COMMUNICATION AND CHANGE IN THE CRISIS CENTER CALL (INTERVENTION, TELEPHONE COUNSELING, PARAPROFESSIONAL)

RAYMOND WESLEY YOUNG, Purdue University

Abstract

This study sought to examine effective communicative behaviors of the crisis center helper. Eighty Lafayette crisis center callers with interpersonal and emotional problems were interviewed immediately after the call. Questionnaire items measured affective, behavioral, and cognitive change, outcome, "turning points" or specific moments of the interaction attributed to change, and volunteers' overall most helpful behaviors. Research questions and hypotheses were based on crisis theory and theoretical approaches to telephone counseling--directive, empathic, mixed, and phase models. Results from a smallest space analysis yielded a change cluster and outcome measures of understanding, planning, emotional help, expression, and information. Information was associated with emotional help and planning. Planning and understanding were negatively related. Regression and ANCOVA results revealed effects for planning and emotional help on change. These results support a "qualified phase model." In some calls empathy and planning work in tandem. In other calls planning is irrelevant. Four categories of encouragement, understanding, focus, and action described the "turning point" responses and received reliable agreement (80%) for five judges. These four categories correspond with categories of effective behaviors found in research employing the perspective of volunteers and coders (Delfin, 1978). As hypothesized from the phase model, most understanding "turning points" occurred in the first "half" of the call and most action "turning points" occurred in the latter "half." As hypothesized from crisis theory, non frequent callers were more likely to experience a "turning point" than frequent callers. Five categories of empathy and caring (n = 30), climate (n = 16), nonjudgmental support (n = 15), listening (n = 9), and direction (n = 8) described the overall most helpful behaviors and received reliable agreement (82%) for five judges. These results support the efficacy of active listening skills emphasized in crisis center training. Overall, results support current training practices at the Lafayette crisis center. Practitioners and researchers should note that information may play an important role in emotional help and problem solving.

Degree

Ph.D.

Subject Area

Communication

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