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Empathy as a function of guided daydreams in counselor education

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Empathy as a function of guided daydreams in counselor education

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Content EMPATHY AS A FUNCTION OF GUIDED DAYDREAMS
IN COUNSELOR EDUCATION
by
Warren Wilson
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
(Education)
June 1975
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY PARK
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90007
This dissertation, written by
Warren Wi. lson
under the direction of h_i_§. ____ Dissertation Com-
mittee, and approved by all its members, has
been presented to and accepted by The Graduate
School, in partial fulfillment of requirements of
the degree of
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
Dean
' r , r
Date ... J __ __ __ -----~ -.,r .J.': ... ~ - ~----------
fhairman
-~~ -- ---- ----- --
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I want to express my apprecintion to my chairman ,
William V. Ofman , for his help and moral support. He has
consistently encouraged me in the work involved in this
study .
I am grateful to Paul Bloland and Steven Berger for
their forbearance and substantive help over time and dis
tance .
Walter Schneider and Beverly Russ gave me invaluable
assistance at the American Institute of Family Relations in
helping to schedule the research and acting as guides and
recorders during the daydreams.
Without the cooperation of Phil Green and Gene
Whitney at the American Institute of Family Relations the
research could not have been done .
My friends Dick Silk and Del Hovda not only gave
their time and effort as guides , but gave me unfailing
emotional support.
Beverly Rumbles , Marie Wosberg and Marian Blount
have been speedy , efficient and helpful in their typing
during various stages of the study in Los Angeles and Santa
Fe.
My wife Barbara has somehow managed to love me
through all this , helping me to believe in the task and in
myself.
ii
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments ..
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
List of
Chapter
I .
II .
III .
IV .
V.
Tables .....
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Introduction . . . . ............. .
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Empat h y ...
Th e Guided Daydr eam ....... .
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Sign i f i cance of the Study .
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Th e Problem ............... .
• • • • • •
. .
•• • • • • •
Review of the Literature ...... . ...... .. ..... .
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Daydream .
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Empathy ....
The Guided
Summary ..
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Method .....
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Assumptions and Limitations ..
••
. . . ,,.
• • •
. .
• •
Subjects ... . ............................. .
Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Trainers and Gui des ... . .......... . ....... .
Measures of Change ...... . .......... . ..... .
Hypo these s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
S umrnary ....... . .............. . ........... .
Findings ...
• • • • • • • • • • • • e • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Testing
Testing
Hypothesis
Hypothesis
Te s ting Hypothesis
I . . . . . . . . . . ..
I I .......... .
I I I . ........ .
Additional Findi ngs .
•••••• • • • • • •
Summary ........... .
• • ••• • • • • • • • •
. . . . . . . . . .
• • • • • • • • • •
• • • • • • • • • •
• • • • • • • • • •
• • • • • • • • • •
Summar y ., Di scuss i on and Recommendations ..... .
Summary . ............................. . ... .
Discuss i on ............................... .
Re c ommendations .......................... .
Appendi x A • ••
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Appendix B •••••
• • • • • •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
References ............... .
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Page
ii
iv
1
2
10
17
18
19
19
37
55
56
56
57
60
62
63
67
70
71
72
74
75
76
80
81
81
83
95
98
118
173
iii
Li st of Tables
Table Page
1 . Compari son of Mean Pre - test Scores on
Empath y Rating Scale Between Experts ,
Experimental Group and Control Group ........... 73
2 . Comparison of Mean Post - test Scores of
Empath y Rat i ng Scale Between Experts ,
Experimental Group and Control Group ........... 74
3 . Compar is on of Mean C h ange Scores (D) on
Empathy Rat i ng Scale Between Experimental
and Control Gr oups from Pr e - test to Post - test .. 74
4 . Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
Anxiety Between Experimental and Control
Groups from Pre - test to Post - test .............. 75
5 . Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
Regress i on Between Experimental and Control
Groups from Pre - test to Post - test .............. 76
6 . Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
MMPI- K Scale Between Experimental and
Control Group from Pre - test to Post - test ....... 77
7 . Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
MMPI - R Scale Between Experimental and
Control Groups from Pre - test to Post - test ...... 78
8 . Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
MMPI - E Scale Between Experimental and
s
Control Groups from Pre - test to Post - test ...... 78
9 . Compari son of Mean Change Scores (D) on
MMPI Scale 7 (Pt) Between Experimental and
Control Groups from Pre - test to Post- test ...... 79
10. Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
MMPI - A Scale Between Experimental and
Control Groups from Pre - test to Post - test ...... 80
i v
Chapter I
Introduction
Counselor education needs a training method through
which the experiential correlates of empathic interpersonal
functioning jn the therapeutic experience can be replicated
in the training experience . In order to be able to provide
a nurturing experience to needy people more effectively ,
with greater frequency, counselor trainees should them selves be provided an unmediated experience of the reality
of their own experience . Counselor education has generally
attempted to provide counselor trainees with the inter
personal skill of empathy by means of analogy , interaction
and feedback .
The existence of empathy as an ingredient of inter personal experience preceeded its objectification as an
essential ingredient in counseling and psychotherapy .
Counselor education has generally proceeded from the ob jective evidence of empathy as a necessary element of
personal relations , to an attempt to elicit empathic be havior from trainees .
This study is an attempt to introduce trainees to
the experiential dimensions of empathy in their own exis tence , and to subsequently assess the effect of this
existential approach upon a measure of empathic inter personal functioning , as well as upon empirically derived
measures of theoretically predicted dimensions of empathic
1
experience .
The method used in this study to provide the imme
diate existential experiences is the Guided Daydream (GD) .
Empathy
Status in Counseling
Robert Carkhuff ( 1969 , p. 173) wrote that , "Empathy
is the key ingredient of helping. Its explicit communica-
tion , particularly during early phases of helping , is
critical . Without an empathic understanding of the
helpee ' s world and his difficulties as he sees them there
is no basis for helping ."
In counseling and psychotherapy, empathy is a theo
retical variable which possesses predictive power for
therapeutic processes (Truax & Mitchell , 1971; Marsden ,
1971) and possesses the same power , although to a somewhat
lesser degree , for therapeutic outcomes (Bergen , 1963) .
As a theoretical variable of interpersonal processes the
relative presence or absence of empathy in counseling and
psychotherapy has been measured (Carkhuff , 1969 ; Truax &
Mitchell , 1971) . Although methods for measuring empathy
have produced contradictory results (Caracena & Vicory ,
1969) , " ... the majority of the theorists who have dealt
with the therapeutic relationship have emphasized the
importance of the therapist ' s understanding of the client ,
or his empathy ." (Truax & Mitchell , 1971)
2
Assuming the theoretical predictive importance of
empathy as a necessary , if not sufficient , condition for
the occurrence of nurturing relationships (Carkhuff &
Berenson , 1967) , this study focuses upon the subsequent
theoretical and experiential problem of increasing the pro bability of the occurrence of high , or at least minimally
facilitative , levels of empathic interpersonal functioning
on the part of the therapist or counselor . Rather than
approaching empathy as a theoretical predictive variable in
itself , this study will approach the hypothetical empathic
functioning of the counselor as a dependent variable , which
varies as a function of the counselor ' s own experience and
training .
Assumptions
The approach of this study is based upon certain
assumptions regarding empathy as a function of personal
experience and personality . The first assumption is that
empathy is a function of interpersonal experience . The
second assumption is that empathy is a nondiscursive form
of symbolic interpersonal communication . The third
assumption is that empathy is a vehicle for the communica tion of interpersonal feelings , experiences and meanings
which are basically symbolized in the parataxic mode and
in presentational form . The fourth assumption is that the
communication and experience of accurate empathy in
3
counseling and psychotherapy by the use of discursive
symbolism in the syntaxic mode , i.e. , in consensually
valid language , is a symbolic transformation .
Empathy as a Function of Interpersonal Experience
As an independent theoretical variable effecting
process and outcome in counsel "ng and psychotherapy , empa
thy has been approached primarily in terms of levels of
effective or ineffective communication of interpersonal
understanding. The bases of its importance as a critical
interpersonal variable have not been examined. This study
seeks to examine hypothetical experiential bases for their
possible relevance to the problem of increasing the pro bability of the occurrence of effective levels of communi
cation and understanding in counseling and psychotherapy.
Developmentally , empathy originates in the ability
to symbolize , more or less accurately , the meaning of
interpersonal contents and processes of an emotional
nature, which are not communicated discursively (Sullivan ,
1953). Sullivan conceived of empathy as an interpersonal
function primarily in the service of the perception of
subjective threats to the interpersonal well - being of the
organism , which resulted in anxiety . In this context
empathy is a nondiscursive and noncognitive communicative
mediator of emotional interpersonal experience . It is
assumed to be accurate .
4
Sullivan conjectured about , and described the
differences between fear and anxiety , in relatively gross
undifferentiated emotional terms . These undifferentiated
descriptions , as well as his view that anxiety was an
unmanageable experience , suggest that these interpersonal
experiences , mediated only empathically , were pre-symbolic.
Certainly ~uch experience and communication were pre-
logical and pre - verbal. Only if empathy were completely
unmediated , a highly unlikely prospect in human existence,
could it be seriously described as pre - symbolic or non
symbolic.
Sullivan conceived that empathy was a symbolic
function of interpersonal experience related to the per
ception of anxiety :
Perhaps the first time anything happens
it is nonsymbolic. But from the very
beginning , the cooperation of older
people is necessary for infantile
survival ; and from the very beginning
the potent influence of anxiety permits
the organization of experience , prevents
the organization of experience , or
gradually shoos the direction of exper ience into approved channels . Thus it
is quite obvious that a great deal of
what goes on by the time one is a year
old , even if it is inborn , is very
highly symbolic . Therefore , without
denying that there may be purely non symbolic performances in human beings ,
I would say that for the purposes of
psychiatric theory I am concerned
exclus i vely with covert and overt
symbolic activity , that is , with
activity influenced by the organiza tion into signs of previous exper-
ience in terms of satisfaction , or
in terms of avoiding or minimizing
5
anxiety .
187)
(Sullivan , 1953 , pp . 186 -
At its root , empathy is not the kind of symbolic
form which is governed by either the laws of language or
the laws of logic . Nonetheless , it is possible to conceive
of it as a form of presentational symbolic interpersonal
communication . In 1907 , Lipps (Allport, 1961) suggested
this possibility in his original conceptualization of
empathy as a mode of understanding another person on the
basis of kinesthetic mimicry. This approach assumed that
the nonverbal behavior of the other person was symbolically
meaningful in terms of the interaction , and could thus be
employed as a direct modality for understanding . However
different they may be in certain respects , both Lipps ' and
Sullivan ' s concepts of empathy seem to have two things in
common: they are both symbolic in a nonverbal or represen tational sense , and they are both modes for the communica tion and understanding of feelings. They are further , both
modes for the perception and understanding of congruities
or incongruities between covert and overt emotional
communication without reference to either inference or
intuition.
Perceptual and Representational Nature of Empathy
Sullivan emphasized the parataxic nature of empathy ,
while Lipps emphasized its presentational nature . The
parataxic mode refers to that developmental stage where the
6
youngster begins to differentiate his world and the people
and things in his world in terms of time and space. These
differentiations are made solely in reference to himself ,
and his needs for satisfaction and security in dealing with
anxiety . What this means is that while he has the neuro
physiological ability through the use of his eyes and ears
to distinguish himself in his world and to distinguish
himself from the things and people in his world and to
discern sequences of events , that all of these distinctions
are symbolized in terms of his own personal needs . Mother ,
for example , is not symbolized in terms of her intrinsic
physical and emotional integrity but rather is symbolized
by the youngster in terms of how she relates to his
expressed needs . Time is not symbolized as an ongoing
sequence independent of himself but rather as sets of
momentary memories or expectancies again symbolized exclu sively in relation to the question of his own needs . The
