The role of social support on the disclosure of everyday unpleasant emotional events

Talking about unpleasant events has important implications for coping with distress, but the literature has not thoroughly addressed the role of social support on the decision to disclose these events. The authors hypothesized that perceptions of the availability of social support and satisfaction with support received regarding an event would be positively related to the disclosure of the event, and participants’ sex, emotional disclosure tendencies, depression symptoms, and global perceptions of support would moderate these relations. College students (N = 365) reported on 2,001 unpleasant emotional events that they personally experienced in the past week. Multilevel modeling analyses revealed that the perceived availability of support for an event predicted the degree of disclosure of that event, even while controlling for its intensity. Event disclosure predicted satisfaction with the support received for the event, controlling for event intensity and available support. This latter relation was moderated by the participants’ global perceptions of social support, such that the disclosure–satisfaction relation was stronger for individuals who perceived relatively less global social support. These findings suggest that characteristics of the social-support network ought to be considered as an important factor relevant to the decision to disclose everyday unpleasant events.     

Disclosing versus concealing distressing information: linking self-reported tendencies to situational behavior

We examined whether one's self-reported tendency to disclose versus conceal distressing information predicts actual disclosure and concealment behavior. Sixty-nine undergraduates who were pretested on a measure of disclosure versus concealment tendencies saw either a distressing or non-distressing film and we assessed their reactions to the film via a structured interview. Self-reports of disclosure versus concealment tendencies predicted the number of statements in which distressing emotions were acknowledged and independent observers' ratings of how much distress was expressed, but these relationships were not moderated by manipulated distress level. These findings support the use of self-reports of disclosure and concealment in research and clinical settings as predictors of observable disclosures of negative emotions.     

Three theories of self-disclosure exchange

The present study tested predictions derived from equitable exchange, social attraction, and normative information theories of self-disclosure. Variables relevant to each theory were manipulated orthogonally in the following factorial design: (1) intimate vs. superficial vs. no confederate disclosure, (2) positive vs. negative evaluation delivered by the confederate, and (3) intimate vs. non-intimate disclosure as normative for the experimental situation. Groups in which the subject was exposed to one of the independent variables in the absence of the others were included, to yield 18 cells with 10 female subjects per cell. The findings conformed to equitable exchange theory, in that subjects were more willing to disclose to a high- than a low-revealing partner. However, disclosure appeared to be suppressed in response to low disclosure, rather than enhanced by intimate disclosure. Also, true reciprocity of disclosure did not occur, in that subjects did not completely match the intimacy of the confederate. Normative information proved to be a potent determinant of disclosure tendency. No support was found for social attraction theory. Although confederate evaluation was the best predictor of interpersonal attraction, it was the poorest predictor of intent to disclose. Attraction was not found to parallel disclosure level.     

To Tell or Not to Tell: Disclosure and the Narrative Self

ABSTRACT Drawing from a narrative identity framework, we present the results of three studies examining the nature of what people do and do not disclose about their life experiences. Across three studies, our findings indicate that (1) the major difference in what people do and do not disclose concerns the emotionality of the events and whether or not the events are transgressions; (2) for everyday memorable events, increased negative emotion is associated with greater likelihood of disclosure; but (3) for more important and/or longer retained events, increased negative and decreased positive emotion were associated with lower likelihoods of disclosure. We also found that socioemotional consequences are an important reason for nondisclosure of important past experiences and are predictably related to the extent to which events induce positive and negative emotions. Findings are considered in terms of their implications for narrative identity.     

