICPs) were surveyed. The activities are named Discussing the ICP, Understanding Concerns, Reinforcing Others' Contributions, Adapting the ICP, Building Positive Expectations, Learning About Obstacles, and Evaluating Implementation and Outcomes (DURABLE). Ninety staff members at a residential facility providing short-term counseling services for children and adolescents with behavior problems were asked to (a) rate the relative importance of each DURABLE activity for facilitating ICP implementation, (b) rate their involvement in each activity, and (c) list any additional activities believed to be important in facilitating ICP implementation. Each DURABLE activity was perceived by respondents to be more than moderately important in facilitating ICP implementation. Of the seven DURABLE activities, Discussing the ICP was perceived to be most important, whereas Building Positive Expectations and Reinforcing Others' Contributions were rated as least important. Two other activities also reported as important in facilitating ICP implementation were (a) developing and maintaining effective communication among staff members, and (b) involving the child in ICP development and implementation. Implications of the results for practitioners and directions for research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)