Differential helpfulness of counselor verbal response modes.

28 counselor–client dyads (analog sample consisting of 15 graduate students and faculty and 28 undergraduates) and 16 client–counselor dyads (counseling sample) rated the helpfulness of particular counselor responses in just-completed counseling sessions, using Interpersonal Process Recall. In the counseling sample, counselors also rated the helpfulness of the same responses. The responses were measured for type of response made by objective raters, clients, and counselors. Interpretations received the highest helpfulness ratings from both client and counselor. Advisements were rated as slightly more helpful than nonadvisements, and questions were rated as slightly less helpful than nonquestions. However, counselor response modes account for only a small proportion of the variance in helpfulness ratings, which points out the need for research on contextual variables and response mode subtypes. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counselor and helpee perceptions of counselor intentions in relation to outcome in a single counseling session.

Determined whether counseling session could be predicted from different variables (i.e., counselor intentions, helpee's perceptions of counselor's intentions, match between counselor and helpee on intentions), focusing on counselors' and helpees' perceptions. Four 32–43 yr old experienced counselors each saw 4 undergraduate helpees for single 50 min counseling sessions. Counselors and helpees evaluated sessions and then reviewed videotapes during which counselors identified their intentions and helpees rated the helpfulness for each counselor turn. Results indicate that helpees perceived more intentions to support, focus, and clarify and less self-control and resistance than counselors had intended. The highest match between counselors and helpees occurred for getting information, setting limits, and clarifying. Helpees' ratings of helpfulness were highest for counselors' intentions involving needs, resistance, cognitions, and relationships, and lowest for setting limits, getting information, supporting, and focusing. Session outcome was related to different counselor and client perceptions, indicating that participants valued different events within sessions. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of paradoxical and nonparadoxical self-disclosure on counselor social influence.

Examined the effects of counselor self-disclosure and paradoxical homework directives on Ss' ratings on a 5-item homework directive rating scale and on perceived counselor social influence. It was hypothesized that counselor self-disclosure would reduce potentially negative perceptions of paradoxical directives. 49 female and 40 male undergraduates experiencing problems with test anxiety rated 1 of 4 videotapes of actual counselor–client interaction when a female counselor interviewed a client reporting problems with test anxiety. Results show that paradoxical homework directives were perceived as more tricky, manipulative, and confusing than were nonparadoxical directives but that these perceptions did not affect Ss' perceptions of the counselor's willingness or ability to help or increase feelings of anger toward the counselor. Results also indicate that paradoxical directives were not damaging to perceptions of counselor social influence and the counselor self-disclosure did not affect perceptions of counselor social influence. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of counselor disability status on disabled subjects' perceptions of counselor attractiveness and expertness.

Examined the influence of client–counselor group membership similarity, counselor reputational cues, and counselor attending behavior on disabled Ss' perceptions of counselor's attractiveness and expertness. 18–53 yr old physically disabled Ss viewed a series of vignettes portraying a counselor–client interaction. After viewing each vignette, Ss rated counselor expertness and attractiveness on subscales of the Counselor Rating Form. No main effect was found for group membership similarity or expertness on either ratings of attractiveness or expertness. However, a significant main effect was found for Counselor Attending Behavior on ratings of expertness and attractiveness. In addition, a significant 2-way interaction between Counselor Attending Behavior and Counselor Disability Status was found for both ratings. Results do not support the belief that client–counselor group membership similarity favorably influences client perceptions of counselor expertness or attractiveness. (36 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Black and White student preferences for counselor roles.

28 Black and 28 White students from 2 university programs viewed a brief videotape of a counseling sesson in 1 of 4 conditions defined by (a) 2 female counselors (1 Black, 1 White); and (b) 2 counselor roles (active, passive). Analysis of Ss' ratings of counselor performances reveal (a) no differences among conditions in perceived attentiveness or friendliness; (b) significant differences between roles in perceptions of counselor behavior (as intended); (c) significantly higher ratings of competence and helpfulness for counselors in the active vs the passive role, regardless of counselor or S role; and (d) a main effect for counselor, which could not be unequivocally attributed either to counselor role performance or to counselor role. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Empirical investigation of the cognitive mediational paradigm for research on counseling.

Examined relations among counselor and client cognitions, behaviors, and ratings in 29 counseling sessions involving 10 different counselor–client pairs, using stimulated recall and content analysis. Clients were university students; there were 4 counselors with 7–25 yrs' experience and 3 who were counseling interns. The design of the study permitted assessments of the impact of counselor experience (novice vs experienced) and stage of counseling (early, middle, and end) on these variables. Consistency in various parts of the sequential chain of counselor intention (counselor behavior, client perceptions of counselor intention and behavior, client cognitive processing, and client behavior) was lower for interpersonal cognitive than for interpersonal behavioral or intrapersonal cognitive–behavioral links. Consistency across different elements in this chain was observed to account for a significant proportion of the variance in counselor ratings of session effectiveness. Consistent, interpretable patterns observed across counselor intentions, counselor behaviors, and client cognitive processing are discussed. Relatively few effects of stage of counseling or of counselor experience were observed. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of counselor statements on rater judgments of client self-exploration.