Should your lips be zipped? How therapist self‐disclosure and non‐disclosure affects clients

Is therapist self‐disclosure a therapeutic technique or a therapeutic mistake? Is it useful? Is it ethical? This study attempts to address this controversy among therapeutic modalities by asking clients about their perceptions of self‐disclosure and non‐disclosure. Eighteen people (16 women, two men), currently in therapy in two Canadian cities, generated 157 incidents of both disclosure and non‐disclosure. The incidents were first coded as helpful or unhelpful. Cross‐tabulation of the results showed that disclosures were more than twice as likely to be experienced as helpful; non‐disclosures were twice as likely to be unhelpful (χ² (3, N=157) = 14.439, p≤0.002). One‐quarter of these incidents was coded by two independent raters; inter‐rater reliability was high (Pearson corr. ranged from 0.755 to 1.0, p≤0.01). The data was then sorted, using the Constant Comparison method, into themes, starting with, but not limited to, the themes suggested by the literature. The greatest single effect was on the therapeutic alliance, both positive and negative. Clients’ perceptions of helpful disclosures and non‐disclosures generally supported therapists’ rationales. There was also some evidence that when clients found disclosures unhelpful, the reasons also supported theoretical rationales against disclosing. Rather than simply supporting either position in the controversy, this study suggests that skill, or lack of it, was the intervening variable that affected the perceptions of both techniques. Further research on the effects of skill on both disclosure and non‐disclosure are warranted. This study has implications for both researchers and practitioners.     

Young children's beliefs about self‐disclosure of performance failure and success

Self‐disclosure of performance information involves the balancing of instrumental, learning benefits (e.g., obtaining help) against social costs (e.g., diminished reputation). Little is known about young children's beliefs about performance self‐disclosure. The present research investigates preschool‐ and early school‐age children's expectations of self‐disclosure in different contexts. In two experiments, 3‐ to 7‐year‐old children (total N = 252) heard vignettes about characters who succeeded or failed at solving a puzzle. Both experiments showed that children across all ages reasoned that people are more likely to self‐disclose positive than negative performances, and Experiment 2 showed that children across all ages reasoned that people are more likely to self‐disclose both positive and negative performances in a supportive than an unsupportive peer environment. Additionally, both experiments revealed changes with age – Younger children were less likely to expect people to withhold their performance information (of both failures and successes) than older children. These findings point to the preschool ages as a crucial beginning to children's developing recognition of people's reluctance to share performance information.     

The Influence of Disclosure and Ethics Education on Perceptions of Financial Conflicts of Interest

This study explored how disclosure of financial conflicts of interest (FCOI) influences naïve or “lay” individuals’ perceptions of the ethicality of researcher conduct. On a between-subjects basis, participants read ten scenarios in which researchers disclosed or failed to disclose relevant financial conflicts of interest. Participants evaluated the extent to which each vignette represented a FCOI, its possible influence on researcher objectivity, and the ethics of the financial relationship. Participants were then asked if they had completed a college-level ethics course. Results indicated that FCOI disclosure significantly influenced participants’ perceptions of the ethicality of the situation, but only marginally affected perceptions of researcher objectivity and had no significant influence on perceptions of the existence of FCOIs. Participants who had previously completed a college-level ethics course appeared more sensitive to the importance of FCOI disclosure than those who lacked such background. This result suggests that formal ethical training may help individuals become more critical consumers of scientific research.     

Shameful secrets and shame-prone dispositions: How outcome expectations mediate the relation between shame and disclosure

Shame may be a deterrent to disclosing secrets to a counselor, and shame-proneness may be associated with generalized tendencies to avoid disclosure of distress. If so, the mechanism explaining these relations might be the expected outcomes about disclosure. College students in the United States (N?=?312) thought of a shameful secret of theirs, and they rated the degree of shame they felt about the secret, their willingness to disclose the secret to a potential counselor, and their expected support from a potential counselor (i.e. outcome expectation). Participants also completed dispositional measures of shame-proneness, generalized outcome expectations about disclosure, and disclosure tendencies. Mediation analyses revealed that participants’ experiences of shame regarding their secrets predicted lower anticipated support from the counselor which predicted lower willingness to disclose the secret. This effect largely replicated at the dispositional level, such that anticipated risks of disclosure mediated the relationship between shame-proneness and disclosure tendencies. These findings suggest that counselor efforts to promote healthy client disclosure could target the client’s outcome expectations about disclosure rather than the client’s degree of shame.     

