The effects of timing of self-disclosure on attraction and reciprocity.

Predicted that a willing confession of a negative event would produce an exception to the timing effect: greater attraction for an early/responsible revealer. 66 male undergraduates either watched their confederate partner decide which questions to answer first or did not watch (choice of sequence vs no choice). Then they participated in an interaction in which the (videotaped) confederate revealed that either his girl friend or his sister had unintentionally become pregnant (responsible vs not responsible). This disclosure was timed to occur either early or late in the interaction. In the choice conditions, an early disclosure led to greater attraction than a late disclosure when the revealer was responsible for the event disclosed. When the revealer was not responsible for the event in the choice condition, and in both no-choice conditions, the general positive effect for late disclosure was found. (11 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexual attraction to clients: The human therapist and the (sometimes) inhuman training system.

585 Division 42 (Psychologists in Private Practice) members responded to a 17-item questionnaire designed to gather initial information about the attraction therapists feel for their clients. 286 Ss were aged 45 yrs and under, while 299 Ss were aged 46 yrs and over. Results show that 508 Ss were attracted to clients; significantly more males than females reported such an attraction. Younger Ss were significantly more attracted to clients than were the older Ss. 104 Ss (primarily male) had considered sexual involvement, 91 more than once. Approximately 37 Ss had acted out sexually with clients. 488 Ss indicated feeling uncomfortable, guilty, or anxious about their attraction to clients. 55% of Ss indicated that they had received no education or training about sexual attraction to clients. (65 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Role of self-disclosure in interpersonal attraction.

Administered R. W. Green's self-disclosure scales to 44 male undergraduates. Ss then listened to the self-disclosures of a "stranger" (tape recording), and were instructed to talk about themselves to this person. Results indicate that high-disclosure Ss were more attracted to a high-disclosing stranger, but revealed more about themselves to a stranger with lower self-disclosure behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived child-rearing practices and self-disclosure patterns.

Investigated "the relationship between parental reinforcement and patterns of verbal expression," administering the Self-Disclosure Questionnaire, the Parent-Child Interaction Rating Scale, and the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability scale to undergraduates. It was found that Ss turned to parents for personal disclosure, and that a relationship exists between stated self-expression to parents and perceived parental nurturance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Group therapist self-disclosure: Development and validation of a scale.

Developed the Group Therapist Orientation Scale consisting of 20 Likert-type items designed to measure attitudes toward therapist self-disclosure in group psychotherapy. With an original sample of 143 Ss the scale demonstrated reasonable internal consistency or item homogeneity. Validity data from 5 separate additional samples suggest that scores on the Group Therapist Orientation Scale related meaningfully to actual behavior in a group therapy context. Moreover, scores on the scale were associated with number of years experience as a group psychotherapist, involvement in encounter groups as both a leader and participant, and theoretical orientation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of therapist general self-disclosure and countertransference disclosure on ratings of the therapist and session.

Therapist decisions about self-disclosure depend theoretically upon both content and context, such as the quality of the therapeutic relationship. In this analogue study, 224 undergraduates viewed 1 of 3 videos for which the working alliance was described as positive or negative and in which a therapist made general self-disclosures, countertransference disclosures, or no disclosures. Interaction effects indicated that participants rated sessions as deeper and the therapist as more expert when the therapist made general disclosures compared to no disclosures, but only when the alliance was positive. When the alliance was negative, participants perceived sessions as shallower and the therapist as less expert when the therapist made either general or countertransference disclosures compared to no disclosures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

More than a mirror: The ethics of therapist self-disclosure.

Perspectives on the ethical implications of self-disclosure differ widely. Many authors warn that self-disclosure by a therapist can be exploitative. Some authors also highlight beneficent reasons for disclosing in therapy. The ethicality of a particular self-disclosure is likely to depend on the content of the disclosure, the therapist's rationale for the disclosure, the personality traits of the client to whom the disclosure is made, and the specific circumstances surrounding the disclosure. Research suggests that clients experience both positive and negative consequences as a result of their therapists' self-disclosures. Because of the ambiguity and complexity of this ethical issue, therapists must take into account numerous ethical principles when using interventions that involve self-disclosure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A qualitative analysis of client perceptions of the effects of helpful therapist self-disclosure in long-term therapy.

