The impact of gender and age on referrals to psychological counseling.

The authors studied whether the disproportionate number of female clients seen in counseling centers was due to referral patterns related to the gender of the referral recipient or the gender or age of the referral source. Faculty, staff, and students (N?=?1,458) on 3 university campuses indicated their likelihood of referring a student to psychological counseling, for each of 6 problems presented in brief written vignettes. Only gender of the student presenting the problem was manipulated. Results indicated that men were less likely than women to refer at all 3 institutions. Older persons were more likely to refer at 2 institutions. At 1 institution, older persons were more apt to refer only when the recipient was a man. Gender of the referral recipient was not significant. The authors discuss the findings, indicate areas for further investigation, and make suggestions for college and university counseling centers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Students' evaluations of a university counseling center and their intentions to use its programs.

Two representative samples of 801 university students were telephoned in 1977 and asked to evaluate a university counseling service and to indicate how likely they would be to participate in a variety of developmental workshops. Results indicate that both groups of Ss used the service with more regularity and with greater satisfaction than did students in the 1960s. Ss were most inclined to participate in workshops that assisted them in career planning, negotiating the university system, and coping with financial and academic concerns. Ss most receptive to specific services tended to be younger and undergraduate, to have lower GPAs, to live in a residence hall, and to be Black. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Student and faculty perceptions of counseling centers: What's in a name?

Surveyed 296 university students and 115 faculty members by telephone and asked them to rank order 4 counseling center titles in terms of the likelihood that they would utilize services offered by the centers. The titles were Psychological and Career Exploration Service; Personal and Career Counseling Service; Psychological and Career Counseling Service; and Counseling, Career, and Consultation Service. Ss were also asked to indicate whether they had ever used or referred students to the university counseling service and how important the title of the agency was to them in deciding to use its services. Results indicate that the counseling center title was important to students and faculty in determining their use of a counseling center; both groups preferred the 1st title. The discussion focuses on the extent to which the present findings are consistent with and broaden understanding of help-seeking behavior and on implications for representing counseling center services. (26 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Differential importance faculty and students' place on counseling and psychological services.

179 university faculty were surveyed about how they would judge the importance of various counseling and psychological services, and 1,078 undergraduate students were surveyed to determine the differential importance faculty and students place on such services. Faculty interest in personal counseling, psychotherapy, drug counseling, and marital counseling was congruent with the traditional expertise and interests of psychologists practicing on college campuses. Students placed more emphasis on information-giving activities, such as educational counseling and academic advising, activities psychologists usually do not see as being in their domain. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived problem areas by Black and White students and hints about comparative counseling needs.

The Student Problem Areas Survey was administered to 108 Black and 184 White students attending a predominantly White university and to 55 Black students attending a predominantly Black university. Data from a 2-way randomized block design were analyzed by way of the multivariate ANOVA and a series of ANOVAs. The pattern of results shows several significant differences on specific problem areas but none between Blacks attending universities with different racial make-ups nor between the groups on variables that typically suggest counseling needs. There was one Group?×?Class interaction; the ranking of the problem areas was the same for the 3 groups. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for counseling needs of Black students in university settings. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prevalence, distribution, and correlates of math anxiety in college students.

Investigated factors related to the prevalence and intensity of math anxiety in college students. 652 Ss in 2 math courses and 1 psychology course at a large university were tested on the Math Anxiety scale (part of the Fennema-Sherman Mathematics Attitudes Scales), the A-Trait scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and Spielberger's Test Anxiety Inventory. Results indicate that math anxiety occurs frequently among college students and that it is more likely to occur among women than among men and among students with inadequate high school math backgrounds. Higher levels of math anxiety were related to lower mathematics achievement test scores, higher levels of test anxiety, and higher levels of trait anxiety. Implications for the identification and treatment of math-anxious students and for the process of educational/vocational counseling are discussed. (14 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Native American college students' preference for counselor race and sex and the likelihood of their use of a counseling center.

39 female and 23 male Native American college students completed questionnaires assessing their preference for counselor race and sex and the likelihood of their using a counseling center. Both females and males demonstrated a strong preference for Native American counselors, regardless of problem situation. Males preferred male counselors, but females expressed a preference for female counselors only if they had a personal problem. Likelihood of using the counseling center increased as counselor preference increased. Likelihood of using the counseling center increased if Ss could be seen by a counselor of the same race regardless of problem situation. Only in the personal-problem situation did likelihood ratings increase if Ss could be seen by a counselor of the preferred sex. Ss were less likely to indicate they would go to the counseling center with a personal problem if they would be seen by either their 3rd- or 4th-choice counselors. (14 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relationship between a freshmen testing program and counseling center usage.

