Racial microaggressions against African American clients in cross-racial counseling relationships.

This study examined the relationships among African American clients' perceptions of their White counselors with respect to (a) perceived racial microaggressions in cross-racial counseling relationships, (b) the counseling working alliance, (c) their counselors' general and multicultural counseling competence, and (d) their counseling satisfaction. Findings revealed that greater perceived racial microaggressions by African American clients were predictive of a weaker therapeutic alliance with White therapists, which, in turn, predicted lower ratings of general and multicultural counseling competence. Greater perceived racial microaggressions also were predictive of lower counseling satisfaction ratings. In addition, African American clients' perceptions of racial microaggressions had a significant indirect effect on these clients' ratings of White counselors' general and multicultural counseling competence through the therapeutic working alliance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Client-specific counselor self-efficacy in novice counselors: Relation to perceptions of session quality.

Two versions of a counselor self-efficacy (CSE) measure were administered to 110 prepracticum counselors: a general version, assessing perceived capability to perform basic helping skills and manage the session process with clients generally; and a client-specific version, tapping capability to perform the same behaviors with a specific, current client. Client-specific CSE was found to (a) relate moderately to strongly with general CSE over the course of four counseling sessions, (b) increase significantly over sessions, and (c) account for unique variance in counselors' evaluations of the quality of their sessions. Although it was not a useful direct predictor of clients' session ratings, higher client-specific CSE was associated with greater congruence between counselors' and clients' perceptions of session quality. Implications for further research and training are considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Client and counselor characteristics and engagement in counseling.

Examined relations among various client and counselor characteristics and engagement in counseling for more than 1 session with 5 female and 4 male practicum counselors and 203 of their clients (128 women, 75 men) who had come to a university counseling center for the 1st time. After the initial interview, clients rated counselors' interest, helpfulness, competence, warmth, and genuineness; counselors rated clients' verbalness, intelligence, capacity for insight, likability, and the severity of clients' problems. Clients also indicated the extent to which counselors identified concerns for which the clients did not initially seek counseling. Findings show that 71 clients returned for more than 1 counseling session. Counselors' perceptions of clients as more disturbed and counselors' desire to see the clients were positively associated with clients' returning for counseling after intake. Identification of concerns for clients by counselors at intake was also positively related to engagement in counseling. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of counselor gender and gender-role orientation on client career choice traditionality.

The purpose of this study was to test common assumptions about the effects of counselors' gender and gender-role orientation on clients' career choice traditionality. A sample of 240 career counseling clients (120 women and 120 men) were counseled by a male or female counselor, who were further classified as possessing a masculine, feminine, or androgynous gender-role orientation as determined by the Bem Sex-Role Inventory. The clients' career choice traditionality was measured on three occasions: during the counseling sessions, at the conclusion of counseling, and with respect to clients' actual career choices 6 months after completion of the counseling process. Results showed that counselor gender and gender-role orientation had no effects on any of the three measures of client career choice traditionality. Client gender emerged as the only significant determinant of client career choice traditionality. We discuss the implications of these findings for counseling research and practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counselors' feelings toward clients as related to intake judgments and outcome variables.

Investigated the relationship of the feelings of intake counselors to other judgments that they made as well as to clients' ratings of their counseling experience. Ss were 332 female and 175 male clients of a university counseling center. Results show that intake counselors' liking of clients was related to their rating of the realism of clients' goals, clients' motivation for counseling, and clients' physical appearance. Sex differences are discussed. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counseling session impact as viewed by novice counselors and their clients.

The Session Evaluation Questionnaire (SEQ) was used to measure the perspectives of 17 graduate-student counselors and their 72 17–39 yr old clients on 942 individual counseling sessions along 2 evaluative dimensions—depth and smoothness—and 2 dimensions of postsession mood—positivity and arousal. A components-of-variance analysis showed that, from both perspectives, SEQ ratings varied greatly from session to session; ratings were only modestly predictable from differences among counselors or among counselor–client dyads. However, averages across 6–20 sessions permitted adequately reliable differentiation among dyads, for example, for comparisons with outcome measures. Correlations between corresponding counselor and client dimensions ranged from moderate to negligible, whether calulated across sessions, across clients, or across counselors, Novice counselors' judgments of session depth and value may have had little relation to their clients' evaluations. On the other hand, counselors' comfort in sessions and postsession positive mood were moderately predictive of client reactions. (32 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)     

Convergence in client and counselor recall of important session events.

