Semester
Summer
Date of Graduation
2020
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Type
PhD
College
College of Education and Human Services
Department
Counseling, Rehabilitation Counseling & Counseling Psychology
Committee Chair
Monica Leppma
Committee Co-Chair
Jeff Daniels
Committee Member
Lisa Platt
Committee Member
Natalie Shook
Abstract
The release of the APA (2011) Revised Competency Benchmarks used for evaluation of doctoral-level psychology trainees calls for literature to examine competencies in this population with use of appropriate instrumentation. The recent publication and validation of the Professional Competencies Scale-Revised (Taylor, 2015) allows for researchers to explore factors associated with trainee competencies as it relates to the benchmark system. Previous literature suggests a strong relationship between counselor self-efficacy and professional competency (e.g., Constantine, 2002), suggesting that interventions that can foster these constructs may lead to enhanced counseling performance. This study examined the predictive value of mindfulness and self-compassion for self-assessed professional competency and counselor self-efficacy in a sample of counseling and clinical psychology doctoral trainees (n = 192). The relationships among mindfulness, self-compassion and training year were also explored. The results of stepwise linear regression analyses revealed that higher levels of mindfulness were associated with greater levels of self-compassion, and higher levels of self-compassion were associated with greater levels of counselor self-efficacy and self-assessed professional competency. Findings also indicated potential mediating effects that self-compassion has on the relationship between mindfulness and outcomes variables (counselor self-efficacy and self-assessed professional competency). This study provides relevant information to operationalize self-compassion and mindfulness as contrasting, yet similar, constructs. In addition, similarities and differences between counselor self-efficacy and perceived competency are highlighted. Implications for educational programs and training sites are discussed, as well as strengths and limitations of the study and suggestions for future research.
Recommended Citation
Latorre, Chelsea, "The Importance of Mindfulness and Self-Compassion in Clinical Training: Outcomes Related to Self-Assessed Competency and Self-Efficacy in Psychologists-in-Training" (2020). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports. 7792.
https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/7792