Similarity-Dissimilarity in Counselor-Counselee Ethnic Match and its Relevance to Goal Behavior of Job Trainees

This study was designed to explore the attitude of black manpower trainees towards counselors who differed in race and to determine the effects of counselor race on goal persisting behaviors as perceived by manpower trainees. Subjects were 191 unemployed black males (N=75) and females (N=116) who were enrolled in three programs in Detroit, Michigan. A total of 19 counselors were included, 6 black and 13 white. Data were collected by means of questionnaire and two instruments, administered during personal interviews. There were six principal findings of this study. The interpretation of these findings was that those trainees with black counselors expected less and perceived that they got more than anticipated, while those with white counselors expected more and perceived that they got less than expected from the counseling relationship, suggesting that trainees become pro-black. The findings are discussed in terms of the different expectations trainees had for white and black counselors. (Author/BW)