contents of empathic communications are highly subjective
and heavily value laden .
This particular mode of understanding the world and
the people in it can readily be seen as projection rather
than empathy . It is clear that such a mode of being would
hardly serve an adult well or accurately . However , as
Haan (1968) has pointed out , both projection and empathy
are functions of a more general personal construct which
she calls sensitivity . This projective mode of being need
7
not be viewed as a sign of either pathology or insensi
tivity . It appears as a function of the organism ' s lack of
interpersonal power . Because he cannot act upon or control
or understand his environment in any objective or impersonal
sense , he attempts to do so imaginatively and subjectively .
The data for these subjective , and either negatively
or positively evaluated , imaginings are presented to him
in terms of his perceptions of the behavior of significant
people in his environment . The youngster does not have the
tool of conceptualization which is necessary for inferential
or intuitive understanding of interpersonal behavior or
communication . He is exclusively reliant for his under standing of his environment upon his perception and upon
his emotional reaction to that perception . He symbolizes
his whole experience empathically . The accuracy of his
empathic understanding is his only source of comprehension
and power . Because it is so primitive , and because it is
so obviously limiting when it is the only available tool
for understanding , empathy is often subsequently discarded
as a modality for interpersonal understanding . For the
absence of consensual validation of one ' s understandings
and feelings by others , when one ' s sole reliance is upon
nondiscursive empathy can lead to loneliness and anxiety .
Accurate Empathy in Counseling as a Symbol i c Transformation
Subsequent to its earlier conceptualizations by
8
Sullivan and by Lipps empathy has been rather markedly
altered in its meaning so that it has come to have no
differential meaning from either inference or intuition as
a modality for interpersonal understanding . If empathy is
conceived of as the basis for an epistemology of inter
personal relationships , that would be an epistemology of
intimacy and subjectivity . It would be limited by being an
epistemology of representation and imagination rather than
an epistemology of discourse and fact .
Since successful processes and outcome in counseling
psychotherapy are to a large degree dependent upon discur
sive and factual congruence between the participants the
problem of facilitating accurate empathy in counselor
trainees was to find a method for transforming the affec tive and perceptual interpersonal information received
empathically into conceptual form which could be communica
ted discursively. Such a method would involve the trainee ' s
symbolic regression into his own experience at a perceptual
rather than a conceptual level . Such a method would also
involve confronting whatever anxiety might be elicited in
the relinquishing of conceptual and discursive control over
one ' s own inner symbolic processes or contents . The
~ymbolic transformation is the ability to conceptualize
and to communicate in discursive symbols the accurate mean ing of experience which is actually perceptual and
representational in nature .
9
Originally empathy is a function of existential
interpersonal powerlessness. The symbolic transformation
of the original perceptual openness and vulnerability to
subtle affective interpersonal communication of a pre verbal and pre-logical nature into conceptual forms and
discursive communication based upon openness and vulnera
bility is what makes empathy such a particularly potent
variable in personal relationships.
The Guided Daydream
The Representation of Personal Experience
The image formation , which is characteristic of the
Guided Daydream (GD) , corresponds to the specificity ,
concreteness and emotional meaningfulness of empathy. The
images which are presented or formed in the course of the
GD , although they may be universal in content, tend to
possess very specific experiential meanings to the individ
ual receiving or forming the images. In terms of the
specificity of their meaning to the individual the images
are concretizations of experience. According to Horowitz
(1970) and Arieti (1955) images are in this sense regres sive . In psychopathology such regression is conceived as
a more or less compulsive activity engaged in for the
purposes of organismic survival . In the case of the GD
such regression is conceived of as voluntary.
Ordinarily , in the GD process ,
10
... the patient reclines or sits com fortably , and relaxes his body . Deep
breathing is used to deepen the re laxation and they also achieve an
altered state of consciousness that
increases the vividness and reduces
the control over image formation .
Once the patient is suitably relaxed,
the therapist suggests rather open ended imaginary situations or symbolic
themes . The patient fills in the de tails , continues the daydream , and
reports his images as he goes along .
(Horowitz , 1970 , p . 303)
In this study , because the Guided Daydreams were
administered to the subjects in a group , the manifest
content of the Guided Daydreams consis t ed entirely of the
narration of images and themes presented by the guide.
The study attempts to relate the GD to empathy both
in terms of process and content . Truax & Mitchell (1971)
wrote that," ... it appears intuitively correct that high
levels of empathy should be related to the therapist ' s
general anxiety level and to his tolerance for situation -
specific anxiety ." (p . 331) The shift , in empathy and
the GD , to image formation as a mode of understanding could
result in increased anxiety for the therapist , especially
if the content to be understood was anxious in nature .
Such an increase in anxiety would not be viewed as a sign
of pathology , but as a response to being obliged to function
without some usual cognitive tools for understanding , i . e .,
inference and intuition . Such an anxiety response would
probably not persist through time , but would be evident at
the outset of empathy training utilizing the GD .
11
These same authors also noted," ... as the term
empathy implies , many of the cues used for deciding what
is true , or is false , and what is meaningful in things we
hear from another person come from the root ground of our
own experiences and existence ." (p. 318) Horowitz (1969)
reported that therapists who rated high in accurate empathy
were those who were able to tolerate emotionally the mani festation of regression in their clients (Truax & Mitchell ,
19 71) .
In view of these possible connections between
empathy and anxiety and regression it was decided, for the
purposes of this study , to present the contents of the
Guided Daydreams as scenes or themes which were either
regressive or anxious. Four themes of each kind would be
presented to the group of subjects alternately , one of
each kind per week over a four week period . If the
theoretically assumed connections between empathy and the
GD along the dimensions of regression and anxiety were
correct , outcome measures for the study should indicate
that the experimental subjects experienced increased levels
of anxiety , significant regression , as well as being able
to demonstrate an increased ability to discriminate between
therapist responses to client statements along a dimension
of facilitative and nonfacilitative responses .
12
The Guided Daydream : A Functional Explanation
The origin and function of empathy as well as the
description of the GD have been presented primarily in
perceptual terms . Even if it were possible to state
unequivocally that these two phenomena were analogous to
each other , any attempt to explain one phenomena in terms
of the other or vice versa would be tautological and there
fore unsatisfactory. The literature of both empathy and
the Guided Daydream abound in description. In neither body
of literature is there much material in the way of defini
tion or explanation. Experientially both empathy and the
GD are processes of allowing certain self-revelations to
occur . In view of t his idiosyncratic and specific nature
of the content of both empathic communication and GD se
quences of images or themes, any effort to explain either
of these phenomena should focus on process variables.
The GD , as utilized in this study, is a function of
the process of relaxation and the process of image forma
tion.
Horowitz (1970) wrote that ,
. . . progressive muscle relaxation pro
duces a sense of serenity and calm in
most persons , and a deeply altered
state of consciousness in a few . The
method consists of focusing attention
on various muscle groups and trying to
' let go ' of those that are tense . In
one technique , the specific muscle
group under attention is lightly
tensed during the inspiratory phase of
respiration , which involves muscle
action , and then released during
13
expiration , which can take place
passively due to the elastic con
tractions of the lungs . (p . 297)
This state of relaxation facilitates process of
image formation . During the process of relaxation the
perceptual field of the subject is narrowed down so as to
focus as exclusively as possible upon the verbal stimuli
presented to him by the guide.
The emotional reactions of subjects to the content
of Guided Daydreams , suggests that the images formed on the
basis of the suggested auditory stimulus are what Horowitz
(1970) characterized and categorized as pseudohallucina
tions .
Frequently , there is a clinical
'in between ' type of phenomenon
in which images are very vivid
yet lack the sense of reality
found in hallucinations . Some
patients may oscillate between
hallucinations and pseudo
hallucinations or between pseudo
hallucinations and thought images .
While not subjectively localized
in the external environment or,
if projected externally , not
possessing a sense of reality ,
pseudohallucinations have a more
intense and compelling quality
than thought images. Perhaps
a useful criterion is the reac tion of the subject ; even though
the person does not believe what
he images is real , and even though
the images differ in quality from
an actual perception , he none the
less reacts to them emotionally as
if they were real . (p. 9)
From a descriptive standpoint the likenesses of the
GD experiences and pseudohallucinations seems reasonable
14
enough . However , from the psychodynamic standpoint there
are difficulties centering primarily around the questions
of volition and psychopathology .
Horowitz characterized pseudohallucinations as being
primarily nonvolitional . Subject participation in the on going images , symbols and themes of Guided Daydreams have
been characterized as primarily volitional . Sometimes the
GD technique is used in order to provide the subject with
more control over pseudohallucinatory images and themes
than he would ordinarily have , without vitiating the emo tional meaning of the material itself . It may be that ,
while the Guided Daydream is in effect a pseudohallucinatory
experience , it results from the voluntary suspension of
regulatory controls over image formation made possible by
the fact that there is a surrogate source of regulation and
control as a part of the process , namely the guide . Even
in the event that there would be different guides at
different times as in this study , the fact remains that the
surrogate regulator and controller is always presents .
However , it should be noted that this phenomenon and its
effect might well be somewhat diminished in group visual izations as administered in this study , as opposed to the
more usual practice of individual Guided Daydreams .
Even were the GD to be considered as hallucinatory
in nature , t here would remain considerable doubt as to
whether it could be characterized as psychopathological .
15
Sarbin (1967) pointed out that hallucinating was not an
adequate criterion for diagnostic purposes .
Since spoken or written reports may
obscure truth through ellipses and
metaphor , the diagnoser has no choice
but to use as his raw data observations
other than the spoken or written reports
of imaginings. These other observations
focus on the psychological status con ferred on the suspected hallucinary
concurrent with his other statuses ,
such as mental hospital patient , poet ,
novelist, etc . (p . 372)
Vivid and unqualified imaginings could well be viewed as
criteria for numerous other facets of human experience than
disorders of thinking supposedly characteristic o f psycho
pathology.
The GD process appeared to be fundamentally regres-
sive . It should be noted that the material presented by
the guide , or reported by the dreamer, if understood in
terms of the organization of objective mundane reality, is
often manifestly absurd . However , if they are understood
in terms of the more primitive primary processes of
condensation , displacement , or symbolization, their mean ings can be more readily unraveled . The GD would appear
to be a symbolic regression. This imaginative and sym bolized by regression is what Haan (1963) called regression
in the service of the ego :
The subject utilizes past feelings
and ideas that are not directly
ordered or required by the prac
tical , immediate elements of the
situation in an imaginative way
16
in order to enrich his solution of
problems , his handling of situations ,
and his enjoyment of life . His
regression is situationally adaptive
and responsive . ( p . 5 )
Significance of the Study
Truax & Mitchell (1971) have written :
From existing data it would appear that
only one out of three people entering
professional training have the requi site interpersonal skills to prove
helpful to patients . Further , there
is no evidence that the usual tradi
tional graduate training program has
any positive value in producing thera
pists who are more helpful than non professionals. In short , current
procedures for selection and training
are indefensible . (p . 337)
This study is an attempt to facilitate higher levels
of counselor functioning on a variable (empathy) which is
known to be probably the most crucial element in success
ful processes and outcomes in therapy . The study utilizes
a technique (Guided Daydream) which facilitates personal
characteristics in counselor trainees which are predicted
by the study to relate to the empathic mode of communica tion , and which are inferentially assumed to relate to high
levels of empathic functioning by the therapist .
If the assumptions and the techniques utilized in
this study are shown to have predictive value , counselor
education would then have in its training repertoire a
method by which the empathic functioning of trainees could
be more reliably and confidently predicted to increase