Examined the influence of counselor statements on rater judgements of client self-exploration. Audiotaped segments of counseling interviews that included both counselor and client statements and identical autiotaped segments, but with the counselors' statements deleted, were rated on client self-exploration by separate groups of raters (totaling 20 counseling graduate students). A significantly positive correlation was found between the 2 sets of ratings. With 1 exception, no significant differences were found for each segment. Finally, no differences were found between ratings for segments, unedited and edited, in which counselors were functioning at high levels of accurate empathy and ratings in which counselors were functioning at low levels of accurate empathy. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counselor-client agreement on session impact.

We propose a new framework for understanding studies of counselor–client agreement about their counseling. The framework includes five factors: the scope of counseling being studied (process, impact, or outcome), the dimension (index) being rated (in this study, session Depth, Smoothness, Positivity, or Arousal), the measure used to assess agreement (correlations or absolute differences), the level at which the analysis is conducted (session, client, or counselor), and the type of agreement—(a) consensus, the similarity of counselors' own ratings to clients' own ratings; (b) counselor awareness, the similarity of counselors' perceptions of their clients to clients' own ratings; (c) client awareness, the similarity of counselors' own ratings to clients' perceptions of their counselors; and (d) matched awareness, the similarity of counselors' perceptions of their clients to clients' perceptions of their counselors. In a study of session impact (scope), degree of agreement was found to vary substantially with each of the other factors—type of agreement, dimension rated, measure of agreement, and level of analysis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceptions of counselor qualities: Impact of subjects' self-concepts, counselor gender, and counselor introductions.

Examined the extent to which a counselor quality (reputed expertise) and a client quality (self-concept) were interactive with counselor gender and with each other as determinants of Ss' perceptions of the counselor. 105 male undergraduates were split into high- or low-self-concept groups according to their scores on the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale and listened to an audiotape of a male or female counselor who was introduced as an expert counselor or a nonexpert counselor or who was given no introduction. Ss then used the Counselor Rating Form to rate the counselor. Consistent with previous research, the expertness manipulation affected ratings of the counselor, whereas counselor gender alone did not. No interaction between counselor gender and expertness introduction was obtained, although one interaction (for attractiveness) was obtained for S self-concept by expertness introduction. Three-way interactions were obtained for perceived counselor expertness, attractiveness, and trustworthiness. These results suggest that although S self-concept alone does not determine perceptions of the counselor, it is one recipient characteristic that interacts with the counselor characteristics of gender and ascribed expertise. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predictors of observer ratings of multicultural counseling competence in Black, Latino, and White American trainees.

Using transcribed intake sessions of 52 counselor–client dyads, this study explored the relative contributions of (a) counselor and client race or ethnicity, (b) counselor–client racial or ethnic match, (c) previous academic training in multicultural counseling, and (d) self-reported multicultural counseling competence to observer ratings of trainees' multicultural counseling competence. Results revealed that (a) Black American and Latino American counselor trainees were rated as more multiculturally competent than their White American peers, and (b) prior multicultural training was positively predictive of observer-rated multicultural counseling competence. Implications of the findings for counselor training and practice are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of race and socioeconomic status on the perception of process variables in counseling.

Analyzed the effects of race and socioeconomic status (SES) on the perception of process variables in counseling, including judged counselor empathy, judged counselor–client cognitive similarity, and attraction. The study used a 2?×?12?×?2?×?6 design (race of S, tape order, SES of client, race of counselor and client) with repeated measures on the SES of client variable and the race of counselor and client variable. Following empathy training, 12 Black and 12 White undergraduate middle-class males listened to 12 specially prepared counselor–client taped dialogs and rated the counselor and client on each tape on the process variables being researched. All hypotheses were confirmed. Both Black and White Ss gave highest counselor empathy ratings, client–counselor attraction and cognitive similarity ratings, and client improvement ratings to matchings in which the counselor and client were similar over race and social class, and they gave lowest ratings when the counselor and client were dissimilar over race and social class. Effects of client accent were generally not significant. (26 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Racial and attitudinal factors affecting the perceptions of counselors by Black adolescents.

Presented to 247 Black male and female high school students racial and attitudinal information about a hypothetical male or female counselor and asked them to express their perceptions of the counselor. Attitudinal information about a counselor had a stronger effect than racial information on Ss' perception of the counselor: Counselors portrayed as attitudinally similar were rated significantly higher in attractiveness, trustworthiness, expertness, and social attraction than those portrayed as attitudinally dissimilar. Racial information also influenced perceived attractiveness: White counselors were rated higher than Black ones in attractiveness, although there was no difference in ratings of trustworthiness or expertise. White female counselors were perceived as more expert than their Black female counterparts, whereas the ratings of male counselors were not influenced by the racial variable. Implications for counselor–client relationships and the development of mental health services for minority populations are discussed. (33 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Premature termination at a university counseling center.

