Verbal activity, sex, counselor experience, and success in counseling.

Abstract

The contribution of client and counselor verbal activity, client and counselor sex, and counselor experience to satisfaction and symptom relief was examined. Thirty-six university students and 23 counselors at a university counseling service participated. Counselor-offered facilitative conditions were held constant. Data were analyzed using a multiple regression analysis. Clients seeing experienced counselors reported better outcomes. Neither sex nor activity of the therapeutic participants contributed to therapeutic success. Explanations of findings and implications for counseling practice are discussed.

Why Do Eating Disorder Patients Drop Out?

“…Skill and experience of the therapist may also be important for continuation in therapy [ 18,27,28], as well as whether the therapist feels he likes the patient [29], A few studies have focused on the interaction of thera pist and patient factors. Similarity of demographic char acteristics between clients and therapists have been found to have a positive effect on therapeutic expectations and outcome [30][31][32], although other studies suggest this may not be the case [33][34][35], Similarity of cognitive character istics between therapists and clients has been associated with favourable outcome [36][37][38], while still other re search has failed to confirm this [39][40][41], More recently, similar locus of control orientations between therapist and client has been associated with more favourable client expectations [42], Knowledge of the role of the patient-therapist relation ship in dropout also remains elusive. This may seem odd given that psychotherapeutic process and outcome can be viewed as largely mediated by the patient-therapist rela tionship [43], Mutuality of goals and agreement regarding tasks and responsibilities are important elements of this relationship [44], Yet patients and therapists may dis agree about the most effective ways of realising such goals [45,46] and researchers may need to become more aware of the ways in which events occurring in therapy are per ceived differently by therapists and patients.…”

“…The particular aspect of the patient-therapist relationship that was exam ined pertained to congruence of expectations between 30 Psychother Psychosom 1996:65:29- 35 Clinton patients and their therapists regarding the efficacy of potential treatment interventions. Previous work by the present author has dealt with the development of a meth od for assessing treatment expectations [56,57], In the present study it was hypothesised that discrepant expecta tions of the efficacy of potential treatment interventions between therapists and patients would increase the risk of dropout from both assessment and treatment.…”

The relationship between therapist-client interpersonal compatibility, sex of therapist, and therapeutic outcome

“…The results of this study seem to support a host of others (Breisinger, 1976;Burlin & Pearson, 1978;Cotler, 1970;Franks, 1969;Nawas & Pucel, 1971;Pucel & Nawas, 1970;Scher, 1975) that suggest that the gender of the therapist may have an insignificant impact upon therapeutic outcome. Perhaps the sex of the therapist may have less of an impact upon psychotherapeutic outcome than the degree to which the therapist, sex unspecified, holds traditional sex-role stereotypes and wittingly or unwittingly introduces them into therapy.…”

Group Structure: Components and Effects

“…Leader experience alone has been found to influence outcome positively, when neither the sex nor the verbal activity of the counselor made a significant contribution (Scher, 1975). Also, there is evidence that counselor and client compatibility influences outcome (Sapolsky, 1965).…”