Abstract The current study aimed to investigate the relationship between (a) racial/ethnic matching between African American clients and their counselors (i.e., Black, White, and non-Black racial/ethnic minority counselors) and therapeutic outcomes (i.e., change in symptoms, treatment length, and premature termination), (b) while also controlling for the potential influences of client (i.e., initial distress level, family and social support, and socioeconomic status) and counselor (i.e., experience level) characteristics. Change in symptomology on specific domains of functioning (i.e., Depression, Generalized Anxiety, Academic Distress, and Distress Index) was assessed using the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms-34 (i.e., CCAPS-34; Locke et al., 2012). The change in symptomology was classified into one of three categories (i.e., improvement, no change, and deterioration). An archival data set that consisted of client data from the 2011-2012 academic year contributed by 120 university and college counseling centers in the U.S. that were participating members of the Center for Collegiate Mental Health was used. The sample sizes for the analyses were: 348 clients for change in functioning analyses, 1,418 clients for treatment length analyses, and 2,024 clients for premature termination analyses. The findings indicated that after controlling for the covariates, clients who were matched with White counselors were more likely to experience deterioration in overall distress symptoms, rather than no change in symptoms, compared to those who were matched to Black counselors. Also, those clients who were matched with White counselors were more likely to prematurely terminate their counseling sessions, compared to those who were matched to Black counselors or non-Black racial/ethnic minority counselors. The findings from this study may assist researchers and university counseling center staff in understanding the potential influence of ethnic matching on outcomes and service utilization for African American clients. Keywords: ethnic match, African American, outcome research, university counseling center, Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms

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Counseling services are offered in most universities, but are often underutilized. Past researchers found that students listed time, cost, stigma, and confidentiality concerns as their top reasons for avoiding seeking help (e.g., Clement et al., 2015; Dearing, Maddux, and Tangney, 2005). The purpose of this study was to identify whether concerns about confidentiality affect stigma related to use of mental health services. Students answered questions about perceived stigma and the reasons they have avoided seeking counseling in the past. Those who had previously used services reported fewer confidentiality concerns. In a stepwise multiple regression, concerns about confidentiality were found to predict significantly more of the variability in perceived stigma. Students with confidentiality concerns were invited to a focus group to explore further, and major themes included pride, accessibility, cost, and lack of information. Future research is needed in implementing better communication with students about services and the purpose of counseling.

Many college counseling centers use outcome measures to track therapeutic change for their clientele. These questionnaires have traditionally looked primarily at a client's symptom distress (e.g. depression, anxiety, suicidality, etc.) and are used to detect changes in the client's life that are due to therapy. Unfortunately, there is no measure that has been exclusively created and validated for use with college students. The College Adjustment Scales (CAS) form a multidimensional psychological measure designed specifically for use in college and university settings. Even though the CAS was created as a screening tool, it contains items that provide insight into changes that are possibly taking place for college students in therapy that are not measured by current outcome questionnaires. The purpose of this study was to determine which items and scales on the CAS were sensitive to therapeutic change for college students, thus assessing the validity of the test as an outcome measure and providing data for the development of future college counseling specific outcome questionnaires. This study used hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) to generate slopes that represent change over time for treatment and control groups. These slopes were compared to each other in order to determine whether each item and scale was sensitive to therapeutic change. The control sample consisted of 127 student participants that were not in therapy. The treatment sample was archival and consisted of 409 student clients. Seven of the nine scales were found to be sensitive to therapeutic change. However, 45 of the 108 individual items did not meet the set criteria. Because of these findings, the creators of the CAS are encouraged to revise the measure if it is to be used as an outcome questionnaire. In addition, researchers and clinicians should consider these results and take care not to treat this measure as an instrument that is wholly sensitive to therapeutic change for the college population. Items found to be sensitive to therapeutic change can be used to create a new outcome measure specifically for counseling centers.

