Application of supervised and nonsupervised microcounseling paradigms in the training of paraprofessionals.

Abstract

The effect of supervision on the learning of basic clinical interviewing skills within the microcounseling format was studied. Subjects were 12 paraprofessional counselors, 4 women and 8 men, employed in the drug research center of a midwestern psychiatric institute. Each subject was assigned randomly to either a supervised or a nonsupervised microcounseling training condition. Trained coders categorized 32 trainee utterances from each subject's pre-and posttraining videotaped interviews as one or more of the microcounseling skills, one or more of the opposite skills, or a miscellaneous skill. Analysis revealed only one significant effect indicating more frequent use of microcounseling than opposite skills. No significant differences were found between training conditions or across time. Reasons for the microcounseling training format being an ineffectve training format, a finding inconsistent with past research, and implicatons for future research are explored.

Skill Training: Cautions and Recommendations

“…He suggests that the limited scope of such a training model can help people start, but "their own talents will determine how far they will go" (p, 93). Calia's latter comment is similar to an observation made by Authier and Gustafson (1975). In their research, microcounseling did not have its intended effect, and according to them, this result "again suggests that the microcounseling skills are inherent counseling skills and may not be contingent upon specific training" (p. 77).…”

Research on Training Counselors and Clinicians

“…Another seven reports described in-service training programs for experienced counselors (Blocksma & Porter, 1947;Demos & Zuwayliff, 1963;Goodwin, Garvey, & Barclay, 1971;Hellervik, 1969;Lee, 1969;Perry, 1975;Selfridge et al, 1975). In 11 cases, "paraprofessional" counselors were trained (Authier & Gustafson, 1975;Brockhaus et al, 1973;Canada, 1973;Dendy, 1972;Dooley, 1975;Doyle et al, 1977;Elsenrath, Coker, & Martinson, 1972;Gluckstern, 1973;Grzegorek, 1971;Pierce, Carkhuff, & Berenson, 1967;Rioch, Elkas, Flint, Usdansky, Newman, & Silber, 1963;VanderKolk, 1973). Conclusions from these studies may be reliably generalized to other counselors and trainees at the same training or experience level (i.e., acceptable external validity vis a vis trainees).…”

“…Goldberg, 1968;Grzegorek, 1971;B. Miller, 1969;Rye, 1970;Ward et al, 1972), the Microcounseling Behaviors Scale (MCBS) (e.g., Authier & Gustafson, 1975;DiMattia & Arndt, 1974;Eisenberg& Delaney, 1970;Frankel, 1971;Guttman & Haase, 1972;Ivey et al, 1968;Miller et al, 1970Miller et al, , 1973, and the Hill Interaction Matrix (HIM) (e.g., Dowd & Blocher, 1974;Hellervik, 1969;Lee, 1969) are other frequently used observer-rating scales that have received, at best, tentative validation (e.g., Lake, Miles, & Earle, 1973).…”

“…Several studies allow the reader to draw cost efficiency conclusions by comparing two or more training methods that involved different amounts of trainer time or backup resources (e.g., Austin & Alterkruse, 1972;Authier & Gustafson, 1975;Butler & Hansen, 1973;Canada, 1973;Carlson, 1974;DiMattia & Arndt, 1974;Shoemaker, 1973;Spivack, 1972;Thielen, 1971).…”

Training family therapists in observational skills

“…The value of this explicitly analytical and practical approach has been confirmed in a variety of other counselling studies (cf. Kelley, 1971;Boyd, 1973;Canada, 1973;Moreland et al, 1973;Authier and Gustafson, 1975), but none of these studies has involved the training of family therapists. Street and Treacher (1980) have argued that this micro-counselling approach may be particularly suited to theories of family therapy and interaction, such as those of Minuchin (1974) and of Haley (1976), where the basic concepts of family functioning and dysfunctioning are couched in terms of repeated interactional sequences.…”