What is self-disclosure in psychology?

Key Points. Self-disclosure involves sharing personal information – such as your thoughts, dreams, fears, goals, preferences, and experiences. It’s an important way to strengthen relationships and build trust.

What are the four kinds of self-disclosure?

There are four different types of self-disclosures: deliberate, unavoidable, accidental and client initiated.

Can therapists disclose information about themselves?

Despite concerns raised, research suggests “in reality that therapists generally do disclose” personal information about themselves and their beliefs, and that it happens more often than many would assume (Danzer, 2019, p. 3).

What is self-disclosure in social psychology?

Self-disclosure is a central concept in Social Penetration Theory proposed by Altman and Taylor (1973). This theory claims that by gradually revealing emotions and experiences and listening to their reciprocal sharing, people gain a greater understanding of each other and display trust.

What is self-disclosure in Counselling?

Self-disclosure refers generally to a counselor’s sharing of personal information to clients during or outside the counseling session.

Does self-disclosure build intimacy?

Psychologists have long known that self-disclosure is one of the hallmarks of intimate relationships. Revealing your motives, intentions, goals, values, and emotions, can increase liking and feelings of intimacy.

What is inappropriate disclosure?

Inappropriate self-disclosures are those that are done primarily for the benefit of the therapist, clinically counter-indicated, burdens the client with unnecessary information or creates a role reversal where a client, inappropriately, takes care of the therapist.

Why do therapists self disclose?

When used sparingly, professionally and appropriately, counselor self-disclosure can build trust, foster empathy and strengthen the therapeutic alliance between counselor and client. However, counselor self-disclosure also holds the potential to derail progress and take focus off of the client.

What are the three types of disclosure?

Every industry with public responsibilities has specific disclosure rules that are used to ensure that essential information is made available to those who are permitted to obtain it. There are four types of disclosure rules: financial, conflict of interest, reporting and legal.

Why is self-disclosure important in counseling?

Self-disclosure can help in building rapport, which is essential to the counseling relationship. Counselors often choose to disclose about themselves and their lives to aid in the development of trust that is necessary for counseling to be effective.

When does therapist disclosure become self-disclosure?

When therapist disclosure goes beyond the standard professional disclosure of name, credentials, office address, fees, office policies, etc., it becomes self-disclosure.

What factors should a therapist consider before self-disclosure?

The client’s presenting problem, history, gender, culture, age, sexual orientation, mental ability and other client factors should be considered before the therapist elects to self-disclose. Therapists’ theoretical orientation and comfort with self-disclosure is often determined by their culture, gender and personality.

What are inappropriate self-disclosures?

Inappropriate self-disclosures, such as self-disclosure that is done for the benefit of the therapist, clinically counter-indicated, burdens the client with unnecessary information or creates a role reversal where a client, inappropriately, takes care of the therapist, are considered a boundary violation (Gutheil & Gabbard, 1998; Zur, 2004a).

Does therapist self-disclosure enhance authentic therapeutic alliance?

Humanistic and existential psychotherapies have always emphasized the importance of self-disclosure and therapists’ transparency in enhancing authentic therapeutic alliance, the most important factor in predicting clinical outcome (Lambert, 1991; Norcross & Goldfried, 1992). Humanistic therapists assert that therapist self-disclosure allows pati…