Effect of counselor predicate matching on perceived
social influence and client satisfaction
Author: Dowd, Thomas E.; Pety, John
Year of publication: 1982
Publishing house / periodical / university: Journal of Counseling Psychology, 29(2), 206-209
Abstract
This study provided a test of the effects of counselor predicate matching, according to the Neurolinguistic Programming Model. A total of 84 college students listened to one of four audiotapes representing a 15- minute segment of a simulated counseling interview. Each interview portrayed a male and female counselor working with a female student who was encountering difficulty building friendships. Two scripts were employed that varied only in the type of predicates used by the counselor. Four conditions were defined by: (a) male or female counselor matching client predicates identified as visual, auditory, or kinesthetic and (b) male or female counselor mismatching these same identified predicates. Prior to listening to the tape, subjects rated their willingness to see a counselor about a salient problem. After listening to the tape, subjects rated the counselor on the Counselor Rating Form and the Counselor Evaluation Inventory and rated their willingness to see that particular counselor. Results showed no predicate matching effects on any measure but did show a significant counselor effect on post-interview willingness to see the counselor.