The authors examined convergence of clients' and counselors' recall of important session events by comparing client and counselor Critical Incident Questionnaires (CIQs) from 27 counseling dyads. In addition, clients reported interpersonal problems before and after counseling. Trained judges rated matched pairs of CIQs for similarity of change mechanisms and content. Individual growth modeling was conducted with the Hierarchical Linear Model program. Results showed that (a) convergence of client and counselor recall of important therapeutic events increased linearly over time, and (b) increasing convergence was related to counseling outcomes, as measured by a decrease in interpersonal problems. Implications for counseling practice and future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of cognitive style and counselor–client compatibility on client growth.

Tests of 2 cognitive style dimensions (serialism–holism and field dependence–independence; measured by the Gandlemuller Test and the Group Embedded Figures Test, respectively) were administered to 60 counselor trainees in graduate clinical and counseling psychology programs and 60 volunteer clients drawn from a university-level applied psychology course. 32 counselor–client pairs matched or mismatched on the 2 dimensions were formed. Counselor and client pairs engaged in 2 50-min therapy sessions that focused on client self-enhancement. In independent rating sessions, matching effects for field dependence–independence were obtained in clients' subjective ratings of improvement in self-exploration skills and in clients' and counselors' subjective ratings of the ease of relating with each other. Implications and applications for achieving maximum counselor–client compatibility in a person–environment interaction model are discussed. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Internalization of therapeutic relationships in short-term psychotherapy.

Structural Analysis of Social Behavior was used to chart the internalization of the therapeutic relationships of 48 clients in short-term psychotherapy at 2 university counseling centers. After initial and final sessions, clients reported their perceptions of counselors' actions and attitudes toward them, their own actions and attitudes toward counselors, and their intrapsychic dispositions. Results suggested clients internalized dispositions that they perceived counselors held toward them. Furthermore, results indicated that clients perceived interpersonal complementarity at the beginning but that the degree of interpersonal complementarity did not increase over time. In contrast, clients perceived a lack of interpersonal–intrapsychic complementarity early in therapy but perceived an increase in this complementarity at the end of therapy. This study proposes an integration of interpersonal and psychodynamic theories of psychotherapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A cost/benefit analysis of the interpersonal process recall technique.

Examined interpersonal process recall (IPR), a supervisory technique, by a cost-benefit analysis. Cost was defined as the possible inhibitory effects on client self-exploration of the use of IPR; benefit was defined as client satisfaction, increased supervisor ratings, and increased counselor empathy levels. Counselors were 36 master's level trainees, clients were 36 undergraduate psychology students, and supervisors were 6 doctoral students in counseling. The IPR treatment consisted of 3 videotaped interviews followed by client, counselor, or mutual recall. The comparison treatment consisted of 3 audiotaped interviews followed by traditional supervision. Results indicate that IPR, when compared to traditional supervision, did not produce differential effects on counselors' empathy level, client satisfaction, supervisor ratings, or clients' self-reported inhibition. Method of supervision, however, did effect significant change in clients' level of self-exploration over time. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relationship of trainee self-efficacy to the process and outcome of career counseling.

This investigation examined the role of counselor trainees' self-efficacy on measures of career counseling process, "small o" outcome, and outcome with actual clients. Twenty-four counselor trainees saw 55 clients in 3 to 12 individual sessions. Results indicated that (a) career counseling self-efficacy increased by a standard deviation from prepracticum to postpracticum; (b) client scores significantly improved from pretest to posttest across multiple career outcome measures; (c) clients' working alliance, goal attainment, and decidedness indicated significant growth; (d) the significant growth on the process variable and small o outcome variables did not appear to be related to career counseling self-efficacy; and (e) career counseling self-efficacy apparently related to certain career counseling outcome measures in a manner suggesting much greater complexity than the "more self-efficacy is better" philosophy would imply. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social psychology and counseling psychology: The history, products, and promise of an interface.

For 3 decades, counseling psychologists have drawn ideas from social psychology about the social process of counseling, integrated the ideas into counseling theories, and assessed them in research. This article traces the history of this interface, examines its products, and projects its future. Three propositions have guided and have been supported by much of the research: (1) Successful counseling relationships generate psychological convergence between counselor and client through a systematic developmental process; (2) ideas counselors introduce that are discrepant from clients' understandings stimulate change; and (3) clients' responsiveness to counselors is a function of their dependence on the counselors. These social influence dynamics underlie the processes and outcomes of counseling relationships regardless of the clinical theory that guides the counselors' work. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A comparative analysis of the therapeutic focus in cognitive–behavioral and psychodynamic–interpersonal sessions.

