GENERALIZING SKILLS FROM A COUNSELOR-TRAINING PROGRAM TO EMPLOYMENT: AN ANALYSIS BASED ON BANDURA'S OBSERVATIONAL LEARNING PARADIGM.
The purpose of this study was to gather, report and analyze the experiences of fourteen counselor-trainees in one university training program, using a variety of research methods over time. Bandura's observational learning paradigm, that individuals learn by imitating models, provided the structure for analyzing samples of audio-taped counseling sessions, as well as interviews and journals collected over a two-year period. Participant observation and content analysis were the principal methods used to gather and analyze data. Frequencies on audio-tapes were determined by external raters. Analysis of the interviews and journals was completed by the author. At acquisition, participants did imitate a model's attending skills demonstration, and other significant modeling influences were related to the theoretical orientations of the models. When experts and participants were compared, experts were using all behavior categories except accepting statements more frequently than participants. At the end of the training program, participants were more active than they were at a baseline observation, a finding consistent with previous longitudinal studies of maintenance of skills. The frequencies for each of the ten behavior categories, however, were variable over trials. This finding may be the result of variations in the behavior of models or of methodological problems in analyzing the data. Trainee statements about training experiences and norms of reference groups, collected from interviews and journal entries, indicate that trainees model trainer values and ideas as well as behaviors. Trainees described a developmental process during training, but conclusions from post-graduation employment experiences were too limited to analyze. The study's recommendations include possible research projects for training programs and guidelines for developing a supportive trainer/trainee relationship.