17
through training.
The Problem
This study asks whether the administration of eight
Guided Daydream sessions over a period of four weeks as a
part of a one-year training program for marriage and family
counselors would significantly improve the empathic func
tioning of the subjects to whom the Guided Daydreams were
administered. The study also asks whether or not, as a
result of the administration of the same set of Guided
Daydreams, certain personality characteristics, namely
anxiety and regression, which are hypothetically related to
empathy, would show significant changes.
18
Chapter II
Review of the Literature
Empathy
Background
Allport (1961) discussed the origin of empathy in
his chapter on the nature of understanding . The reason for
such inclusion (Allport , 1961, pp . 533-537) was his view
that inference was not a sufficient basis for understanding
other human beings. Allport noted that the concept was
introduced by Lipps (1907), and that Titchener suggested
the use of the term "empathy" as the translation for Lipps '
word , "einfuhling," which, literally translated, means,
"feeling one ' s self into." As Lipps originally described
empathy, it seemed to have been a form of kinesthetic
inference ; but the empathic act seemed to be distinguished
from inference in two ways: that it presupposed the con
sciousness of the object of the empathic act, and that the
object of the empathic act presented itself to the observer
independently of any prior inferential activity on the
observer ' s part. The importance of the concept of empathy
in this context was that it introduced the possibility of
unmediated understanding of the other person. Allport
went on to note that," ... with the passing years , the
original meaning of empathy, as objective motor mimicry,
became hopelessly confused and lost to view. The term has
19
been broadened out to mean any process of successful
understanding . " (p . 5 36)
In terms of theories of personality, empathy thus
ceased to have theoretical value inasmuch as it did not
differentiate from any other method of understanding
personality . However , it is important to keep in mind
that empathy was introduced as a kinesthetic variable in
understanding personality by being able to experience
kinesthetically , what was going on with the other person .
Thus , while it may have lost its value for personality
theory , it appeared to be of value in the understanding of
interpersonal processes . It was a mode of understanding
which relied on cues other than those supplied through
either intuition or inference. In other words , it was a
mode of understanding which relied upon the activity and
the existence of the other person .
Empathic interpersonal knowledge is knowledge gained
entirely on the basis of what the other person is doing or
feeling or saying . In empathic understanding , activity
was ascribed to the other person in question ; while feeling
reaction was the domain of the observer . Empathy did not
exist in the abstract , but only as a function of personal
interaction .
Empathy was first introduced as a method by which
the particularities of any given person might be more
meaningfully understood. Freud (1960) viewed empathy as
20
the method or mechanism by which one was able to under stand aspects of another person with which one was not
identified . Empathy was the , " ... mechanism by means of
which we are enabled to take up any attitude at all toward
another mental life ." (p . 53)
Sullivan (1953) postulated empathy as an indefinite
interpersonal process by which anxiety is induced in the
infant by its mother . According to Witenburg , et al .,
(1959) , Sullivan meant that the infant can have an imme diate experience of the emotional state of its mother by
means of an emotional contagion which cannot be specified
in terms of mediation by any sense receptors or afferent
pathways .
It was through the works of Sullivan that empathy
was both altered from its original meaning , and brought
into the literature of psychotherapy . Its meaning was
changed from that of a methodological principle of under standing , to an actual , if unspecifiable , modality of
interpersonal communication . Sullivan discussed the etio
logy of anxiety exclusively in terms of its induction in
the infant by its mother .
This understanding of empathy as a communicative
mode was considerably expanded upon by other investigators .
The evolving meaning of the term moved closer to the
method of interpersonal understanding which Allport (1961)
had described earlier as intuition . In Allport ' s terms ,
21
both empathy and intuition are ideographic , rather than
nomothetic methods . If a satisfactory definition of empa
thy as a method of interpersonal understanding distinct
from intuition or inference can be arrived at then it
becomes , at least theoretically , possible to differentiate
those elements of personality and interpersonal experience
which can be known or communicated by each method . It
also becomes possible to ask whether or not empathy is a
useful methodological tool or theoretical construct in
terms of understanding the communications between people.
Inference depends upon general cognitive knowledge about
other people . Intuition depends upon similar , or analo gous , experience for understanding. The usefulness of
empathy , both methodologically and theoretically , would
appear to derive from its independence from either general
cognitive knowledge or similarities of experience as a
basis for understanding another person . Unlike either
inference or intuition , empathy can be the basis for the
interpersonal relationship itself.
In terms of empathy , it is not possible to speak of
personality in any general terms , but only of the particu larity of the individual in question . Inferential under standing may well last over time , but empathic understand ing is moment - specific . It cannot be extended either into
the past or into the future , except by inference . Thus ,
both the virtue and the limitation of empathy is its
22
spatiotemporal specificity . It is the mode of understand ing a person in relation with another . It is much like
Buber ' s passage about the being of the tree . He first
presents the consideration of the tree by inference and
intuition and then presents an empathic approach .
I consider a tree . I can look on it
as a picture . I can perceive it as
movement . I can classify it in a
species and study it as a type in
its structure and mode of life . In
all this , the tree remains my object ,
occup · es space and time , and has its
nature and constitution . It can ,
however , also come about , if I have
both will and grace , that in consider ing the tree I become bound up in
relation to it. The tree is now no
longer It . I have been seized by the
power of exclusiveness . (Buber , 1958 ,
p . 7)
This is the " I/Thou " relationship . Such a relationship is
implied in Allport ' s discussion of empathy .
Empathy does not have distinct theoretical meaning
as a method of understanding another person apart from its
context . As a crucial variable for the explanation of
therapeutic processes and outcomes , it derives its theo retical meaning from the importance of the therapeutic
relationship . It is not , strictly speaking , a methodology ,
but rather an intervening theoretical variable which
determines , in part , the nature and direction of the
relationship .
23
Empathy : A Therapeutic Variable
Greenson (1959) discussed and defined empathy in
terms of the question of interpretation in psychoanalysis .
The most important single method for
determining the patient ' s capacity to
deal with the given situation is de rived from the analyst ' s capacity as
a human being to share in the feelings
of another person , to experience , in
effect , his feelings . One shares of
this experience in quality but not in
degree , in kind but not in quantity.
It is a procedure which one permits
oneself to engage in temporarily , and
for the purpose of understanding. It
is primarily used for understanding
subtle emotions , which are not fully
conscious. Empathy cannot be taught or
learned . It is a capacity which every one has had , but has often lost , as the
result of anxieties , insecurities and
inhibitions . (p . 1412)
In this context , it is still seen as a methodology for
understanding some of the things going on with another
person in a general sense. However, it is also connected
with the personality of the therapist himself. Greenson
described empathy as a technique , but in his description
there was the implication that difficulties in living as
well as defensiveness on the part of the therapist lowered
his capacity for empathy .
Spiegel (1959) discussed empathy in the context of
therapeutic communication . She saw empathy as a direct
unmediated mode , by which the feeling states are communica
ted , and by which the universal symbols are related to the
specific situation of the client .
24
Empathic communication is not verbal ,
does not depend on statements of the
feeling state , but may accompany
language ; for instance , through the
ring of the voice . The apprehension
of feeling states which provide one
kind of meaning , is through the imme
diacy of the feeling itself . The
receiver of the message experiences
the feeling state itself , whether
consciously or unconsciously , as a
similar reverberation or feeling in
his own psyche . This message we may
relate to in quite a number of ways ,
from identification to anxiety , to
repression; but the first experience
of the receiver in empathic communica
tion , is the felt meaning which may be
outside of cognition. (p. 915)
She implied that for a person to rely entirely upon empathy
for interpersonal communication was essentially autistic.
Like Sullivan , Spiegel also saw empathy emerging as a
communicative modality in early infancy.
Eoth Spiegel and Fromm-Reichmann (1951) regarded
schizophrenics as particularly adept at empathic communica
tion . That is to say , that these people were seen as
being very sensitive to the unexpressed emotional states
of their therapists . The general therapeutic experience
was that one could not really fool the schizophrenic
patient about how one was really feeling . Spiegel pointed
out that :
Though his competence as sender and
receiver of consensual communication ,
particularly verbal , was limited ; the
schizophrenic patient , nonetheless is
often extremely sensitive to affects ,
emotions , and personality qualities
in those about him, as evidenced by
later accurate reference to subtle
25
events or experiences. (p. 937)
Fromm- Reichmann followed Sullivan ' s thinking in
regard to empathy and wrote that , "It refers to the emo tional contagion or communion which exists between people
outside the communications through sensory channels or
through spoken words ." (p . 30) She regarded empathy as
an indispensable part of the successful therapeutic rela tionship . Like Sullivan , both Spiegel and Fromm- Reichmann
relate empathy to the problem of anxiety of the therapist .
She pointed out that it was quite possible that the empa thic schizophrenic patient would be able to discern anxiety
in the therapist , even before the therapist himself did so .
Were the therapist then to deny the presence of anxiety ,
the patient would be caught in an intolerable double - bind
situation which would very likely mean that therapy could
not be successfully continued unless the double - bind com munication were brought out into the open and cleared up .
Fromm- Reichmann did not use the expression "double-bind,"
but her vivid descriptions of patients ' perceptivenesss
and confusion and the anxiety in situations where empathic
communication is denied and feelings are not expressed ,
are directly analogous to Weakland ' s (1960) description of
the experience of the double - bind .
What Weakland suggested , and Jackson (1960) stated
more explicitly was that schizophrenia was an attempt to
adapt to intolerable levels of anxiety , induced by
incongruities in communication in families which were
empathically understood by the person . Subsequent diffi
culties arose , not from this empathic understanding itself ,
but from the fact that , because empathy is a preconceptual
mode of understanding , it is not subject to interpersonal
validation . If the receiver of a communication is the only
person who is aware of the incongruences in the message,
and if this awareness is at a purely feeling level , then
that person has no interpersonal recourse by which to
straighten the situation out . As Sullivan (1953) pointed
out, no amount of manifest tenderness on the part of the
mother can mitigate the effects of the covert anxiety
message . Thus , the empathic level of communication was
seen as more powerful than the manifest content of communi
cation , especially if the two were not congruent . This
power is precisely due to the fact that the empathic
message is not subject to consensual interpersonal valida
tion .
These writers assumed that empathy was a communica tive element in interpersonal situations by which the real
feelings of a person became manifested to another . This
was assumed to be true even when the feelings contradicted
any overt communication taking place . It was also assumed
that , if the empathic communication and the overt communi cation were contradictory , that the empathic , or feeling ,
communication was the more accurate . The implication was -
27
that distance and confusion in personal relations were
caused by contradictions between the therapist ' s overt
behavior and his more covert empathic communications . This
incongruence in the therapist ' s mode of relating was viewed
as a security operation of the therapist . More recently ,
Truax & Mitchell (1971) suggested that accurate empathy ,
as an interpersonal skill , was connected with the thera
pist ' s general anxiety level and his ability to tolerate
anxiety .
Luborsky & Spence (1971) pointed out that tolerance
for regression in the service of the ego is also a functi on
of empathy. They wrote , "Bachrach achieved a surprisingly
high correlation between adaptive regression and empathy ,
as scored on his own conjunctive empathy scale ; a finding
that suggests that the therapists who are capable of
adaptive regression are also the ones who are capable of
empathy . " (p . 421) The same writer has pointed out that
in a study on the psychological correlates of empathy it
was found that, "Sensitivity to latent content was increas ed by listening away , not paying full attention , to the
stimulus material ." (p. 421) This finding seemed to
suggest that empathy was a process variable in personal
relations , which influenced the therapist ' s understanding
of the manifest content of communications .
Client Centered Therapy (Rogers , 1951) vie wed
empathy as an aspect of the therapist ' s way of relating
28
