Transitional Adolescents, Anxiety, and Group Counseling

Abstract

One hundred‐eighty college‐bound high school seniors were studied to determine whether small group counseling would affect their anxiety level. 60 students comprised the experimental group and 60 students each the 2 control groups. 6 small group counseling sessions were conducted during the spring just prior to high school graduation and 6 more in the fall, following college enrollment. Comparison of anxiety levels was made at the conclusion of each series of counseling sessions. The students of the experimental group showed significantly lower anxiety scores than did those of the control groups, both in the spring and in the fall. The conclusion was drawn that experience in small group counseling was followed by significantly lower levels of anxiety in transitional adolescents.

Developmental group counseling: An outcome study.

“…On the other hand, the previously cited studies by Clements (1966), Gilliland (1968), and McKendry (1964, all of which involved nonvoluntary groups, reported a variety of positive outcomes. While Bates (1968) sought volunteers in her study, the fact that all students who were referred for counseling chose to volunteer puts the study in somewhat the same context as studies using nonvoluntary groups.…”

“…The few research studies which have concerned developmental group counseling with high school youth have reported results generally favoring counseled groups over control groups on several outcome measures. These measures have included grade point average, attendance, citizenship grades, amount of tension and hostility, realism of vocational choice, selfacceptance, and valuing of others (Bates, 1968); self-adjustment (Catron, 1966); anxiety level (Clements, 1966); academic achievement, occupational aspiration, and vocational maturity (Gilliland, 1968); and information on college requirements, appropriateness of college major, and first semester college grade point average (Mc-Kendry, 1964). Butterfield (1966), on the other hand, found no significant experimental-control group differences in selfdescription or self-ideal discrepancy as a result of group counseling over an 18-week period.…”

The Effects of a Personal Growth Group Experience

“…Muro and Ohnmacht 0%6) found that group counseling had a POSitive effect on self-acceptance of teacher trainees. Clements (1966) and Caplan (1957), using the Q-Sort technique, found an increase in the congruence between self and ideal self after a group counseling experience. Geisler (1968) found that self-ideal self correlations increased significantly as the result of a summer educational experience which included a group guidance/counseling experience.. Wirt, Betz, and Engle (1969) report that self-concept changes were significant, over time, for an experimental group undergoing group counseling, but when compared to the control group, the magnitude of change was not significant.…”

Changes through Counseling

“…As the authors pointed out, the same findings with a third experimental group that constructed their own individualized hierarchies with no initial intervention would have more strongly supported the hypothesis that standard hierarchies are as effective as individual ones in reducing test anxiety. Clements (1966) evaluated small group counseling in aiding school youth to reduce their anxiety during the transition from high school to college. Clements hypothesized that counseled students would exhibit less anxiety prior and subsequent to college entrance.…”