Nonimmediacy: Its Applicability for Measurement

Abstract

This study examined the validity of the nonimmediacy concept as a potential measure of counselors' self-congruence. Variations in level of verbal nonimmediacy have been interpreted as implicit manifestations of positive and negative attitudes toward others. 53 counselor-trainees were requested to write about two clients for whom they had very different feelings and indicate which client they liked better. Their written descriptions of each client were scored for verbal nonimmediacy according to the 9 categories of the nonimmediacy scale. The nonimmediacy concept was not confirmed with this particular sample. Analysis indicated virtually no mean differences between nonimmediacy scores for more liked and less liked clients. This investigation raised the issue of the qualitative differences between the present and former subjects. Inherent psycholinguistic differences resulting from clinical rapport and objectivity may have accounted for these counselor-trainees' lack of discrimination of nonimmediacy with clients compared to other non-counseling populations.