with his client , which would aid the client in further self
expression . In Roger ' s view , empathy was a function of the
therapist by which he was able to experience what the
client was experiencing , with the client . He relates the
therapist ' s empathic functioning very closely with his tone
of voice in his responses to the client, as well as his
general attitude toward the client . Empathy is defined as
the counselor ' s ability,
... to assume , insofar as he is able,
the internal frame of reference of
the client , to perceive the world
as the client sees it, to perceive
the client himself as he is seen by
himself , to lay aside all perceptions
from the external frame of reference
while doing so , and to communicate
something of this empathic under -
st anding to the c 1 i en t . ( Rogers ,
1951 , p . 29)
It was emphasized by Rogers that this understanding was of
a personal and emotional nature , rather than an intellec
tual or analytical type of understanding .
Three distinct permutations of the meaning of
empathy have been reviewed. Basically , these are the
original translation by Titchener of Lipps ' word ,
einfuhling , with its meaning of kinesthetic mimicry ;
Sullivan ' s definition of empathy as the emotional contagion
existing between mother and child , by which anxiety is
induced in the child apart from any kind of manifest
communication on the part of the mother · Rogers ' under standing of empathy as a way in which the therapist feels
29
into the experience of the client in a way that he can
express to the client in a meaningful fashion the content
and feeling involved in the client ' s experience .
Notwithstanding the differences noted in defining
the meaning and function of empathy
1
there are important
elements which remained constant . The first of these was
that empathy occurs only in the context of a personal rela
tionship . The second constant was that empathy functioned
in the personal relationship for the communication of feel ings rather than thoughts . The third constant element was
that the personalities of the partici~ants in the relation
ship were important .
Empathy : Research
In 1951 Rogers explicitly introduced the idea that
the therapist ' s accurate empathic understanding of the
client was one of a number of necessary and sufficient
conditions for positive outcome in psychotherapy and
counseling . That contribution , coupled with Eyesenk ' s
(1952 ; 1967) questioning of the efficacy of psychotherapy ,
provoked a great deal of research into the broad question
of whether or not psychotherapy was effective . Approaches
to this question began to revolve around the empirical
question of the personality and functioning of therapists ,
rather than around rationalistic controversies as to which
theory of personality or psychotherapy was better than
30
another . One of the empirical questions that was confron ted was that of the effect upon therapeutic outcome and
process of different degrees of empathy in different
therapists ' behavior with their clients .
Bergin (1967) was the first investigator to directly
confront the question raised by Eyesenk in 1952 . Bergin
examined directly the "general proposition that psycho therapy has no unique effect upon personality change ." In
his review of psychotherapy research , he found that ,
Preliminary data show no significant
differences between experimental and
controlled subjects· however , when
experimental subjects are divided
according to qualities of the thera pist it was found that patients of
the therapist who provided high
therapeutic conditions (high empathy ,
positive regard , and congruence)
improved significantly , whereas
patients of therapists who provided
low therapeutic conditions (low
empathy , positive regard , and
congruence) became significantly
worse . The effectiveness of the
one group of therapists is can celled out by the negative effects
of the other group when the two are
combined into a single experimental
group and compared with controls .
(p . 50)
He had found that while on the average there is no signi ficant difference between control groups and experimental
groups in psychotherapy research , that there is greater
variability in the experimental group . This variability
was related to the either high or low levels of therapeutic
conditions offered by the therapist in the therapeutic
31
I
1 1
relationship and one of these variables or conditions was
empathy . Bergin ' s review demonstrated that the relation
ship between therapist and client did indeed have an effect
upon the client which had not shown up in studies of mean
differences between groups , because it seemed to have been
assumed that all the therapists involved in the previous
studies were pretty much equal in their effectiveness.
Bergin had demonstrated that therapists ' effectiveness
varied along dimensions of experience and personal func
tioning rather than along dimensions of technical or
theoretical differences. He demonstrated that what had
been called psychotherapy , in a very global and general
sense , was not necessarily therapeutic. But, he had laid
to rest the whole question of whether psychotherapy could
be effective in facilitating personality change . Research
moved on to the investigation of the ingredients of
effective psychotherapy .
Bergin ' s review confirmed that psychotherapy , both
effective and ineffective , can be understood in terms of
interpersonal processes , such as empathy . Research has
indicated that positive change in counseling is dependent
upon the ability of the counselor to communicate to his
client moderate to high levels of personal genuineness ,
accurate empathy , and respect for the client as well as
the ability of the client to perceive the counselor ' s
presentation of himself in a manner which is essentially
32
congruent with that presentation (Truax & Mitchell , 1971) .
Truax & Carkhuff (1967) defined high and low
empathy :
At a high level of accurate empathy ,
the message ' I am with you ' is un
mistakably clear--the therapist ' s
remarks fit perfectly with the client ' s
mood and content . His responses not
only indicate his sensitive understanding
of the obvious feelings , but also serve
to clarify and expand the client ' s aware ness of his own feelings or experiences .
Such empathy is communicated by both the
language used and all the voice qualities ,
which unerringly reflect the therapist ' s
seriousness and depth of feeling . The
therapist ' s intense concentration upon
the client keeps him continuously aware
of the client ' s shifting emotional con
tent so that he can shift his own res ponses to correct for language or con tent errors when he temporarily loses
touch and is not with the client .
At low levels of accurate empathy , the
therapist may go off on a tangent of his
own or may misinterpret what the patient
is feeling . At a very low level he may
be so preoccupied and interested in his
own intellectual interpretations that he
is scarcely aware of the client ' s being.
The therapist at this low level of
accurate empathy may even be uninterested
in the client , or may be concentrating
on the intellectual content of what the
client says rather than what he ' is ' at
the moment , and so may ignore or mis understand the client ' s current feelings
and experiences . At his low level of
empathy the therapist is doing something
other than ' listening', ' understanding ',
or ' being sensitive '; he may be evaluating
the client , giving advice , sermonizing or
simply reflecting upon his own feelings
or experiences . Indeed , he may be
accurately describing psychodynamics to
the patient--but in the wrong language ,
or at the wrong time , when these dynamics
are far removed from the client ' s current
33
feelings , so that the interaction
takes on the flavor of ' teacher pupil.' (pp . 46 - 47)
This is an empirical definition of empathy . It has been
useful in assessing the effectiveness of therapists and
counselors . It has been found that the offering of high
levels of therapists ' empathy , as well as other core con ditions , appreciably increases the probability of positive
outcomes in counseling and psychotherapy . It has been
possible , with considerable reliability , to differentiate
between good and bad therapy by the use of such empirical
definitions to rate therapists. The importance of such a
description or definition of differential levels of personal
functioning in relationship by therapists , in increasing
the probability of positive outcomes as well as increasing
the reliability of differentiating good therapists from bad
therapists , cannot be over-emphasized .
Training programs , however , have not appreciably
increased the probability of producing good therapists .
The empirical definitions describe the manifest differences
between good and bad therapists , but they do not relate to
personality differences between therapists . Training pro grams have generally ignored personality as a variable in
the selection and training sequence . Part of the diffi culty has been that it has not been possible to consis tently relate personality characteristics to the dimensions
of effective therapist behavior (Matarazzo , 1971) .
34
Haan (1963) proposed an heuristic model of ego
functioning which included pairs of ego mechanisms which
were described as either defensive or coping in nature .
These pairs of mechanisms were related to ten ego pro
cesses . Empathy was the ego coping mechanism related to
the ego process sensitivity , while projection was the ego
defense mechanism related to the same ego process .
The model is so structured that a
coping mechanism like empathy , a
defense mechanism , like projection ,
and an ego failure , like delusional
ideation , comprise a trio with a
quintessential meaning of inter personal sensitivity , i.e. , behavior
that is attuned to formulating and
understanding another ' s unexpressed
or partially expressed thoughts and
feelings . The members are to be
distinguished from each other in
that empathy involves choice , flex
ibility and purpose ; takes account
of reality ; involves differentiated
thinking ; and allows tempered impulse
expression. Projection is rigid ,
distorting and compelled ; involves
less differentiated thinking; em bodies an expectancy that anxiety
can be magically relieved ; and
allows sub rosa impulse expression .
( Ha an , 19 6 9 , p . 15 )
In earlier papers (1963 , 1965) Haan pointed out that
empathy as a coping mechanism was purposive and that as a
process of sensitivity in relationships it took into
account the feelings of the other person .
While the investigations based upon this model of
personality were not directly related to the practice of
psychotherapy , this formulation seemed to have opened up
35
the possibility of the empirical investigation of the per sonality of the psychotherapist as related to levels of
empathic functioning . For example , Haan (1965) used the
California Psychological Inventory and the Minnesota Multi phasic Personality Inventory in a correlational study in volving the ego mechanisms and processes . She found a
rather low reliability coefficient on the scale for empathy
and suggested that these results pointed to " ... difficul ties either with the ego ratings or with this particular
inventory item pool as it bears upon areas of ego adequacy
involving appropriate suspension of control . " (p. 375)
Empathy : Summary
Although it was clear that the theoretical models
upon which Truax & Carkhuff (1967) based their definitions
of empathy and upon which Haan (1965) and her associates
based their descriptions of empathy were quite remarkably
different , it was also clear that their empirical des criptions of empathy were not so very different . Haan
related the concept of appropriate suspension of control
to the ego coping mechanisms: of empathy , regression in
the service of the ego and tolerance for ambiguity . At
an experient i al level , it would not seem illogical to
suppose that the concept of appropriate suspension of
control could be empirically and theoretically related to
Truax & Mitchell ' s (1971) intuition that high levels of
36
empathic functioning are related to the therapist ' s ability
to tolerate anxiety.
Haan ' s conceptualizations of the distinctions
between coping and defense implied that coping was con
scious. Empathy was not defined as a modality of self
understanding. However, both Haan's (1965) concepts and
Truax & Mitchell's (1971) intuition relate interpersonal
functioning to the person of the therapist along dimensions
other than the therapeutic relationship as such. In other
words, the literature suggested that empathy was a function
of personal self understanding. The literature of empathy
also suggested that this self understanding would be
distinct from generalized knowledge of the self based upon
inferential operations. Rather, this self understanding
would be what Sartre called" ... an immediate, non-cognitive
relation of the self to itself." (Chein, 1972, p. 95)
The Guided Daydream
The literature on the Guided Daydream (GD) des
cribes it primarily as a technique of psychotherapy. In
the bulk of the literature, the GD is described in terms of
its uses in psychotherapy, and in terms of the meanings of
the images or scenes involved from the point of view of
the theoretical position of the writer. There is no pre
sentation in the literature of any general theory of the
nature of the GD experience, or its predicted effects.
The GD has been used as a technique in psychotherapies
37
ranging in orientation and method from existentialism to
behavior modification . The GD has been given numerous
different titles (e . g., symbolic visualization , guided
affective imagery) , and has appeared in a number of forms
and contexts (e . g., classroom education , individual psy
chotherapy , group encounter , and marathon groups) . In the
following review of the literature , the GD will be pre
sented as a unified phenomenon in terms of its background ,
its various forms and contexts , and the processes and
contents of the experience itself .
Background
The term "Guided Daydream" was introduced to the
literature of psychotherapy by Desoille in 1945 (Desoille ,
1966) . Subsequent to Desoille ' s introduction of the
technique it has been variously described and named by a
number of other psychotherapists , (Assagioli , 1965 ; Gerard ,
1961 ; Leuner , 1969 ; Schutz, 1965; and VanDenBerg , 1962).
Leuner (1969) called it Guided Affective Imagery , and
Gerard (1961) called it Symbolic Visualization. Mintz
(1971) has utilized a technique she calls induced fantasy
for use in marathon groups , and she noted , " . .. since I
' invented ' this approach , I have found that it has also
been invented by several other psychotherapists (Hammer ,
196 7; Finney , 196 8) ." (p . 77) The technique seems to
have been introduced into the United States during the
38
1960 ' s by Gerard (1961) in the context of Psychosynthesis