Evaluated college counseling center usage for 217 women and 593 men who had been encouraged to return to the counseling center for feedback on their freshmen tests. Students who initially approached the counseling center to request feedback on their tests were more likely to obtain counseling for non-test-related problems than were students who never requested their test results, although the mean number of counseling sessions did not differ for the 2 groups. There was a slight tendency for more men than women to request feedback prior to requesting counseling even though there were no sex differences in mean number of sessions. However, a larger proportion of men than women returned for counseling during the same semester in which they received their freshmen test results, and these men, on the average, remained longer in counseling. (6 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Help seeking and problem perception among Asian Americans.

Compared the presenting concerns of 3,050 counseling center clients (undergraduate and graduate students) as those concerns varied by ethnicity, gender, and previous counseling experience. Asian-American clients were much more likely to perceive themselves as having educational or vocational concerns, whereas White clients were disproportionately more likely to admit to personal or emotional concerns. The comparison among 7 different Asian-American groups revealed that Filipino-American and Asian-American/White mixed clients were more likely to endorse personal or emotional concerns than other Asian-American groups. Gender and previous counseling experience were found to be related to the presenting concern, but the effects were the same in each ethnic comparison. Results are interpreted with respect to (1) what counselors should be aware of in interacting with Asian-American clients and (2) how they differ both from White clients and among themselves. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stability and severity of presenting problems at a university counseling center: A 6-year analysis.

Professional psychologists on college campuses and independent practitioners in university communities have expressed concerns that the problems of university students who seek counseling have worsened in recent years. Initial client intake data gathered from 2,326 students during 1989 to 1995 at a large Midwestern university counseling center were analyzed using P. P. Heppner et al's (1994) multivariate classification scheme. Patterns of serious client concerns were evident over the 6 years analyzed. Findings suggest that professional training for psychologists who will work with university populations should include training on suicidality, psychopathology, and crisis intervention as well as working within a team or community-based orientation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

International and American students' expectancies about counseling.

Investigated whether students from different backgrounds differ in their expectancies about counseling on a university campus. Ss included 40 American, 39 Chinese, 35 African, and 36 Iranian freshmen and seniors who completed a questionnaire measuring college students' expectancies about counseling. Significant differences among the 4 nationality groups were observed on 12 of the 17 expectancy scales. It was found that American Ss expected the counselor to be less directive and protective and expected themselves to be more responsible for improvement. In contrast, the Chinese, Iranian, and African Ss expected to assume a more passive role and expected that the counselor would be a more directive and nurturing authority figure. (7 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of member and leader expectations on group outcome.

Effects of members' and leaders' expectations on group members' self-actualization and self-esteem gain were studied. The changes in self-actualization and self-esteem between experimental groups and a no-treatment comparison group also were assessed. Ss for experimental groups were 42 university students enrolled in an introductory group counseling course. All students participated twice weekly as members of a growth group (3 hrs/wk) for 25 sessions. 31 students from a different class served as a no-treatment group. Leaders for the experimental groups were 6 advanced graduate students in counseling psychology. Members and leaders were assigned randomly to groups on the basis of an expectation scale, with three types of member groups (high, moderate, low) being facilitated by high- and low-expectation leaders. Varying the level of group expectations did not significantly affect self-actualization gain but did affect self-esteem change. Significant differences were found also between the experimental and control groups on the dependent variables. Results are discussed, and future research on group leaders' expectations are recommended. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evaluation of counseling outcomes at a university counseling center: The impact of clinically significant change on problem resolution and academic functioning.

The main purpose of this study was to investigate how receiving personal counseling at a university counseling center helps students deal with their personal problems and facilitates academic functioning. To that end, this study used both clinical and academic outcome measures that are relevant to the practice of counseling provided at a counseling center and its unique function in an institution of higher education. In addition, this study used the clinical significance methodology (N. S. Jacobson & P. Truax, 1991) that takes into account clients' differences in making clinically reliable and significant change. Pre-intake and post-termination surveys, including the Outcome Questionnaire (M. J. Lambert, K. Lunnen, V. Umphress, N. Hansen, & G. Burlingame, 1994), were completed by 78 clients, and the responses were analyzed using clinical significance methodology. The results revealed that those who made clinically reliable and significant change (i.e., the recovered group) reported the highest level of improvement in academic commitment to their educational goals and problem resolution, compared with those who did not make clinically significant change. The implications of the findings on practice for counseling at university counseling centers and for administrators in higher education institutions are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counseling priorities as a function of survey instructions and sex of respondent.

I constructed two surveys that were identical in counseling needs assessed but different in whether students were asked to assess their own counseling needs or those of students in general. Both surveys were administered in counterbalanced order to 293 university students. There was a high positive correlation between the counseling priorities indicated by the two surveys (rs?=?.80, p?     

