Therapist complementarity as a function of experience and client stimuli.

Abstract

Degree of therapist complementarity is examined in responses made to client statements which varied on the three dimensions of directness, power, and type of affect as it varied over therapist experience level. Professional therapists demonstrated significantly lower complementarity and different complementary patterns over the three stimuli dimensions than did student therapists when client statements were indirect. Professionals showed the lowest levels of complementarity only for the hostile-dominant stimuli. These results are described with respect to therapist training and assessment of complementarity.