and subsequently by Schutz (1965) in the context of Ges
talt Therapy. Gerard introduced the technique as a method
for individual psychotherapy. Schutz presented the tech
nique primarily as an aspect of group processes . Gerard ' s
descriptions of the technique follow primarily those of
the European tradition especially that of Assagioli .
Schutz ' s descriptions and uses of the technique follow
primarily from the Gestalt approach introduced by Perls ,
Hefferline , & Goodman (1951) , and Perls (1969). Brown
(1971) reported the use of guided imagery in the classroom
used for the purposes of evoking creativity as follows:
Close your eyes and relax . Imagine
a countryside in a foothills setting .
Large oak trees soar out of the earth
as large , immobile sculptures . The
sun is about to set , and long shadows
are boldly clothing many of the ra
vines . The shadows of trees seem to
be spirit partners of their parent
forms . Fog patterns are rising up
wraithlike from lowlands to shroud
the grasses and trees in moving shapes
fantastically human in form . You are
walking up a ravine in the last light
of day amid the swirling fog . Soon
you find a cave . When you enter it ,
experience whatever occurs. Let your
self continue until the fantasy stops .
When it does , write down or draw parts
of it. (p . 90)
From Brown ' s perspective , this was an affective technique
of education in the context of Confluent Education .
Mintz (1971) viewed the technique of induced
fantasy in terms of the psychoanalytic tradition ,
39
suggesting that it was an experiential paradigm of con
cepts presented by Freud and Alexander and French .
Although the background of the GD is heterogeneous ,
and people of widely divergent orientations and practices
utilize the technique , a phenomenology of the technique
should reveal more homogeneity than its history does .
Context and Form
The context or setting of the GD is usually dyadic,
with a guide and a dreamer . Sometimes the context of the
GD is a group where the guide presents the contents of the
daydream to the group as a whole . Even in groups , however ,
the basic context is usually dyadic within the group
situation.
In the GD , the guide may be a psychotherapist or a
teacher or a group leader or facilitator. Hammer (1967)
and Schutz (1965) both noted that image formation is
facilitated if the dreamer is relaxed . In order to induce
hypnagogic reverie , Kubie (1943) utilized Jacobson ' s
(1942) techniques of progressive muscular relaxation . In
utilizing systematic desensitization in psychotherapy ,
Wolpe (1958) utilized the same relaxation technique to
induce a state of calmness in opposition to anxiety .
Much of the GD literature describes the role of the
guide . Desoille (1965) conceived that the primary task for
the guide was to help the dreamer to refrain from taking a
40
judgmental or critical attitude toward the content or
process of the daydream , as well as helping the dreamer
to remember as much as possible of the daydream . Desoille
also emphasized that in a daydream or fantasy of this
nature , that anything was possible .
Hammer (1967) wrote that the function of the guide
was to help direct the processes of the dreamer ' s imagin ings as reported to him , and not to present the dreamer
with an entire fantasy scenario .
Schutz (1965) suggested that the guide ' s role was
primarily that of facilitator . He viewed the guide as
acting as a supporter for the dreamer so that the dreamer
could reach a stage of understanding of the fantasy as an
expression of some aspect of himself . The guide attended
to and used all parts of the reported fantasy in order to
assist the dreamer to :
... enhance personal functioning ...
aimed ... at increasing awareness of
the power and capacity within each
person , unblocking the obstacles
to full expression , and practicing
and training to develop these
abilities to integrate them into
total human functioning . (p . 129)
Assagioli (1965) emphasized that this technique was
at least implicitly based upon the guide ' s trusting the
dreamer .
As a whole , the literature seems to indicate that
the context for the GD is one of relaxation on the part of
41
the dreamer , and trust on the part of the guide . The con
text for the occurrence and use of the GD has been pri marily that of psychotherapy . The use of the GD in
educational settings has not been widely reported .
Brown (1971) argued for the use of affective techniques
in education . He suggested that educational processes
needed to , " ... be aware that thinking is accompanied by
feeling and vice versa , and to begin to take advantage of
the fact ." (p. 9) He described a pilot project financed
by the Fund for the Advancement of Education of the Ford
Foundation , which was designed to explore ways in which the
affective domain might be integrated with the cognitive
domain in education (p . 21) . One of the techniques used in
this project was the GD for the group as a whole .
Alschuler (1969) , in an article entitled Psychologi
cal Education , noted that one of the goals of this kind of
education was , " ... to develop a constructive dialogue with
one ' s own fantasy life ." (p. 2)
Mogar (1969) presented a psychological theory of
education in which affective techniques and the facilita
tion of feelings are understood to play a major role in
learning . He noted that the more affective an educational
technique is the more necessary is the relationship
between the student and teacher , or , in the case of the GD ,
the dreamer and guide . He noted the inspirational and
supportive functions of the guide , and noted that
42
In addition to feelings of trust and
support generated by the teacher
technique, the pupil needs someone
to affirm the change he is undergoing
and help him assimilate new realiza
tions so that his revised cosmology
will result in new self-enhancing
patterns of experience and behavior,
rather than turbulence and depersonal-
ization. (p. 41)
Although the GD is only one of many affective educa
tional techniques reported in the literature, and has been
reported primarily as a psychotherapeutic technique, the
content of the literature indicates that psychotherapy and
experiential or affective education are alike in terms of
personal processes and goals. Mogar also noted that,
'' ... the relevance of psychotherapy to educational processes
is particularly fortunate, since no comparable literature
exists in the field of education, especially regarding
experiential learning." (p. 37)
Process and Content
The basic process of the GD appears to be that of
visual symbolization. It involves the suspension of
judgment and evaluation and logical processes. Assagioli
(1965) wrote:
The purpose of this technique is to
utilize the enormous and by far not
yet realized potency of symbols in
the dynamics of the psychological
life. Symbols are constantly being
used by everyone but generally in an
unconscious way and often in un
constructive and even harmful ways.
Therefore, one of the urgent needs
of therapy - and of education - is
43
the realization of the nature and
power of symbols , the study of the
many classes and kinds of symbols ,
and their systematic utilization
for therapeutic , educational , and
self- realization purposes . (p . 177)
Gerard (1961) viewed this process of symbolization
in terms of Self- Actualization . Utilizing a model of
personality in which the Self exists at the center of the
person , Gerard , Assagioli (1965) and Crampton (1968) under
stood the GD process as the utilization of symbols in order
to reach this center of personal being . These writers
viewed this center as somewhat detached from every day
experience , and as a better source of wisdom and strength
for the person than was the consciousness of the therapist .
The GD literature has utilized language which is
analogous to the process which it seeks to describe and
explain . This means that the explanations presented in the
GD literature of this process of symbolization are tautolo
gical . No logical inferences regarding the effects of the
process can successfully be made on the basis of such a
circular explanation .
Experiential descriptions of the GD process have
suggested that personal growth , behavioral and emotional
change , and learning can occur as a result of this process
of symbolization . Schutz (1971) described the experience
of a man concerned about his job competence :
Overcoming a fantasied obstacle
constitutes another method of
expanding the self- concept , since
44
symbolically the fantasizer ac complishes something that he
didn ' t feel he was capable of
at the beginning of the guided
daydream . During the experience ,
the subject goes through many
real body changes : squirming ,
sweating , crying , tension , anger ,
fear , and , finally , relaxation
and pleasure . (p . 185)
The experience of this process of symbolization appeared to
have both physical and emotional outcomes .
Van Kaam (1960) noted that some people develop a
very high level of anxiety during a GD. Van Kaam viewed
the experience of the reduction of anxiety as extinction
by the repeated presentation of the originally anxiety
provoking proximal stimulus until the anxiety response was
no longer present . Although he described this process in
conditioning terms , he thought that altered cognitive
understanding of the meaning of the originally anxiety
provoking symbol by the person contributed to the reduction
of the anxiety .
Many authors report the experience of the Guided
Daydream process in terms of the inner symbolization of
directional movement . The usefulness of this approach for
describing the experience of the Guided Daydream process
was pointed out by Freeland (1972):
Different counselors might object to
various symbolic interpretations of
specific objects or scenes in a client ' s
GD . (Although the clinical descriptive
literature presents a rather consistent
symbolic repertoire .) However , the
45
symbolic meaning of the directional
movement in the GD is a common ground
for almost all counselors . (p . 50)
Some writers , Desoille (1966); Van Den Berg (1962); Van
Kaam (1960) , described the symbolized inner directional
movement primarily along a dimension of ascent and descent .
Generally these writers viewed ascending as a more positive
and open kind of movement than that of descending . Van Den
Berg also conceptualized this kind of movement in temporal
terms . He viewed ascending as moving towards the future
and openness to the possibilities of the future , and viewed
descending as an expression of being bound to one ' s own
past . He also suggested that comparative ease or diffi
culty of movement in either direction in the guided day
dream was a symbolized expression of the way in which the
given person related himself to other people and things in
his world.
Crampton (1968) conceptualized directional movement
in the GD in terms of moving from the periphery of person
ality towards the core of personality. Her conception of
this movement is like Perls ' (1970) concept of the process
of centering . Perls conceived the therapeutic necessity of
confronting the possibility of one ' s own nothingness and
wrote that , " ... in every bit of therapy we have to go
through this [death] layer in order to get to the authentic
self ." (1970, p . 22)
Hammer (1967) conceptualized directional movement in
46
the GD along a number of dimensions . He conceived of for
ward or backward movement in terms of moving toward the
future or the past respectively . He understood the dimen
sion of left to right in terms of unacceptable or accept
able parts of the self . Desoille (1966) reported that the
symbolic meaning of left or right movement was a function
of handedness of the person, e . g. , that movement to the
left for a right handed person was movement toward the past .
Movement in the direction of the person ' s handedness ,
either left or right , was viewed by Desoille in generally
positive terms.
The GD occurs in conditions which are conducive to
image formation . It would seem that the GD is a specific
form of image formation which has a very pronounced affec
tive component . The GD is facilitated by the creation of
a situation in which the ratio of proximal to distal
stimuli is raised . Sarbin (1967) pointed out that this
particular stimulus ratio is characteristic of hallucina
ting . "Attention is thus deployed away from the usual ,
familiar , distal objects and directed toward the products
of imagining." (p . 367) In his discussion of hallucina
tions as criteria for certain psychiatric diagnoses ,
Sarbin noted that the concept hallucination is a judgmental
and pejorative term applied to the imaginings of some
people who have met prior criteria of occupying , " ... a
degraded position in the social structure ." (p . 379) The
47
primary thrust of Sarbin ' s discussion was that hallucina
ting was not an adequate criteria for making psychiatric
diagnoses. It was not necessarily a sign of psychopatho
logy .
Horowitz defined an hallucination as , " ... an
internal image that seems as real , vivid , and external as
the perception of an object ." (p. 8) Although GD images
and symbolizations appear to be very real to the dreamer
and seem to produce real bodily and emotional effects , the
literature did not seem to suggest that these images and
symbolizations were experienced as external perceptions .
In his discussion of the concept of pseudohallucination,
Horowitz (1970) seemed to have come close to a definition
of the guided daydream process in terms of image formation :
While not subjectively localized in
the external environment or , if pro jected externally , not possessing a
sense of reality , pseudohallucina tions have a more intense and com pelling quality than thought images .
Perhaps a useful criterion is the
reaction of the subject : even
though the person does not believe
what he images is real , and even
though the images differ in quality
from an actual perception , he none theless reacts to them emotionally
as if they were real ~ (p . 9)
Assagioli suggested that vivid imaginings , as elicited in
the GD , were motivational in nature. Sarbin (1967) pointed
out that while it is acceptable for visionaries , mystics ,
poets and artists to be motivated by their imaginings,
it is not considered an acceptable procedure for either
48
scientists or psychotics . He noted that this situation
appeared to have arisen due to the generally accepted
modern view that the products and processes of imaginative
symbolization of experience were somehow less "real " than
material existence . He also noted that the materialistic
view of "reality " did not provide adequate criteria for the
understanding or categorization of the phenomena of imagina
tion . What makes the GD literature sometimes appear ob scure , and even mystical and poetic , is its implicit , and
sometimes explicit assumption that the products of active
