Counseling Student Response To Affect Level

Abstract

This research was designed to investigate whether 42 counseling students would respond differently to identical client statements in which the degree of affect was varied. Students viewed four people, each presenting four one‐minute videotaped stimulus vignettes. There were four female high‐affect statements, four female neutral‐affect statements, four male high‐affect statements, and four male neutral‐affect statements. A 2 × 2 × 2 × 4 analysis of variance with repeated measures on the last measure was used to analyze the data, and Newman‐Keuls post hoc comparisons were done. The analysis indicated that the affect level had a significant effect on the degree to which the counselor judged that the client needed help. There was also a difference in the ratings of female and male counselors and a difference in counselor response to female and male clients.

The Effect of Adolescent Sex Offender Abuse History on Counselor Attitudes

“…Counselor judgments affect the counseling relationship, and the counselor's desire to work with certain clients is a judgment that cannot be overlooked (Borgers et al, 1980). As the need for juvenile offender counselors grows with the increasing rate of reported sexual offenses (Steen & Monnette, 1989), counselors will need to explore their judgments about working with offender clients in order to make informed decisions about their clients.…”

“…The Counselor Response Form (CRF, Borgers, Thomas, 8z Van Loon, 1980) was used to determine the counselors' judgments of adolescent sex offender clients with various histories including sexual abuse, physical abuse or no abuse. The CRF reports counselor judgment that consists of two dependent variables: the degree to which the counselor believes that the client needs help (need scorej and the degree to which the counselor desires to work with the client (desire score).…”

Client Affect and Concerns: Their Effect on the Counselor

“…The questionnaire, the Counselor Response Form (CRF), (Borgers et al, 1980) consists of 12 statements presented in random order. Five of these statements measure the degree to which the counselor believes that the client needs help (e.g., "This person needs counseling" or "This person needs help to deal with his or her concern").…”

“…The answers to these questions remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to extend previous research (Borgers et al, 1980) in determining whether counseling students' evaluations of a client's need and desire for counseling differ, depending on the intensity and type of emotions expressed.…”

“…Clients expressing sadness were more likely to be helped than those showing anger or little emotion; angry clients were the least likely to be helped and were rated least likeable. Borgers, Thomas and Van Loon (1980) examined counseling students' responses to clients expressing varying degrees of affect. Clients showing high degrees of affect were rated as being more in need of counseling than were those showing neutral affect, suggesting that the influence of their emotions on the counselor's judgments are independent of the content of the problems presented.…”