Effects of metaphors and cognitive complexity on perceived counselor characteristics.

Abstract

The effects of three types of counselor-offered metaphors, varying in levels of complexity, were compared to facilitative responses on measures of perceived empathy, regard, expertness, attractiveness, and trustworthiness. Eighty subjects, 32 male and 48 female, crossed on levels of cognitive complexity, were assigned to one of four audiotaped treatment conditions: complex metaphor (CM), narrative analogy (NA), cliche (CL), and Level 3 facilitative response (L3). Results indicated that NA and L3 each produced more positive client ratings of empathy, regard, and expertness than CL. Cognitive complexity did not affect client ratings except for CM conditions. The use of metaphors in therapeutic communication is discussed.

The Impact of Metaphor on Clinical Hypothesis Formation and Perceived Supervisor Characteristics

“…In fact, this study found little support for the idea that exposure to a metaphor can increase divergent thinking in one who hears it. The results of this study were also inconsistent with the findings of Suit and Paradise (1985) in which counselors who used narrative analogy metaphors were rated as more expert.…”

“…A systematic procedure was used to develop the two treatments. First, characteristics of effective metaphors were drawn from relevant literature (e.g., Ortony, Reynolds, & Arter, 1978;Suit & Paradise, 1985). A narrative analogy metaphor, one that has explicit implications for the situation to which it refers and is of moderate complexity, was chosen because it has been found to be rated more favorably when used by counselors than either cliches or complex metaphors (Suit & Paradise, 1985).…”

“…There is some evidence, for example, that a counselor's use of metaphor has a direct influence on the client's perception of counselor desirability or social influence (Gore, 1977;Suit & Paradise, 1985). Suit and Paradise found that when counselors used narrative analogy metaphors (e.g., those that make a direct rather than implied comparison between a subject and an object) to discuss clinical issues, they were rated as "more expert" by undergraduate psychology students; this was as opposed to counselors who used cliches or very complex metaphors.…”

“…Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the impact of a supervisor-generated metaphor on supervisees' formulation of a clinical hypothesis. Specifically, we investigated how the use of metaphor affected perceptions of a supervisor in terms of social influence dimensions for a sample of counselors-in-training, as opposed to the undergraduate sample examined by Suit and Paradise (1985).…”

Social influence research in counseling: A review and critique.

“…The Robbins and Haase (1985) study further suggested that the nature of the cues themselves, not the number of cues available, has the greatest impact on ratings of expertness (and attractiveness). A 5th study found that high school students who viewed a counseling session on videotape rated the counselor as expert even after negative reputational cues regarding the counselor had been presented (Littrell et al, 1987).With respect to counselor verbal behaviors, 1 study found that narrative analogies and empathic responses were related to perceived expertness (Suit & Paradise, 1985). Another study found that positive (rather than negative) self-involving statements resulted in higher ratings of counselor expertness (Andersen & Anderson, 1985).…”