imagination possess as much status as motivational forces
as do other more familiar psychological phenomena .
Ultimately it may be theoretically possible to give
general meaning to the images and symbols which make up
the contents of Guided Daydreams . At present it is possible
only to report the symbolic contents of Guided Daydreams
as given in the literature by the various writers , and to
note the meanings given to these symbolic contents by
each writer . It is also possible to report ways in which
the various writers have used these symbolic contents of
Guided Daydreams .
The directional movement which is reported as being
so characteristic of the process of the GD occurs in terms
of and in relation to a variety of visual symbols and
images.
Assagioli (1965) proposed that the symbolic contents
49
of the guided daydream could be categorized in seven ways:
Nature symbols , Animal symbols , Human symbols , Man - Made
symbols , Religious and Mythological symbols , Abstract
symbols , and Individual or Spontaneous symbols (pp . 181-
182). These symbolic contents are utilized by the guide to
facilitate the GD process in the desired direction .
Desoille (1966) described and utilized six beginning
themes for the GD. He specified both their content and
meaning. Both the contents and meanings proposed by
Desoille are more personal and more specific than
Assagioli ' s list of contents.
No .
1 .
2 .
3 .
4 .
Purpose
Confronting one ' s
own more obvious
characteristics .
Confronting one ' s
more suppressed
characteristics .
Coming to terms
with the parent of
the opposite sex .
Coming to terms
with the parent of
one ' s own sex .
Theme
For a man , a sword
For a woman , a vessel
or container
For both sexes , a
descent into the
depths of the ocean
For a man , a descent
into a cave to find
a witch or a sorcer
ess
For a woman , a des
cent into a cave to
find a wizard or a
magician .
For a man , a descent
into a cave to find
a wizard or a magi cian
For a woman , a des cent into a cave to
find a witch or a
sorceress
50
No .
5 .
Purpose
Coming to terms
with societal
constraints .
Theme
For both sexes , a
descent into a cave
to find the fabled
dragon
6 . Coming to terms
with the Oedipal
situation .
For both sexes , the
castle of the Sleep
ing Beauty , in a
forest (p . 3)
It can be seen from the sequence in the above list that
Desoille ' s first priority for the use of the GD is that
the dreamer come to terms with himself. He suggested that
in the therapeutic use of these contents , that the affec
tive component of the Guided Daydreams would proceed from
negative to positive feelings regarding the content of the
daydream. He also suggested that the images corresponding
to these affects would be altered in much the same direc tion as the feelings , e . g., for a man a sequence of images
might proceed beginning with an image of a devil proceeding
to something like a magician, then to an image of an
average man and finally to an image such as a hero or an
angel or God.
Leuner (1969) presented a number of contents as
well as statements regarding the meaning of the contents
for his system of Guided Affective Imagery therapy . For
example , he used the image of the meadow to stand for the
experience of a return to nature or a fresh beginning .
He used the image of climbing a mountain to stand for the
experience of psychological movement upwards in terms of
51
one ' s level of aspiration (p. 7) . Leuner viewed the
approach utilized in this technique as a phenomenological
exploration of personality dynamics .
Assagioli (1965) specified the meanings of certain
settings and themes . In his view , the meadow becomes an
especially important setting. It basically represents a
symbolic regression into the psychic world of the child .
On this basis the meadow was viewed as a symbol zation of
a return to the basis of creativity, and the blossoming of
spontaneity in relation to the opposite sex. Assagioli
conceived of the successful ascent to the mountain top as a
thematic symbol of transformation , and as a peak exper ience . Successful passage through a forest on the ascent
of the mountain stood for the self dealing with the darker
side of its own nature .
Hammer (1967) viewed the mountain as a phallic
symbol standing for the internalized father . His view was
that the successful ascent of the mountain symbolized the
integration of one ' s own sexual identity .
Gerard (1963 , pp. 71- 77) distinguished between
controlled and spontaneous Symbolic Visualization . The
most basic exercise in the controlled visualization of
symbols was learning to maintain the image of a symbol
over a period of time . For this purpose , he suggested
that the most useful symbols were symbols of integration ;
symbols of harmony in human interaction ; symbols of
52
masculinity or femininity ; or affective symbols , such as
colors . The next step in visualization of symbols was the
effort to change the inner image . This could involve the
use of symbols of transformation (he suggests for example
changing the image from a worm to a chrysalis to a butter fly) and symbols of growth , such as a seed becoming a full
grown tree .
The next step in controlled visualization was to
utilize the ability to change images in , " ... an imagined
sequence of events. " (p. 73) Such scenes and symbolic
events were conceived by Gerard to stand for restructuring
the personality and the changing of interpersonal relation ships .
Gerard related the phenomenon of spontaneous
Symbolic Visualization to the earlier work of Desoille ,
Jung , Leuner and others . He added to the earlier work the
utilization of more immediate and experiential material for
visualization which was similar to the Gestalt approach of
Perls and Schutz . He also suggested the techniques of
entering into a door which was labeled with a part i cular
emotion and reporting what was discovered on the other side
and the technique of the heart in which the dreamer imag ines entering into an enormous heart .
Gerard also suggested visualizing the contents of
var ious pro j ect i ve techn i ques , e . g ., the Rorschach ,
Themat i c Ap perception Test . In addition to th i s , Gerard
53
would have the dreamer imaginatively re - enter his own
night dreams and interact with whatever images or scenes
were encountered . The person could also be asked to
visualize more abstract contents such as thoughts , ideas
or concepts .
Gerard also suggested that :
... inasmuch as symbols can express
not only infantile and primitive
wishes, but also unrealized
potentialities for growth , sym
bolic visualization may serve to
evoke inner wisdom and inspira tion as well as ethical , human itarian and altruistic values .
(1963 , p. 77)
For these purposes , he proposed two techniques :
(a) The techniques of light . These include
the sphere of fire , a radiating sun or
star . In imagination , the patient
approaches and eventually penetrates
into the lighted area. For instance,
he may identify himself and merge
with a clear pure light of great
intensity on the summit of a moun -
tain peak or pyramid . The light is
used to generate a process of gradual
contact and identification with an
inner light of understanding and
insight .
(b) The technique of inner dialogue .
The patient visualizes a personified
symbol , such as a wise old man , asks
for his guidance , and awaits the
answer , which can come immediately,
during the next attempt , or unexpec tedly ( p . 7 7) .
Gerard viewed these techniques as being related to the
quest for meaning and a unified philosophy of living . He
suggested that in that respect they were similar to the
54
approach of Frankl (1960) .
Guided Daydream : Summary
The Guided Daydream (GD) is a psychotherapeutic
and educational technique which utilizes representational
symbolic and thematic material to enhance self-awareness ,
learning and personality and behavior change . The GD
experience is primarily visual and emotional . The variety
of symbols and themes utilized elicit differential emo tions.
Theoretically, the GD is conceptualized as a
voluntary process of symbolic regression involving the
suspension of control over the primary processes which
are elicited . These processes are represented as visual
symbols and imaginative themes which are experienced as
very real , emotionally potent, and meaningful .
55
Chapter III
Method
The research involved in this study was designed to
assess the effectiveness of the use of the Guided Daydream
(GD) as a method for increasing the probability that stu dents in a Master ' s degree program , preparing them for
licensing in the State of California as Marriage , Family
and Child Counselors , would be able to communicate at least
minimally facilitative levels of empathy in their inter
personal contacts as helpers . In making this assessment
it was assumed that the GD was an exercise which would
increase personal self- understanding. It was predicted
that this increased self- understanding would lead to a
significant improvement of the ability of the subjects to
discriminate facilitative levels of empathy of counselor
responses to client statements.
This chapter will be divided into the following
sections : Assumptions and Limitations , Subjects , Proce dure , Trainers and Guides , Measures of Change , and
Hypotheses .
Assumptions and Limitations
The following assumptions were made regarding the
method of the study :
(a) That the Experimental and Control groups were
not different at the time of selection ;
56
(b) That the experience of the Experimental and
Control groups during the study would be the
same, except for the experimental treatment ;
(c) That the statistics used were appropriate for
the data produced by the study ;
(d) That the measures of change were valid measures
for the effects expected from the experimental
treatment .
The study was limited in its scope of prediction and
generalization by the following factors:
(a) It could not be assumed that the subjects as a
whole group were representative of a population
of counselor trainees;
(b) The relatively small number of subjects , as a
whole , and in each group, increased the pro
bability of a Type II error;
(c) The small number of subjects , as well as their
voluntary selection , limits the ability of the
study to generalize to any population .
The assumptions and limitations necessitate delimit ing the scope of the study to the American Institute of
Family Relations program .
Subjects
The subjects for this study were students in the
Master of Arts program specializing in Marriage , Family and
Child Counseling at the American Institute of Family
Relations in Los Angeles . Academic credit for this program
is offered through Chapman College in Orange , California .
In addition to being admitted to the program at the
American Institute of Family Relations , the students must
also have been admitted to the Division of Graduate Studies
57
at Chapman College .
The degree program consists of 36 units ,
plus 240 hours of supervised counseling
experience . All course work is on the
graduate level , and includes lectures ,
seminars , demonstrations , class projects ,
and examinations . Courses include:
Human Growth and Development , Advanced
Counseling Techniques , Family Living
and Crisis Counseling , Group Processes
and Interpersonal Communication , Human
Sexuality , Seminar and Psychopathology ,
and others . The supervised counseling
experience consists of individual
counseling , co- counseling , group coun seling , direct observation , and case
conference with the staff . Each student
is assigned a supervisor , who will pro vide individual and group supervision
for those working toward requirements
for the state license . An important
aspect of the program is the immediate
opportunity for students to observe
staff counselors live or on videotape ,
and to be directly involved in clinical
casework. All of the faculty is imme diately involved in the practice of
counseling at various levels , including
psychiatry , psychology , marriage coun seling , and social work . An essential
part of the program is regular partici pation by the student in group counsel ing . This is provided not only as a
vehicle for learning techniques of
group leadership , but as an opportunity
for the student to continue his own
personal growth . (AIFR Brochure , 1973)
The students in the program were asked by the
experimenter if they would be willing to participate in a
study involving the use of the GD . For the purposes of
this request the GD was described as a depth exercise for
the increase of personal self- awareness . It was also
necessary to ask for volunteers for the control group. In
view of the purely voluntary nature of the selection of
58
subjects for the study , it was not possible to randomly
assign the subjects into experimental and control groups in
any systematic manner .
A further problem was that in order to obtain enough
subjects for the study in both the experimental and control
groups , a minimum of 10 members in each group , it was
necessary to ask for volunteers from both sections of the
program even though these sections met on separate days .
This also meant that the Guided Daydreams were administered
to the experimental group subjects in two sessions .
At the outset of the study there were 15 subjects in
the experimental group. Five of these subjects , three
women and two men , were from one section of the program.
Ten of the experimental subjects , eight men and two women ,
were from the other section of the program. At the outset
of the study the control group consisted of five subjects
from one section , three men and two women , plus six sub
jects from the other section , three men and three women ,
for a total of 11 control subjects altogether .
At the conclusion of the study , 14 members of the
experimental group had completed both the experimental
treatment program and had completed and turned over to the
experimenter all pre - test and post- test material . For the
purpose of analyzing data and assessing the results of the
study , the experimental group numbered 14 subjects .
At the conclusion of the study 10 control group
59
subjects had completed and returned to the experimenter
both pre - test and post - test results of the Minnesota
Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) . However , at the
conclusion of the study only eight of the original 11
control subjects had completed and returned to the experi
menter both pre - test and post-test results of the rating
scale . This scale will be discussed further in this
chapter under the heading , Measures of Change . For the
purpose of analyzing the results of MMPI data the control
group numbered 10 subjects. For the purpose of analyzing
and assessing rating scale data the control group numbered
eight at the conclusion of the study .
Procedure
During the period April 16, 1974 , through May 11 ,
1974 , the members of the experimental group were adminis
