Effect of disabled counselors' self-disclosures on client perceptions of the counselor.

Abstract

All APA members (Fellows, Members, and Associates) receive-as part of their annual dues -subscriptions to the American Psychologist, the APA Monitor, and Psvchology Today.High School Teacher and Student Affiliates receive subscriptions to the APA Monitor and Psychology Today, and they can subscribe to the American Psychologist at a significantly reduced rate.In addition, all members and affiliates are eligible for savings of up to 50% on other APA journals, as well as significant discounts on subscriptions from cooperating societies and publishers (e.g., the British Psychological Society, the American Sociological Association, and Human Sciences Press). Essential ResourcesAPA members and affiliates receive special rates for purchases of APA books, including the Publication Manual of the APA, the Master Lectures, and APA's Guide to Research Support.

Counselors With Disabilities: A Comment on the Special Feature

“…Given the disparity surrounding the additive and subtractive points of view of being a visibly disabled counselor, it remains unclear whether and how counselors should discuss the matter of their disability with their clients. Mallinckrodt and Helms (1986) examined this issue by investigating what the effect would be of disabled counselors' self-disclosure about their disability on participants' perceptions of the counselors and on participants' willingness to see them.…”

“…In the Mallinckrodt and Helms (1986) study, two kinds of disabled male counselors were depicted in a counseling analogue-a counselor using a wheelchair and a counselor with a visual impairment. Each type of counselor was shown in a counseling session that included a discussion of his disability and a session that did not.…”

“…Furthermore, the findings suggested that selfdisclosure about a non-obvious disability may enhance participants' perceptions of the counselor, particularly with regard to attractiveness. For example, counselors who have hearing impairments may have to ask clients not to cover their mouths so that lipreading would be possible, or counselors who have impaired vision despite contact lenses may ask a client to sit somewhat closer to them than usual (Mallinckrodt & Helms, 1986). None of the findings in this study suggested that self-disclosures would have a negative effect, and perhaps both counselors with obvious (i.e., counselor using wheelchair) and non-obvious disabilities might be able to make fruitful use of self-involving self-disclosures as a means of improving their therapeutic effectiveness (Mallinckrodt & Helms, 1986).…”

Effects of Counselor Disability and Reputation on Client Perceptions During a Career Counseling Session

“…One such characteristic is the physical disability of the counselor. A number of studies (Brabham & Thoreson, 1973;Mallinckrodt & Helms, 1986;Mitchell & Frederickson, 1975;Toner & Johnson, 1979) found that counselors with physical disabilities were preferred more often than were counselors without physical disabilities by potential clients. Counselors with disabilities were believed to possess greater understanding and empathy.…”

“…By varying the counselor's reputation (i.e., postdoctoral vs. postmaster's), it could be determined whether or not reputation significantly enhanced the client's perception of a physically disabled counselor. Following the lead of others (e.g., Brabham & Thoreson, 1973;Mallinckrodt & Helms, 1986), this study examined two questions: (a) Do observers perceive a counselor with physical disabilities as more or less attractive, expert, and trustworthy than a counselor without a disability? (b) Do observers perceive a counselor with physical disabilities who possesses positive reputational cues as more or less attractive, expert, and trustworthy than a counselor without a disability who possesses the same cues?…”