COUNSELOR TRAINING, ANXIETY, AND COUNSELING SELF-EFFICACY: IMPLICATIONS FOR TRAINING PSYCHOLOGY STUDENTS FROM THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES UNIVERSITY

Social Behavior and Personality, 2004 by Al-Darmaki, Fatima R

The impact of training on counseling self-efficacy and state and trait anxiety was examined in this study. One hundred and thirteen undergraduate psychology students from United Arab Emirates (UAE) University participated in this investigation. The experimental group consisted of seventy-three students who were taking their first practicum (65 females; 8 males) and the control group was composed of female students who had not yet taken their practicum (n=40). Pre- and posttests were conducted using the Counseling Self-Estimate Inventory (COSE: Larson et al., 1992) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI: Spielberger, Gorsuch, & Lushene, 1970). Significant mean differences were found between the experimental group and the control group in both counseling self-efficacy and anxiety. Analysis of covariance revealed that training increased trainees' counseling self-efficacy and decreased their level of anxiety. These findings are discussed and directions for future research are provided.

The role of perceived self-efficacy (Bandura,1977, 1982, 1989, 1997) in counseling situations has received attention in counseling training literature (Larson & Daniels, 1998; Larson, et al., 1992). Counseling self-efficacy was studied in relation to a number of psychological variables such as anxiety, outcome expectancy, counselor performance, stable counselor characteristics (e.g., personality, aptitude, age), self-evaluation, supervisors' perceptions of counselor performance, and the perceived working environment (see Larson & Daniels).

In addition, interventions that seem to increase counselor self-efficacy (CSE) were examined (Larson & Daniels, 1998). Among these interventions, practicum training was found to contribute to an increase in CSE during practicum and prepracticum (e.g., Johnson, Baker, Kopala, Kiselica, & Thompson, 1989; Larson et al., 1992; Melchert, Hays, Wilijnen, & Kolocek, 1996; Sharpley & Ridgway, 1993) for both beginning and advanced counselor trainees. Furthermore, role-play, modeling, and positive feedback regarding counseling performance were shown to increase CSE and to enhance counseling performance (Daniels & Larson, 2001; Larson et al., 1992).

Level of counseling experience seems to have an impact on the strength of counseling self-efficacy. Master's level counselors and counseling psychologists reported higher counseling self-efficacy as compared to bachelor's level counselor trainees. Moreover, practitioners with counseling experience were found to exhibit stronger perceptions of counseling efficacy than those who had no counseling experience (Larson et al., 1992).

Research indicated a positive relationship between supervision and counseling self-efficacy (Friedlander & Snyder, 1983; Larson et al., 1992). For example, trainees who had received supervision showed stronger perceptions of counseling self-efficacy than did those who had not received supervision (Larson et al.). In addition, stronger perceptions of counseling self-efficacy was related to (a) higher self-esteem, (b) lower state and trait anxiety, (c) stronger self-perceived problem-solving effectiveness, (d) greater satisfaction with prepracticum class performance, (e) more positive outcome expectations regarding a mock interview, and (f) the execution of counseling microskills in a mock interview (Larson et al., p. 117). Moreover, counseling self-efficacy expectations and outcome expectations were found to have an impact on the type of verbal response chosen by counseling trainees (Sipps & Sugden, 1988).

Stoltenberg, McNeill, and Delworth (1998) proposed that entry-level trainees experience high levels of performance anxiety because of lack of counseling skills, lack of self-efficacy in their ability to perform counseling tasks appropriately and their concern about negative evaluation by clients or/and supervisors. As the trainees gain experience through training, their anxiety level decreases and both their perceptions of competence in performing certain counseling skills and their understanding of the counseling process increase. Supervisors' support coupled with trainees' high motivation facilitates the learning experience which, in turn, helps reduce their discomfort and anxiety level and increase their awareness of the clients as well as their own desire to function autonomously.

A negative relationship was documented between trainees' performance and anxiety level as well as between anxiety and the strength of self-efficacy expectations of the therapist in training (e.g., Bandura, 1956; Bowman & Roberts, 1979; Bowman, Roberts, & Giesen, 1978; Friedlander, Keller, Peca-Baker, & Olk, 1986). Positive feedback about counseling performance was related to a decrease of anxiety level from pretest to posttest (e.g., Daniels & Larson, 2001; Larson et al., 1992).

Reising and Daniels (1983) found that premaster's trainees report higher anxiety levels than do master's level trainees. Master's level trainees who were at the beginning of their training, as compared to the advanced trainees, reported high anxiety, high dependency on the supervisor, and more focus on the counseling techniques, as well as less comfort with confrontational relationships with their supervisor. In addition, undergraduate and graduate counseling trainees were found to exhibit feelings of fears and anxiety at the beginning of training (Thompson, 1986).