tered eight Guided Daydreams at the rate of two times a
week . As noted in the previous subsection of this
chapter it was necessary to administer these Guided Day dreams in separate sections . This means that the Guided
Daydreams were administered 16 times during the study ,
although each member of the experimental group received
only eight Guided Daydreams . The administration of the
Guided Daydreams lasted approximately thirty minutes per
daydream, and took place outside of class time .
It was decided to administer the GD to groups
60
in order to standardize the procedure for members of the
experimental group as much as possible . Although the GD
is ordinarily given in an individual setting , it has been
administered to groups in educational situations . It was
thought that the group administration of the GD would not
change the function of the GD as presented in Chapter I .
All of the subjects were told that some members of
the group would be receiving the GD sessions as a part of a
study to evaluate the Institute ' s program . The experimental
group members were told that the Guided Daydreams would be
experiences in self-exploration undertaken to increase
their self- awareness and personal growth . The experimen tal group subjects and the control group subjects were both
asked not to participate in any GD experience outside of
the setting of the study either as guides or as partici
pants .
The GD sessions took place at the American Institute
of Family Relations . These sessions were tape - recorded ,
as well as recorded in the guides ' notes . The content of
the Guided Daydreams alternated between images or symbols
or scenes which were either anxious or regressive . The GD
scenes were presented in the following order : meadow and
mountain (anxiety) ; womb (regression) ; cave (anxiety) ;
identity with mother (regression); dark pool (anxiety);
the old man (regression); funeral (anxiety); chi ld (regres
sion) . (Complete transcripts of these Guided Daydreams ,
61
except meadow and mountain, which was lost, are contained
in Appendix B of the study.)
In order to minimize possible effects of personal
relationships upon the outcome of the study the five guides
were assigned randomly by subject matter of the GD. In
order to standardize the effect of the treatment for each
section of the experimental group as much as possible each
subject GD was given to both sections of the experimental
group by the same guide.
Trainers and Guides
The trainers and instructors were the staff of the
American Institute of Family Relations, and consultants to
the Institute. The staff members and consultants were
familiarized with the purpose of the study, which had the
approval of the Director of the Institute. The experiment
er was available for any necessary consultation with train
ers and consultants.
There were five guides. One of these was the
experimenter. Two of the guides were volunteers from the
student body at the Institute, one woman and one man. Each
of these volunteer guides had considerable amount of
personal psychotherapy as well as some exposure to the GD
technique. They received four hours of training prior to
undertaking their task as guides . This training consisted
of experiencing at least one GD, guiding at least one GD
· 62
with a person other than a member of the student body , as
well as being familiarized with the GD literature and the
study itself . During the time of the study these volun
teers received an average of four hours each in additional
instruction and consultation regarding the GD and the
constructive use of imaginative symbolic materials in the
GD.
The two other guides were both men who were licensed
Marriage , Family and Child counselors in the State of
California , both of whom had considerable experience both
guiding and participating in Guided Daydreams . Each of
these guides was familiarized with the content and purpose
of the study , but neither of these men were given the
additional training and consultation which was afforded to
the volunteer guides by the experimenter.
Measures of Change
The measures of change to be described in this
section of the chapter were administered to all subjects
prior to the first GD session in the study and were again
administered to all subjects following the final GD
session . All measures of change administered prior to the
GD were completed by all subjects and returned to the
experimenter no more than 48 hours prior to the initial
GD . All measures of change administered following the
final GD session were completed and returned to the
63
experimenter by all subjects included in the study no more
than one week following the final GD session . Two measures
of change were included in the study .
The first of these was a measure of the subject ' s
ability to discriminate levels of empathy in printed coun selor responses to printed client statements . (This
measure is reproduced in Appendix A. )
The criteria utilized to evaluate the subject ' s
ability to discriminate levels of empathy in the responses
were ratings on a scale of one to five given to those
responses by experienced counselors and therapists who were
knowledgeable regarding the maning and effects of various
levels of empathic communication in interpersonal rela tionships . Thirteen experienced counselors , 10 men and
three women , completed the rating scale one time , prior to
the beginning of the study , at the request of the experi
menter . This group is referred to as experts in the
hypotheses .
Each subject ' s response to each item on the scale
was given a score which was the absolute deviation of the
subject ' s rating of that item from the average score of the
experts on that item . These absolute deviation scores for
each item on the rating scale were summed . The total
deviation score of each individual in each group were
combined by addi tion separately for each group so as to
give a total score and an average score for each group .
64
The scale utilized to evaluate the levels of empathy
in the given responses was a disguised version of
Carkhuff ' s (1969) Empathic Understanding in Interpersonal
Processes : A Scale for Measurement . The 16 client state
ments and four counselor responses for each statement are
taken from Carkhuff ' s (1969 , Vol . I) transcripts of tape
recordings used to assess trainees ' ability to discriminate
between responses on the basis of the presence or absence
of a number of facilitative and action- oriented therapeutic
conditions .
There are two possible limitations to this measure
ment in terms of the prediction of this study which need to
be noted . The first of these is that it is a measure of
discrimination rather than communication . The second
possible limitation is that it is a written measure rather
than a measure in which the responses are given orally .
Research (Carkhuff , 1969) indicated that although
discriminative and communicative ability do not vary to gether as a result of training , and the discrimination
training does not appear to effect communicative ability as
a result of that training , that the ability to discriminate
levels of therapeutic conditions underlies and precedes
the ability to communicate those conditions at facilitative
levels , so that it appeared that discrimination training
and ability should precede communication training and
ability in any given training program .
65
In regard to the second possible limitation of this
measure in terms of the purposes of this study , Carkhuff
(1969) also reported that in the case of relatively high
level functioning people that the correlations between
written and oral responses were high and significant .
Antonuzzo & Kratochvil (1968) found significant and posi tive relationships between indexes of discrimination and
communication both written and oral.
It is clear that the administration of an oral
assessment of communicative ability of therapeutic condi
tions rather than the administration of this written
assessment of the students ' ability to discriminate various
levels of one therapeutic condition (however artfully
disguised) would have been preferable from both theoretical
and methodological perspectives . However , sufficient time
to administer an oral assessment of either communicative or
discriminative abilities was not available in this context .
It was also felt that to request the subjects to produce ,
either orally or in written form , a response to a client
statement which could be perceived by the hypothetical
client as a form of empathic understanding would be so
revelatory of the actual purpose of the study as to in fluence further behaviors and responses of the subjects in
ways which would defy prediction .
The second measure of change to be utilized in this
study was the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory
66
(MMPI) . This personality inventory was utilized to dis cover if personality traits (anxiety and regression)
theoretically related to both empathy and the GD would be
changed as a result of the experimental treatment variable ,
the Guided Daydream .
Hypotheses
The statistic utilized to analyze the data derived
from the first two hypotheses regarding the assessment of
discriminative ability was a Single Variable of Classifica tion , Model I , Analysis of Variance (Dixon & Massey , 1957 ,
pp . 145- 152) .
Assessment and analysis of differences between
groups on the final hypothesis regardin the assessment of
discriminative ability , and the MMPI will be made by the
use oft - tests of the differences between the two groups
from pre - test to post - test (McNemar , 1962) . The formula
used for the analysis of differences obtained on the MMPI
was as follows :
t
-
(
E - E )
pr po
(
C -C )
pr po
r E2 -
(2~!~ + 1 2D/ - (2~~ ) J
nE + nc
- 2
For the statistical analysis of both
1 1
+
nE
measures of
change it was decided that if the obtained differences
67
between the groups from pre - test to post - test were of
enough magnitude that the probability of their occurrence
by chance was less than 5% that it would be possible to
reject the statistical hypotheses that there would be no
difference between the groups from pre - test to post - test .
Hypothesis I
It is predicted that :
(a) at the time of pre - testing on the measure to
assess discrimination of levels of empathy in
counselor responses to client communications
that the mean deviation scores of the experi mental and control group will be significantly
different from the mean deviations of the
experts on the measure as a whole .
(b) at the time of post-testing on this measure
that the mean deviations of the experimental
group will not be significantly different from
the mean deviations of the experts , and that
the mean deviations of the control group will
be significantly different from the mean
deviation of the experts .
(c) from the time of pre - testing to the time of
post - testing that the mean deviation scores
of the experimental group will be reduced by
a significantly greater magnitude than the
mean deviation scores of the control group .
68
Hypothesis II
It is predicted that from pre - testing to post testing the anxiety scores of the experimental group will
be elevated by a significantly greater magnitude than the
anxiety scores of the control group .
For the purposes of this hypothesis , anxiety score
is defined as the sum of scales 1 , 2 and 3 on the MMPI
(Modlin , 1947).
Hypothesis III
It is predicted that from the time of pre - testing
to the time of post-testing that the regression scores of
the experimental group will increase by a magnitude sig nificantly greater than the scores of the control group.
For the purposes of this hypothesis a regression
score is defined by the following formula:
(K-F) + (Hy - Sc) + Pa
which is Leary ' s (1957) combination of MMPI scales measur
ing affiliative needs (LOV) in addition to scale number 6
(Pa) on the MMPI . Elevation of scale 6 within normal
limits is indicative of sensitivity and emotionality. It
was assumed for the purposes of this study that increases
in affiliative needs as well as sensitivity and emotional ity would constitute an adequate operational definition of
regression .
69
Summary
This chapter has presented the various assumptions ,
procedures and hypotheses necessary for the study to assess
whether or not the connections between the GD and empathy
presented in Chapter I are valid . The statistical find ings of the study will be presented in the next chapter .
The question of whether or not the connections presented in
Chapter I were valid , and whether or not the study assessed
the question of their validity will be discussed in Chapter
V.
70
Chapter IV
Findings
The purpose of the study was to determine whether or
not the administration of eight Guided Daydream (GD)
sessions over a period of four weeks as an adjunct to the
counselor training program at the American Institute of
Family Relations would significantly change the empathy
functioning of those members of the training class who
received the GD compared with those members of the training
class who did not receive the GD.
The predicted change was measured by a rating scale
of the discrimination of empathic levels of printed
counselor responses to printed client statements. Pre
dicted differential changes from pre-testing to post
testing between the experimental group and the control
group were also measured as personality trait variables on
the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI).
The personality variables to be measured had been theoreti
cally related to empathy as a prediction and outcome
variable in psychotherapy. These same personality vari ables were also hypothetically related to predicted
changes in empathic functioning in this study, by their
inclusion in the content of the Guided Daydreams adminis
tered to the experimental group in the study.
The statistical method for the analysis and
comparison of data generated by the rating scale was
71
the t-test measuring the difference of within group changed
scores from pre-testing to post-testing between the
experimental group and the control group (McNemar, 1962).
Testing Hypothesis I
It is predicted that:
(a) at the time of pre-testing on the measure to
assess discrimination of levels of empathy in
counselor responses to client communications
that the mean deviation scores of the experi mental and control group will be significantly
different from the mean deviations of the
experts on the measure as a whole.
(b) at the time of post-testing on this measure
that the mean deviations of the experimental
group will not be significantly different from
the mean deviations of the experts, and that
the mean deviations of the control group will
be significantly different from the mean
deviation of the experts.
(c) from the time of pre-testing to the time of
post-testing that the mean deviation scores of
the experimental group will be reduced by a