This study compared therapeutic foci in a sampling of 30 cognitive-behavioral and 27 psychodynamic-interpersonal manual-driven treatments for depression. High- and low-impact sessions were coded for each client, with the Coding System of Therapeutic Focus. Results indicated that psychodynamic-interpersonal sessions focused more on such variables as emotion, patterns, incongruities, the impact that others made on clients, clients' expected reaction of others, the tendency to avoid therapeutic progress, therapists themselves, clients' parents, and links between people and time periods in clients' lives. Cognitive-behavioral sessions placed greater emphasis on external circumstances and clients' ability to make decisions, gave more support and information and encouraged between-session experiences, and focused more on the future. Relatively few differences emerged as a function of session impact. Results are discussed in terms of the different and similar theoretical conceptions of the change process. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gay and bisexual male clients' perceptions of counseling: The role of perceived sexual orientation similarity and counselor universal-diverse orientation.

A recurring question in multicultural counseling is whether client–counselor similarity on sociodemographic characteristics benefits counseling. A related issue is how counselor orientation to diversity relates to counseling process and outcome, both as a main effect and in interaction with counselor–client sociodemographic match. This cross-sectional study investigated these questions in relation to gay and bisexual male clients' counseling experiences by examining clients' perceived similarity to their counselor in sexual orientation, as well as counselors' self-reported orientation to diversity (assessed in terms of level of universal-diverse orientation [UDO]). Data were from 83 male–male client–counselor dyads recruited from lesbian/gay/bisexual-affirming counseling practices, where clients identified as gay or bisexual and counselors identified as gay, bisexual, or heterosexual. Counselor UDO was positively and uniquely associated with client ratings of the working alliance, session depth, and session smoothness. Perceived sexual orientation similarity was not directly related to any of the counseling-related criterion variables. Moreover, when counselors reported low levels of UDO, perceived similarity was negatively associated with the client-rated alliance and perceived improvement. Client religious commitment—a control variable in all analyses—was uniquely and negatively associated with client ratings of perceived improvement in counseling. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interpersonal influence process in real-life counseling: Investigating client perceptions, counselor experience level, and counselor power over time.

Examined the interpersonal influence process within an actual counseling context over an average of 8 sessions. Counselors were either beginning or advanced practicum students or doctoral interns (n?=?27); clients were 31 students who sought counseling at a university center. Before and after counseling Ss completed the Counselor Rating Form, the Expectations about Counseling measure, and the Counselor Perceptions Questionnaire. Results indicate that (a) the actual counselor experience level did not affect client perceptions of the counselor; (b) perceived counselor expertness, attractiveness, and trustworthiness changed over time, but not in the same direction across counselors; (c) different levels of client need did not affect clients' perceptions of counselor characteristics; and (d) counselors rated as highly attractive indicated they had more therapeutic power over clients than counselors rated as moderately attractive. (46 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationship between counselor-initiated humor and client's self-perceived attraction in the counseling interview.

Videotaped 30 quasi-analogical initial counseling sessions between 30 31–66 yr old clients and 10 29–57 yr old counselors from 2 alcoholism counseling centers. Immediately following the sessions, clients rated degrees of attraction to counselors and recorded instances of counselor-initiated humor rated as humorous or not humorous. Results support the contention that counselor-initiated shared humor in an initial counseling session enhanced clients' attraction for counselors. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Continuing to depolarize the debate on sexual orientation and religion: Identity and the therapeutic process.

Potential identity conflicts arising at the intersection of sexual and religious orientations are examined. Using case examples, a therapeutic process that explores clients' intersecting identities, belief structures, and life experiences is described. This therapeutic approach is aimed at giving personal meaning to the conflict between sexual orientation and religion, allowing clients to seek identity resolutions that are flexible and do not compromise well-being. Multicultural counseling, psychology of religion, symbolic interactionism, and identity development theories provide frameworks for an analysis of the nature of the conflict and its potential resolutions. Countertransference issues arising from ethical and social justice considerations are also discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Survey of college counseling centers' follow-up practices with former clients.

We investigated the follow-up methods used by counseling centers to evaluate the individual counseling services that they provide. A sample of 80 centers was selected for study; these were centers that indicated that the primary form of evaluation was a locally developed instrument used to assess clients' post counseling status and satisfaction with their counseling. We used a questionnaire to assess data-gathering procedures, follow-up practices, rates of return, and uses made of the data as well as resulting problems and trends. Major issues addressed include the low percentage of return rates of satisfaction questionnaires and the effect of these rates on possible response bias. The use of center survey results to evaluate client status and counselors' work is discussed. The issue of the timing of satisfaction surveys of clients is raised, particularly in light of procedures that combine clients who have previously terminated counseling and clients still in the process of counseling. The issues of self-report and the need for more rigorous methodologies are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)