Counselor theoretical orientation as related to intake judgments.

Investigated the relation between the predominant theoretical orientations (self-identified) of counselors and intake interview judgments by asking 12 senior staff counseling psychologists to rate the problems of 1,443 university students who presented themselves for an intake interview on a 5-point scale. Results show that counselors who were humanistically oriented judged that their clients presented more severe educational problems and characterized their clients as more anxious than did the cognitively oriented psychologists. The 2 groups of counselors did not differ in how they judged the severity of personal problems or predicted length of treatment. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changes in youth's attitudes toward authority: The transition from university to employment.

In 3 studies, 3 different samples of graduating male students, drawn from the faculties of engineering, education, and social sciences at a university (ns = 70, 70, and 60, respectively) were tested before and after a period of full-time employment for changes in attitudes toward authority. Differences were reported between students who proceeded to graduate studies and those who entered employment. The hypothesis that negative attitudes would decline and liking and submissive responses would increase for Ss making the transition from university to employment was supported in all 3 studies in which a 1-yr follow-up was conducted. By contrast, students who continued in a university career showed very little decline in critical attitudes. Results are interpreted in the context of the permissiveness of the university environment, and implications for counselor functions and counseling concepts are discussed. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Involvement of rabbis in counseling and referral for genetic conditions: results of a survey

Members of the New York Board of Rabbis were surveyed in the summer of 1991 to assess their activity in counseling congregants on issues related to genetics. Of a sample of 257 members, 181 (70.4%) responded to the questionnaire, and 175 of the responses were analyzed. More than half (56.0%) of the rabbis discussed health issues as a routine part of premarital counseling, and 22.3% had counseled a couple after prenatal diagnosis of an abnormal fetus. Orthodox rabbis were more likely than rabbis from other branches of Judaism to have contacted medical personnel in these cases, and they reported more involvement in helping families after the birth of a child with a hereditary condition or birth defect. However, a majority (90.9%) of rabbis from all branches would refer such a family for genetic counseling. Ninety-four rabbis (53.7%) discussed Tay-Sachs carrier testing with congregants. These rabbis tended to be Reform, to be younger, and to have fewer years in the rabbinate. Reform rabbis also scored significantly higher than did Orthodox or Conservative rabbis on knowledge questions about Jewish genetic diseases and were more active in distributing pertinent literature to congregants. Even though nearly 90% of the sample viewed counseling on genetic issues as part of their rabbinical role, most rabbis, even those who actually counseled on these issues, felt poorly prepared to do so. Recommendations are made for increased programming in rabbinical schools and for outreach from the genetics community.     

Use of trait labels in counseling supervision by experienced and inexperienced supervisors.

On the basis of attribution theory, it was hypothesized that as supervisors gain experience at counseling, they would attribute their supervisee's counseling behaviors less often to counselor traits than would supervisors who have little or no counseling experience. 10 min of an audiotaped counseling session were presented to 82 Ss in 4 groups: undergraduate psychology students, master's degree students in counseling and clinical psychology, post-master's degree students, and post-PhD counselors. The Ss then rated the degree to which the counselor could be described by 8 trait labels. As predicted, Ss with more counseling experience made weaker trait attributions than did those with little or no experience. It is suggested that this result is due to the increased empathy of experienced counselors. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Faculty consultation: An emerging role for the counseling psychologist.

Considers that a recent trend for counseling psychologists working in higher education settings has been an increasing repertoire of effective therapeutic interventions. The traditional role of one-to-one and small group intervention is being expanded to include associational group and institutional and community intervention. Consultation with college and university faculty is one expression of this emerging role. In response to requests from faculty members, a university counseling center staff developed a training procedure designed to help students acquire the skills needed to interact productively in small groups with the purpose of learning academic material. The history, theoretical basis, and operations of this program, entitled "Education Through Student Interaction," is described. The emphasis was later changed to teach faculty how to train their students by means of this procedure. The extensive use of paraprofessionals and student assistants added to the effectiveness of the consultation program. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A group counseling emphasis at a university counseling center.

Describes a service delivery system with a group personal counseling emphasis, based on the authors' 2 yrs of experience at a university counseling center. The local background and rationale for this system are discussed, and the practical logistics, the operational policies, and the group ground rules are presented. Utilization data are summarized: 36% of all clients and 88% of clients with 8 or more sessions were group members; groups typically grew to 9 clients and had 60% attendance. Results for a self-report outcome survey of 128 students are exemplified by the 95.1% who reported some level of improvement and the 92.2% who rated their psychologist "very" to "exceptionally effective." (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)