The purpose of this research study was to investigate the directional relationship between college students' attachment styles and social media practices with their relationship development. This investigation tested the theoretical model that undergraduate students' (N = 717) attachment styles (as measured by the Experiences in Close Relationships-Short form [ECR-S; Wei et al., 2007]) and social media practices (as measured by the Facebook Intensity Scale [FBI; Ellison et al., 2007] and Motives for Going Facebook Official Scale [MGFBO; Fox & Warber, 2013]) contributed to their quality of relationship development (as measured by the Parks Relational Development Scale [PRDS; Parks & Roberts, 1998]). Specifically, this investigation tested the hypothesized directional relationship that students scoring in the insecure attachment range (i.e., avoidant or anxious) with higher levels of social media practices would have lower levels of relationship development quality. In addition, this investigation examined the relationship between college students' attachment styles, social media practices, and relationship development quality with their reported demographic information (e.g., age, current school level, and ethnicity). The results of the structural equation model (SEM) analyses identified that college students' attachment style contributed to the relationship development quality (96.04% of the variance explained) and their social media practices (2.56% of the variance explained). Furthermore, the results of the analyses identified that students' social media practices contributed to their relationship development quality (.4% of the variance explained). Implications of the findings from the study include (a) the inclusion of additional psychosocial intake questions for college counselors; (b) identification of current trends in undergraduate students' attachment styles, social media practices, and relationship development functioning for counselor educators to support the development of counselors-in-training; and (c) insight into the instrument development of the ECR-S, FBI, MGFBO, and PRDS.

Objectives. This study explored mechanisms of change for Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) groups. The feasibility and acceptability of a new group therapy protocol were assessed in a college counseling center population.Method. Seventy-five participants engaged in eight transdiagnostic CFT groups. Group CFT consisted of 12 weekly sessions. Participants completed measures of fears of compassion, flows of compassion, self-reassurance, self-criticism, shame, and psychiatric distress at pre, mid, and post time points. Significant and reliable change was assessed. Potential mechanisms of change were examined using correlations. Self-report feasibility and acceptability data were collected from therapists and participants respectively.Results. Significant and reliable change was found for fears of self-compassion, fears of compassion from others, fears of compassion to others, self-compassion, compassion from others, self-reassurance, self-criticism, shame, and psychological distress. Improvements in fears and flows of compassion predicted improvements in self-reassurance, self-criticism, shame, and psychiatric distress. The protocol was judged to be feasible and acceptable.Conclusion. The new CFT group protocol appears to be feasible, acceptable, and effective in a transdiagnostic college counseling center population. The identified mechanisms of change support the theory of CFT that transdiagnostic pathological constructs of self-criticism and shame can be decreased by decreasing fears and increasing flows of compassion.

Despite California community college counseling faculty having unique roles on their campuses due to their faculty status and their proximity to students, there is a lack of research related to the experiences of counseling faculty and how they can be supported by local and statewide leaders to best meet the needs of the diverse student populations that are currently being served within the California community college system. This qualitative research study utilized narrative inquiry to examine the current onboarding and mentoring experiences of California community college counseling faculty to evaluate both best practices as well as institutional gaps that negatively impact counseling faculty and the students they serve. Utilizing Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) ecological systems theory as a framework, this study intentionally centered counseling faculty development while examining three main questions: (a) how do the onboarding and mentoring of community college counseling faculty reflect an institution's support of diverse student populations, (b) what policies and practices exist, from the counseling faculty perspective, that effectively support the onboarding and mentoring of counseling faculty, and (c) how can an ecological framework assist in identifying recommendations on what supports for counseling faculty are necessary for institutions to be successful in their mission to support diverse students? Five counseling faculty were selected as participants, who provided data through journal responses, artifact submission, and narrative inquiry interviews. Findings indicated that a primary challenge for new counseling faculty was the need to “freeway fly” while working at multiple campuses part-time, leading to inconsistent onboarding support, increased stress, and a lack of sense of belonging on campus. Additionally, onboarding opportunities that intentionally combined technical training with cultural competencies were considered most valuable. Finally, informal mentoring was seen as a key component of onboarding as faculty sought out relationships that helped fill institutional gaps in professional development. The findings point to the need for a reimagined approach to onboarding and mentoring counseling faculty in ways that center faculty perspectives to better align with California’s mission to support the diverse needs of community college students.

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