Shift counselor education research and training emphasis from what the counselor is to what the counselor can perform¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 8 claims (6 for, 2 mixed) · 1 study (1 review), q2 · 1 of 1 report an effect size · 8 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The review recommends replacing the pursuit of an ideal counselor personality with identification of specific counseling skills, behaviors, and interactions and their relationship to counseling outcome. It reports Mosher's (1967) "call for a change in emphasis from what the counselor is to what he can perform," and points to Carkhuff's skill-training programs and Ivey's microcounseling as initial efforts with optimistic results.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Necessary counseling skills must first be identified and operationally defined before training can target them

Constraints¶

• The review notes initial efforts are neither exhaustive nor representative, and continued research is needed to define performance parameters affecting counseling outcome

Target Learners¶

• counselor trainees
• counselor education students

Target Learning Goals¶

• acquisition of definable interviewing and facilitative counseling skills

Claims¶

• Calls to use the 16PF for selecting counselor trainees are premature because findings vary and the specification equation lacks cross-validation [~W]
• Microcounseling has been shown effective in teaching numerous behaviorally defined interviewer skills [+W]
• Most counselor personality variables investigated since 1960 were not significantly related to the effectiveness criteria employed [+W]
• Clients of high-facilitative counselors engaged in significantly more self-exploration than clients of low-facilitative counselors [+W]
• Self-actualization (POI) correlates of rated counseling performance reported by Foulds could not be confirmed on replication [+W]
• Standardized test batteries are poor predictors of counselor trainee success [+W]
• 16PF-derived predicted-effectiveness indices correlate with supervisor and client ratings (.41, .87), but the review judges use of the 16PF for trainee selection premature [~W]
• Most investigated counselor personality variables are not significantly related to effectiveness criteria, and variables significant in one study often show contrary results when re-investigated [+W]

Related Strategies¶

• Shift counselor education research and selection from personality traits to identifiable, trainable counselor skills and behaviors

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Rowe, W., Murphy, H. B., & De Csipkes, R. A. (1975). The Relationship of Counselor Characteristics and Counseling Effectiveness. Review of Educational Research, 45(2), 231-246. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543045002231