An Investigation of Client and Counselor Variables That Influence Likelihood of Counselor Self-Disclosure

Selected client and counselor variables affecting reported likelihood of self‐disclosure by 120 experienced clinicians in relation to four scenarios were examined. Variables included client age and diagnosis and counselor gender, experience, and exposure to disclosing counselors in their own experie...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of counseling and development 1998-04, Vol.76 (2), p.174-182
Main Authors: Simone, Dawn H., McCarthy, Patricia, Skay, Carol L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescents
Client Characteristics (Human Services)
Client relationships
Counseling
Counseling Techniques
Counselling
Counselor Characteristics
Counselor Client Relationship
Counselors
Disclosure
Gender
Influences
Interpersonal communication
Investigations
Psychologists
Psychosis
Questionnaires
Response rates
Self disclosure
Self Disclosure (Individuals)
Selfdisclosure
Surveys
Teenagers
Undergraduate Students
USA
Variables
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Summary:Selected client and counselor variables affecting reported likelihood of self‐disclosure by 120 experienced clinicians in relation to four scenarios were examined. Variables included client age and diagnosis and counselor gender, experience, and exposure to disclosing counselors in their own experience of counseling. Disclosure likelihood was greatest for high ego‐strength diagnoses and for respondents who reported positive disclosures from counselors in their own counseling experiences. Reasons for and against using self‐disclosure also were examined. Reasons for disclosing included promoting universality, giving encouragement, modeling, rapport‐building, and offering alternatives. Reasons against disclosing included boundary blurring, concern about counselor welfare, merging, and premature closure. Implications for practice and research are discussed.
ISSN:0748-9633
1556-6676
DOI:10.1002/j.1556-6676.1998.tb02390.x