Predicted that 3 sets of variables would discriminate between clients who returned for scheduled appointments following intake and clients who did not: (a) client perception of the intake counselor as expert, attractive, and trustworthy; (b) agreement of client and counselor on the presenting problem; and (c) client satisfaction with the intake interview. To test this prediction, 134 university students (mean age 22.9 yrs) completed the Client Satisfaction Questionnaire, a counselor rating form, and a client problem identification questionnaire after an intake interview. 30 of these Ss dropped out of counseling and 104 continued. It was found that client satisfaction and perceptions of trustworthiness and expertness were related to Ss' returning for scheduled appointments. No differences between continuers and dropouts were found with respect to client perceptions of counselor attractiveness or client–counselor agreement on problem identification. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Client and Counselor Trainee Attachment as Predictors of Session Evaluation and Countertransference Behavior in First Counseling Sessions.

This study investigated client and counselor trainee attachment as predictors of session evaluation and countertransference behavior in 93 first counseling sessions. Results indicated that client attachment predicted aspects of session evaluation, whereas counselor attachment and the interaction of client and counselor attachment predicted aspects of countertransference. Specifically, client fearful attachment was negatively associated with client ratings of session smoothness and depth and with counselor ratings of session smoothness. Counselor dismissing attachment was positively associated with supervisor ratings of hostile countertransference. Furthermore, interactions between client and counselor attachment predicted hostile and distancing countertransference reactions, such that countertransference was highest when the client had a preoccupied attachment pattern and the counselor trainee had a fearful or dismissing attachment pattern. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceptions of counselor source characteristics by premature and successful terminators.

Examined 56 premature and 148 successful terminators' perceptions of counselor source characteristics and satisfaction with counseling services at a university counseling center. S-completed measures included the Client Satisfaction Questionnaire and a counselor rating form. Results indicate that Ss who terminated prematurely were less satisfied with counseling services that they received and viewed their counselors as less expert, attractive, and trustworthy than did Ss who terminated successfully. Ss who responded anonymously to the evaluation form viewed the counselors as less attractive and trustworthy and also expressed less satisfaction with counseling than did those who did not respond anonymously. Significant though modest correlations between ratings of source characteristics and client satisfaction were also found. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender salient attribute?×?treatment interaction effects on ratings of two analogue counselors.

One-hundred one women and 109 men participated in a test of M. N. Russell's (1984) assertion that exploring gender themes in counseling is most therapeutic when the client also considers gender issues relevant for understanding personal experience. This matching hypothesis was examined with an Attribute?×?Treatment interaction design. Scores on the Real Events Salience of Gender Scale (RESOG) operationalized the attribute variable of perceptions of gender salience. The treatment variable was an analogue counselor making either high gender salience (HiGS) or low gender salience (LoGS) interventions. It was hypothesized that the HiGS counselor would be given higher evaluations by participants who reported more gender salient transactions. Results indicated small interaction effects, whereby (a) ratings on the Attractiveness subscale of the Counselor Rating Form-Short of the HiGS counselor increased and the same ratings of the LoGS counselor decreased as perceived gender typicality increased, and (b) willingness to see the HiGS counselor increased and willingness to see the LoGS counselor decreased as the perceived unfavorability of a same-sex transaction increased. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Influence of client characteristics on initial counselor perceptions.

Analyzed the reactions of 30 professionally employed counselors to a role-played, videotaped intake interview with a potential client by a counselor who was not in view. The Ss assessed the probability that they would elect to counsel the person. They also rated both themselves and the client on A. Barak and M. LaCrosse's (1975) Counselor Rating Form (CRF). Results indicate that the trustworthiness dimension seemed to incorporate those characteristics that most influence initial counselor perceptions. It is suggested that the CRF can be used to obtain counselor as well as client perceptions and that the use of relativistic measures of attributes, that is, the use of scores that reflect the differences between one's own attributes and those of the other, may be a valuable methodological addition to research that uses the CRF. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychotherapy outcome in a university-based psychology training clinic.

Evaluated the effectiveness of psychotherapy conducted by clinical psychology students in a university-based psychological training clinic. Factors contributing to positive outcomes were also explored. Based on both therapist (n?=?53) and client (n?=?59) perceptions of the overall helpfulness of therapy and on their ratings of perceived change in the specific problems treated, it is concluded that the student-conducted therapy was successful and provided a genuine service to the community. Therapies that terminated by mutual consent (vs termination by therapist or client alone) and those that were longer were more successful. The positive results are attributed to the careful supervision of each case, the enthusiasm of novice therapists, and the nature of the client sample. Implications for training and clinic policy are discussed. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)