significantly greater magnitude than the mean
deviation scores of the control group.
72
Table 1 shows that at the time of pre-testing that
an analysis of variance of the differences between the
scores of the independent experts, the experimental group
and the control group that the differences between the
groups were not of a sufficient magnitude to confirm
Hypothesis l(a): F (2,32) = 2.62, p < .10.
Table 1
Comparison of Mean Pre-test Scores on
Empathy Rating Scale Between Experts,
Experimental Group and Control Group
Group
Experts
Experimental
Control
N
13
14
8
X
39
46.2
45.75
SD
6.54
10.2
9.45
F
2 .62
Table 2 indicates that at the time of post-testing
an analysis of variance of the differences between the
scores of the independent experts, the experimental group
and the control group on the rating scale indicated that
these differences were not of a sufficient magnitude to
confirm Hypothesis l(b) that the probability of such
differences occurring by chance was less than 5%.
73
Table 2
Comparison of Mean Post - test Scores of
Empathy Rating Scale Between Experts ,
Experimental Group and Control Group
Group
Experts
Experimental
Control
N
13
14
8
X
39
43 . 9
43 . 75
SD
6 . 54
8
9 . 35
F
1 . 59
Table 3 shows that there was no differential change
between experimental and control group from pre - testing
to post - testing , t(20) - . 1 .
Tab le 3
Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
Empathy Rating Scale Between Experimental
and Control Groups from Pre - test to Post - test
Group
Experimental
Control
N
14
8
D
2. 3
2
SD
7. 1
6 . 83
Testing Hypothesis II
t
. 1
It is predicted that from pre - testing to post testing the anxiety scores of the experimental group will
74
be elevated by a significantly greater magnitude than the
anxiety scores of the control group.
Table 4 shows that the difference between the
anxiety change scores of the experimental group from pre
testing to post-testing and the change scores of the
control group from pre-testing to post-testing were not of
a sufficient magnitude to reject the statistical hypothesis
that there was no significant difference between the two
groups, t ( 22) = - 1 . 82, p <. 10.
Group
Tab le 4
Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
Anxiety Between Experimental and Control
Groups from Pre-test to Post-test
N D SD t
Experimental
Control
14
10
- 5. 36
2. 5
11 . 8
8.3
- 1 . 82 *
*p ( . 10
The changes from pre-testing to post-testing within
the experimental group were in the predicted direction.
Testing Hypothesis III
It is predicted that from pre-testing to post
testing the regression scores of the experimental group
will be elevated by a significantly greater magnitude than
the regression scores of the control group.
75
Table 5 shows that the difference between the
regression change scores of the experimental group and the
change scores of the control group from pre - testing to
post - testing were of sufficient magnitude to reject the
statistical hypothesis that there was no significant
difference between the groups from pre - test to post - test ,
t (22) = -2.74, p <. 02 .
Table 5
Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
Regression Between Experimental and Control
Groups from Pre - test to Post - test
Group -
Experimental
Control
**p <. 02
N
14
10
D
- 3. 2
7.1
SD
6 . 34
6 . 59
t
-2.74**
The change in the experimental group occurred in the
predicted direction .
Additional Findings
Reported in this section are some additional find ings on the MMPI which were not predicted by the study ,
but which are germane for the discussion of the study in
the next chapter .
Table 6 shows the results of a statistical analysis
of the difference between the change scores of the
76
experimental group and the change scores of the control
gr oup on the MMPI- K Scale . It can be seen that the scores
o f the experi mental group are more elevated than the
scores of the control group .
Group
Table 6
Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
MMPI- K Scale Between Experimental and
Control Group from Pre - test to Post - test
N D SD t
Experimental
Control
14
10
- 2. 5
- . 3
4
5. 1
- 1 . 19
Table 7 shows the results of a statistical analysis
of the difference between the change scores of the experi mental group and the control group on Welsh ' s R Scale for
the MMPI . It can be seen that the scores for the experi mental group were elevated , while the scores for the
control group decreased .
77
Table 7
Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
MMPI- R Scale Between Experimental and
Control Groups from Pre - test to Post - test
Group
Experimental
Control
***p <· 05
N
14
10
D
-1.93
3
SD
5.5
6 . 1
t
-2.11***
Table 8 shows the results of a statistical analysis
of the difference between the change scores of the experi mental group and the control group on Barron ' s (1963) Es
Scale for the MMPI . It can be seen that the scores for the
control group were more elevated than those for the
experimental group .
Group
Table 8
Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
MMPI-E Scale Between Experimental and
s
Control Groups from Pre - test to Post - test
N D SD t
Experimental
Control
14
10
- . 72
- 3. 5
6. 7
2. 5
1 . 27
78
Table 9 shows the results of a statistical analysis
of the change scores of the experimental group and the
control group on Scale 7(Pt) of the MMPI . It can be seen
that there was not a significant difference between the
change scores of the groups .
Group
Table 9
Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
MMPI Scale 7(Pt) Between Experimental and
Control Groups from Pre - test to Post - test
N D SD t
Experimental
Control
14
10
.29
2.3
5
5.57
- .935
Table 10 shows the results of a statistical analysis
of the difference between the change scores of the experi
mental group and the control group on Welsh ' s A Scale for
the MMPI . It can be seen that there is not a significant
difference between the change scores of the groups .
79
Group
Table 10
Comparison of Mean Change Scores (D) on
MMPI- A Scale Between Experimental and
Control Groups from Pre - test to Post - test
N D SD t
Experimental
Control
14
10
1 . 29
2. 3
3
2 . 9
- . 83
Summary
The statistical findings of the study have been
reported and described in this Chapter. Findings which are
hypothesized by the study have been reported , as well as
additional findings . The additional findings have been
reported in order to contribute to the discussion of the
study in the next chapter .
80
Chapter V
Summary , Discussion , and Recommendations
Summary
Purpose
The study was conducted for the purpose of deter
mining if eight Guided Daydream (GD) sessions, as a part of
a counselor training program, would be effective in facili
tating higher levels of counselor empathy. The study also
asked whether or not , as a result of the administration of
the same set of Guided Daydreams, certain personality
characteristics, namely anxiety and regression , which are
hypothetically related to empathy, would show significant
changes .
Hypotheses were presented for the purpose of evalua
ting whatever changes might occur on the variables noted
above . The results of these hypotheses were presented in
Chapter IV .
Methodology
This study included 24 subjects who were divided
into two groups . The experimental group numbered 14 sub jects, nine men and five women, to whom the eight Guided
Daydreams were administered . The control group numbered
10 subjects, five men and five women, who were administered
the same measures of change as the experimental group , but
81
to whom no guided daydreams were administered . Both the
members of the experimental group and the control group
participated in the training program at the American
Institute of Family Relations during the period of the
study.
All of the subjects volunteered to participate in
the study and also volunteered to be members of either the
experimental group or the control group. The experimental
group participated in GD sessions during two one-half hour
periods each week for a period of four weeks.
Two measures of change were administered to both
groups , both before and after the study :
(1) A measure of the subject ' s ability to dis criminate levels of empathy in printed counselor responses
to printed client ' s statements;
(2) The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inven
tory (MMPI).
Findings
On the measure of subject ' s ability to discriminate
levels of empathy , there were no significant differences
between the groups .
On the measure of anxiety , the results indicated
that the anxiety level in the experimental group increased ,
while the anxiety level in the control group decreased ,
t(22) = - 1 . 82 , 2. <.. 10 .
82
On the measure of regression , the average score of
the experimental group increased while the average score of
the control group decreased , t(22) = - 2 . 74 , < . 02. This was
in the direction predicted in the study .
Discussion
The primary purpose of the study was to determine
the effect of the GD upon the counselor-trainee ' s ability
to discriminate levels of empathy . The fact that the mea
sure utilized to assess discriminative ability did not
yield significant differences between the groups raises a
number of questions , both in regard to the measure itself ,
and regarding the study as a whole .
General Issues
The relatively small number of subjects participa
ting in the study meant that the magnitude of measured
differences might have shown significance had the number of
subjects been appreciably larger . The small sample limits
the power of the statistics utilized to detect differences .
With the small sample the probability of not rejecting the
null hypothesis , even if it is really false , is greater
than it would be in the case of a larger number of subjects
(Bakan , 1969 ; Cohen , 1965) .
There were numerous sources of possible experimental
bias arising from motivations and relationships of the
83
experi menter , t h e guides , and the subjects . Fox (1969)
pointed out that , " ... if the research situation is such
that [the experimenter or the guides] can , as individuals ,
have any effect on it , they may bias the results ."
(p . 466) The experimenter ' s emotional and intellectual
investment in the study could have had differential effects
on the two groups of subjects .
All of the subjects were aware of which people were
members of the experimental or control groups . They also
knew which group was which , as well as the nature of the
experimental treatment in the study . This situation creat ed the possibility of interaction between members , whi ch
Fox (1969) called leakage , as a source of bias in the
study .
It is clear that the administration of the Gui ded
Daydreams to the experimental group in this study di d not
result in the group showing any improvement in the ability
to discriminate levels of empathy . In view of this find ing , it appeared likely that the changes found on the MMPI
scales whi ch were theoretically related to empathy in the
study , would have to be explai ned as effects of something
other than the Gu i ded Daydreams . In addition the experi mental group ' s K scale elevation could probably not be
attributed to a process like the GD , which involved sus pension of control .
84
Hypothesis I
In looking for an explanation of the results on the
empathy rating scale , it seemed to be relevant to ask some
questions regarding the scale itself . The study made a
theoretical distinction between empathy as a way of under standing interpersonal communication and inference and
intuition as ways of understanding interpersonal communica
tions . The study suggests that empathy is a mode of inter personal understanding which was independent of either
inference or intuition . The question which arose was
whether or not the rating scale in the form presented to
the subjects in this study was a valid measure of empathic
ability as presented in the study. The fact that the
rating scale was presented in a written form would seem to
indicate that the abilities elicited in order to give
accurate responses were not directly related to empathy as
it has been described in this study . It would appear that
the giving of responses to the rating scale in this study
was primarily a function of either inference or intuition
or both . The context for the exercise of empathy as a
primarily representational rather than discursive mode of
interpersonal understanding was not presented by the rating
scale . It would appear that the rating scale , at least in
its written form , was not a valid instrument for the
measurement of empathy as a mode of interpersonal under standing .
85
The reported changes on the MMPI strongly suggest
that the rating scale was not sensitive to the kinds of
changes that did occur over the course of the study . It
is also possible that the rating scale could be insensitive
even to the changes predicted by the study .
The inconclusive results of the rating scale also
suggest the possibility that the study did not adequately
account for theoretical differences between empathy and the
GD , such as empathy being a primarily interpersonal
experience and the GD being basically an intrapersonal
experience . If that is a real difference even a valid and
sensitive instrument might well have produced inconclusive
results .
The finding of no significant improvement in rating
levels of empathy by the experimental group compared with
either the experts or with the control group , as well as
the questionable validity of the rating scale itself ,
leaves unanswered the question regarding the effectiveness
of the GD as a technique for increasing empathy .
The differences between the experimental group and
the control group that were created by the study and which
will be discussed later in this chapter , were not mani fested in the results of the rating scale . The implica-

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Asset Metadata

Creator Wilson, Warren (author)

Core Title Empathy as a function of guided daydreams in counselor education

School School of Education

Degree Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Program Education

Degree Conferral Date 1975-06

Publication Date 05/01/1975

Defense Date 05/01/1975

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag Counseling -- Study and teaching,Empathy,OAI-PMH Harvest

Format theses (aat)

Language English

Contributor Digitized in 2022 (provenance)

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC112723839

Unique identifier UC112723839

Identifier Ph.D. Ed '75 W754 (call number),etd-WilsonWarren-1975.pdf (filename)

Legacy Identifier etd-WilsonWarren-1975

Document Type Dissertation

Format theses (aat)

Rights Wilson, Warren

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Type texts

Source 20230201-usctheses-microfilm-box6b (batch), University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

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