Adolescent perceptions of help-intended acts of peer helpers
Date
1982
Authors
McDowell, Christina Anne
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Adolescent perceptions of the counsellor effectiveness of peer helpers were examined by studying perceptions of simulated interviews. The subjects were 143 grade eleven students. The effects of the two factors, training (trained versus untrained) and the role label assigned ("friend" versus "peer counsellor), were tested using an experimental design. ยท Interactions between these two independent variables were also tested. In addition to the experimental conditions, the design provided for the testing of gender effects and the possible order effects of subject groups. Counsellor effectiveness was assessed using the following measures: Counsellor Rating Form (Barak and LaCrosse, 1975), Tape Assisted Recall Categories of Help-Intended Acts (Elliott, 1979), Helpfulness, 9-point Likert scale (Cherchio & Cooker, 1976). Descriptions of the adolescents' perceptions were also obtained from a random sample of subjects in a standardized interview. The subjects viewed four videotaped vignettes and rated the peer helper's effectiveness. Significant results for the effect of training were found on five variables. However, significant results were yielded on only two variables for the labelling effect.
The trained helpers were perceived as more effective in terms of the following counsellor behaviors: understanding (p < .001), attractiveness (p < .004), reassuring (p < .005), gathering information (p < .001) and guiding (p < .001). Training and labelling interacted on the variable of expertness (p < .007). Data from the quantitative and qualitative results indicate adolescents perceive trained peer helpers as more facilitative than untrained helpers. These findings support the training and use of adolescent peer counsellors. Implications and recommendations for future research were discussed