Abstract
Telephone emergency services (TES) provide emotional support and aim to prevent suicide. The current study examines a potential change of volunteer counselors’ attachment characteristics during TES training and investigates the predictive influence of counselor attachment for their competence and working alliance with callers. We recruited 261 volunteers enrolled in training for paraprofessional counseling in the German Telephone Emergency Service (TelefonSeelsorge). Participants were assessed three times during their training (mean training duration 13.3 months) and responded to questionnaires on adult attachment (Experience in Close Relationships-Revised) and their counseling competence (adapted Development of Psychotherapists Common Core Questionnaire). In addition, they indicated the quality of the working alliance (adapted Working Alliance Inventory – Short, Revised) with their client callers upon training completion. Results showed that attachment anxiety, but not attachment avoidance, significantly decreased during training. Lower attachment avoidance predicted better working alliances with callers as well as better general skillfulness. Implications for the training of volunteer telephone counselors are discussed.
Highlights
Telephone emergency services (TES) are an important component of psychosocial health care and suicide prevention strategies across different healthcare systems
We further aim to investigate the associations between attachment characteristics and counseling competence
We aim to examine whether observed changes in attachment anxiety and avoidance during training predict counseling competence upon training completion
Summary
Telephone emergency services (TES) are an important component of psychosocial health care and suicide prevention strategies across different healthcare systems. Their offer is readily available, usually free of charge and confidential. The International Federation of Telephone Emergency Services (IFOTES) comprises 31 national federations and associations of 23 countries, including the German TES TelefonSeelsorge. The TelefonSeelsorge reported a total of 8.7 million calls made in Germany in 2016. Comparable contents have been reported for TES calls in the UK (Coveney et al, 2012), North America (Mishara et al, 2007; Ingram et al, 2008), and Australia (Burgess et al, 2008)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
