Differential effects of therapist race and social class upon patient depth of self-exploration in the initial clinical interview.

Abstract

A LATIN-SQUARE DESIGN INCORPORATING WHITES AND NEGROES AND UPPER AND LOWER SOCIAL CLASSES WAS REPLICATED ACROSS 4 GROUPS OF 4 HOSPITALIZED MENTAL PATIENTS BY 4 TRAINED LAY COUNSELORS. RANDOMLY SELECTED EXCERPTS FROM THE 64 RECORDED CLINICAL INTERVIEWS WERE RATED ON THE DEPTH OF PATIENT SELF-EXPLORATION. RACE AND SOCIAL CLASS OF BOTH PATIENT AND THERAPIST WERE SIGNIFICANT SOURCES OF EFFECT; AND THE INTERACTION BETWEEN PATIENT AND THERAPIST VARIABLES WAS SIGNIFICANT. AS PATIENT DEPTH OF SELF-EXPLORATION DURING EARLY CLINICAL INTERVIEWS HAS BEEN HIGHLY CORRELATED WITH OUTCOME INDEXES OF CONSTRUCTIVE PATIENT CHANGE, THE RESULTS HAVE IMPLICATIONS FOR COUNSELING AND PSYCHOTHERAPY. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved)