Modeling therapist responses with structured practice enhances facilitative interpersonal skills

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Education
• Communication Studies

Background:

• Facilitative interpersonal skills (FIS) are crucial for effective therapeutic practice.
• Developing and testing brief, effective training methods for these skills is essential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a brief training intervention combining observational modeling and repeated practice for FIS.
• To determine if this training improves FIS responses compared to a control group.

Main Methods:

• 101 undergraduates interested in helping professions were randomized to Modeled Practice or Control.
• The Modeled Practice group observed therapeutic FIS video models and practiced responses.
• The Control group watched non-therapeutic videos.

Main Results:

• Participants in the Modeled Practice group demonstrated significantly higher FIS post-training compared to the Control group.
• The training intervention proved effective in enhancing FIS.

Conclusions:

• The study provides empirical support for training interventions that incorporate practice strategy components.
• Findings have implications for developing deliberate practice training models in therapeutic contexts.