Investigates the ability of volunteer telephone services to furnish facilitative conditions to callers by determining the level of empathic understanding offered by such volunteers. Uses Carkhuff's Five-Point Empathy Scale to indicate that the length of calls increases as the level of empathic understanding offered rises. (Author/PC)

This study investigated the impact of a marriage enrichment program. One experimental group received fair-fight training for three weeks followed by a sexual enhancement format for three additional weeks. The second experimental group received the opposite treatment sequence. Treatment effects generally favored the treatment groups over the…

Forth-two subjects were randomly assigned to two empathy training treatments. One treatment, approximating Carkhuff's training method, employed didactic teaching, discrimination training, modeling, experientially-oriented communications practice, and feedback. The second treatment, a cognitive self-instructional modeling approach, included each of…

To study the independent and combined impact of a counselor's verbal (i.e., evaluative feedback) and nonverbal (i.e., interpersonal distance) communications on behavioral compliance, 80 female clients were individually interviewed in the context of a weight-reduction clinic. Physical proximity strengthened adherence to a counselor's dieting…

Examines relationship between social class and marital communication style. Style refers to ways in which messages are sent rather than content. Four interaction styles are employed: conventional, controlling, speculative, and contactful. All classes have the same general rank order regarding styles, suggesting class differences are matters of…

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of indiscriminate use of counselor reflection, probe, confrontation, and free style on client behavior and client perceptions of counseling. The experiment was conducted at the University of Tennessee with 20 female volunteers from undergraduate education courses serving as subjects and four…

The contribution of a structured procedure designed to facilitate the generalization of assertive behavior was examined. Subjects solicited from the community (N=48) were assigned to an assertion training plus generalization instructions (AT Plus), an assertion training only (AT Only), or an attention-placebo control condition. Both behavioral…

The development of a classification system for analysis of specific verbal marital communications utilizing videotaped Stimulus-Modeling procedures is described. Findings reveal specific marital verbal behaviors can be operationalized and reliably measured. The results indicate the need to combine modern technology with modeling procedures in…

This analogue study examined effects of inconsistencies between a counselor's verbal and nonverbal behaviors on client proxemic behavior and ratings of counselor genuineness. Based on role plays of 80 undergraduates with a confederate male counselor, results indicated that inconsistent messages led to greater interpersonal distances and lower…