Thirteen adult psychotherapy clients currently in long-term therapy were interviewed twice, with semistructured protocols, about their experiences with helpful instances of therapist self-disclosure. Data were analyzed with a qualitative methodology. Results indicated that helpful therapist self-disclosures (a) occurred when these clients were discussing important personal issues, (b) were perceived as being intended by therapists to normalize or reassure the clients, and (c) consisted of a disclosure of personal nonimmediate information about the therapists. The therapist self-disclosures resulted in positive consequences for these clients that included insight or a new perspective from which to make changes, an improved or more equalized therapeutic relationship, normalization, and reassurance. Implications for psychotherapy are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of therapist disclosure and its perceived appropriateness on client self-disclosure.

Data from 71 female undergraduates imply that a therapist who expects high disclosure to facilitate client openness must first indicate that high therapist disclosure is part of the professional role and is appropriate for effective psychotherapy. Otherwise, high therapist disclosure may be counterproductive, leading to withdrawal rather than increased disclosure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

When hearing clients work with a deaf therapist.

Not being able to hear can present significant challenges for the therapist and for the deaf therapist/hearing client dyad. It can also create opportunities. Although the literature indicates that most culturally Deaf therapists work with Deaf clients due to their mutual use of American Sign Language, I describe (a) the background of an audiologically deaf therapist who relies on speech reading rather than sign language, and (b) this therapist's clinical work with hearing clients. Some of the relational dynamics of these treatments are identified, and I conclude by noting how attention to communication can benefit the work of all psychotherapists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stages of therapist comfort with sexual concerns of clients.

Discusses the necessity for therapists in training to go through a process of examining their personal sexual beliefs and attitudes before they can be comfortable with the kind of sexual material brought up by many clients. The reactions of therapists in training to a course in which they use methods that are specifically intended to help them with the process of becoming comfortable with client sexual concerns are described. Feedback from students suggests that they go through at least 4 overlapping stages of comfort with the kind of sexual material that is likely to be presented by their clients. These stages are (1) an examination of their views and concerns about their own personal sexual issues, (2) increasing awareness and appreciation of problems and emotional reactions as the clients experience them, (3) a new freedom in discussing sexual matters, and (4) an awareness of a new level of comfort with clients and increased willingness to share sexual material. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Modality, self-disclosure, and gender as determinants of psychotherapeutic attraction.

Investigated the effects of therapy modality, self-disclosure tendency, and gender of Ss on therapeutic attraction. 80 undergraduates—40 high and 40 low scorers on a modified version of the Self-Disclosure Questionnaire—were asked to rate audiotapes of simulated therapy sessions on several dimensions. Primary results are as follows: (a) High self-disclosers preferred client-centered therapy, whereas low self-disclosers preferred systematic desensitization. (b) Client-centered therapy was perceived as providing a greater opportunity for self-exploration, whereas systematic desensitization was perceived as more effective. (c) Low self-disclosing males and high self-disclosing females rated the therapists as attractive but ineffective. (d) Females were more attracted to systematic desensitization, whereas males were more attracted to client-centered therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A-B therapist perceptions and preferences for schizophrenic and psychoneurotic clients.

Administered an extended version of the a-b scale to 141 experienced, practicing psychotherapists. Ss also completed scales designed to assess therapist attitudes toward working with schizophrenic and psychoneurotic clients, personal liking for specific schizophrenic and psychoneutrotic clients, and orientation toward interpersonal relationships. Analysis of variance results revealed no evidence suggesting that a and b therapists differentially perceive or prefer schizophrenic or psychoneurotic clients. There was evidence suggesting that a therapists initially like both schizophrenic and psychoneurotic clients as individuals more than b therapists. By the time therapy had ended, these differences between a and b therapists tended to dissipate with schizophrenic clients. However, b therapists' personal liking of their psychoneurotic clients actually declined during therapy. (18 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Therapeutic attraction as a function of therapist attire and office furnishings.

82 undergraduates viewed a simulated therapy segment presented on 1 of 4 videotapes identical except for contextual formality. Checks confirmed the validity of the 4 conditions created by varying the traditionalism of the therapist's attire and office. Ratings of attraction were independent of therapist attire, reinforcing findings of interview analogs that did not include a manipulation check or a professional therapist. Ss' impressions were also largely unaffected by the office arrangements, reaffirming one analog outcome and clarifying a discrepant finding from a possible unrepresentative analog. Data refute formulations that assign therapist accoutrements a major role in priming nonspecific psychotherapeutic effects. (3 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

White therapist and female minority clients: Gender and culture issues.

Discusses ramifications of a White female therapist working with female minority clients. The personality of the therapist and the meaning of White and minority to him/her appear to be important variables for success with minority clients. It is argued that therapy with minorities must always be viewed in the context of one's own political perspective, attitudes, and biases and that racial homogeneity for client and therapist is less important than interpersonal trust in a situation of gender likeness and equality. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relationship between clients’ conformity to masculine norms and their perceptions of helpful therapist actions.

T. J. G. Tracey et al.’s (2003) common factors model derived from therapists and psychotherapy researchers has provided a parsimonious structure to inform research and practice. Accordingly, the current authors used the 14 common factor categories identified in Tracey et al.’s model as a guide to code clients’ perceptions of helpful therapist actions (e.g., intervention, way of being) in short-term psychotherapy. Next, they conducted a cluster analysis to establish meaningful subgroups of clients based on clients’ perceptions of helpful therapist actions. Finally, they explored if clients in these subgroups differed in their report of conformity to masculine norms. Clients (N = 161) from a university counseling center were recruited for the current study. Results revealed 3 clusters of clients based on their perceptions of helpful therapist actions: Insight (44%), Relationship (30%), and Information (26%). In contrast, Tracey et al. found 3 clusters: Bond (which includes Insight and Relationship), Information, and Structure of therapy (not found in the current study). Clients in the Insight and Relationship clusters reported more conformity to masculine norms as compared with clients in the Information cluster. There were no sex differences across clusters. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personal self-disclosure: Expectancy and situational effects.

96 male undergraduates, selected from a pool of 169 because of their high or low scores on the Jourard Self-Disclosure Questionnaire (JSDQ), were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 conditions of specific expectancy, in which they were told that they would find it either easy or difficult to self-disclose to a stranger interviewer, and 1 of 3 conditions of interviewers' behavior (personal, impersonal, or no disclosure). The JSDQ, scored for anticipated self-disclosure but not for recalled self-disclosure, predicted observed performance. The specific expectancy manipulation and the intimacy level of topics also had significant effects on self-disclosure. A 3-way interaction between generalized and specific expectancy and topic intimacy was also found. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived levels of self-disclosure, mental health, and helpfulness of group leaders.

Studied the relationship between therapist self-disclosure, mental health, and helpfulness as perceived by group members and determined if a member's perception of the group leader is a function of the member's own level of self-disclosure and mental health. Data were collected from 6 university encounter groups by using ranks for group member variables and rating scales for perceptions of group leaders. Perceptions of group leader self-disclosure, mental health, and helpfulness were all positively correlated. No differences occurred in the perceptions of group leaders as a result of the members' ranked levels of self-disclosure and mental health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interactive effects of sex and status on self-disclosure.

Rated the degree of self-disclosure of 40 male and 40 female undergraduates in interviews with either male or female interviewers of high or low status. A 2 * 2 * 2 analysis of variance revealed that (a) males disclosed more to females, while females disclosed more to males; (b) dyads containing a female resulted in more disclosure than all male dyads; (c) males revealed more to high-status interviewers, while females disclosed more to low-status interviewers; and (d) high- as opposed to low-status male interviewers elicited more disclosure from all Ss, while status of female interviewers resulted in no significant differences. The need for use of multiple measures in self-disclosure research and implications for client-therapist matching is noted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)