Date of Award

May 2014

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Christine L. Larson

Committee Members

Christine L. Larson, Christopher Martell, Jonathan Kanter

Keywords

Connectedness, Interpersonal, Mechanisms, Self-Disclosure, Therapeutic Relationship, Treatment Outcome

Abstract

The efficacy of psychotherapy interventions has been demonstrated on a wide range of disorders. However, little is known about the specific mechanisms that influence symptom improvements. The therapeutic relationship, a well-established common factor of treatment, has been suggested to provide significant impact on treatment outcome and may be a potential mechanism of change in psychotherapy. The current study evaluates a theoretical micro-mechanism model of the therapeutic relationship; specifically, the process of providing feedback to self-disclosure statements with the intention of increasing feelings of connectedness. Ninety-eight undergraduate students were randomized to either 1 of 2 brief connection-generating dyadic interaction groups receiving minimal feedback or natural feedback to self-disclosure statements or to a control group. Those individuals who received natural feedback to self-disclosure responses had significantly greater increases in feelings of connectedness compared to those in the other conditions. Our results present preliminary support for the proposed micro-mechanism, further investigation is merited.

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