Advance Directives: Assessing Stage of Change and Decisional Balance in a Community-Based Educational Program

This study assessed the applicability of the transtheoretical model (TTM) to completing/revising advance directives (ADs). Participants in a community-based educational program completed pre- and post-program questionnaires concerning the completing/revising of ADs. Multiple-item scales were constructed to categorize participants into a stage of change: precontemplation (8%), contemplation (44%), preparation (4%), action (22%), and maintenance (19%). A decisional balance scale was constructed using 5 positive and 5 negative perceptions of ADs. The findings provided support for the applicability of the TTM to completing/revising ADs. The cons outweighed the pros among participants in the precontemplation stage, while the pros outweighed the cons among those in the action stage. One pro was that an AD would relieve family members of decision-making burdens.     

“Being human”: A grounded theory approach to exploring how trainers on clinical psychology doctorate programmes decide whether or not to disclose personal experiences of psychological distress to clinical psychology doctorate trainees

Objective

Recent research and guidelines recommend that trainers on clinical psychology doctorate training programmes consider disclosing personal experiences of psychological distress to trainees. Disclosure is thought to promote cultures of openness, validate and normalise trainee distress, encourage trainee disclosure and help-seeking and challenge stigmatising narratives. However, little is known about how trainers decide whether, what or how to disclose. This study aims to address that gap by exploring the processes and factors involved in trainers deciding whether or not to disclose personal experiences of psychological distress to trainees, generating findings of relevance across counselling, psychotherapy and psychology training courses.

Methods

In-depth interviews were conducted with nine trainers on UK clinical psychology doctorate programmes from around the country and analysed in accordance with constructivist grounded theory methods.

Results

Findings indicated that participants valued disclosure personally and professionally but were wary of the dangers of disclosure. Disclosure decisions were made by judging the context against internally held criteria. If criteria were not met, then disclosures were not made. Outcomes, whether positive or negative, served to reinforce the value of disclosure and the importance of managing risks, creating a positive feedback loop.

Conclusions

The findings of this study suggest factors that are important for trainers to consider when deciding whether or not to disclose. The six-factor framework developed may be useful for trainers to consider within reflective practice, supervision or during guided self-reflection in order to make safe, helpful and ethical decisions.     

An experimental test to reveal negative side-effects of high treatability information on preventative health behaviour

Objectives: When the course of a disease can be positively changed by health professionals the disease can be indicated as ‘highly treatable’. This ‘high treatability information’ (HTI) may have negative side-effects on people’s preventative motivation. This study examined the effects of HTI regarding skin cancer on preventative motivation.

Design: This study employed a 2 (high treatability (HTI) versus low treatability (LTI)) × 2 (high versus low susceptibility)?experiment with a hanging control group. (family) History and self-efficacy were assessed as moderators. Participants (N = 309) were randomly assigned to one of the five conditions.

Main outcome measures: The main outcome was intention to engage in preventative actions regarding skin cancer.

Results: HTI significantly lowered the intention compared to LTI, under the condition of high susceptibility in people with low self-efficacy. In addition, in people with a (family) history of skin cancer, HTI significantly lowered the intention compared to the no-information group.

Conclusion: HTI regarding skin cancer can cause a drop in the preventative motivation. The effects can be conceptualised as negative side-effects of HTI. As substantial proportions of the general population have a (family) history of skin cancer or low self-efficacy, the side-effects may be widespread, possibly increasing the incidence of skin cancer.     

The effects of self-disclosure and non self-disclosure of stuttering on listeners' perceptions of a person who stutters

The aim of this study was to examine listener perceptions of an adult male person who stutters (PWS) who did or did not disclose his stuttering. Ninety adults who do not stutter individually viewed one of three videotaped monologues produced by a male speaker with severe stuttering. In one monologue, 30 listeners heard the speaker disclose stuttering at the beginning and in another monologue, 30 listeners heard the speaker disclose stuttering at the end. A third group of 30 listeners viewed a monologue where no disclosure of stuttering occurred. After listeners viewed a monologue, they were asked to rate a set of six Likert scale statements and answer three open-ended questions. The results showed that only one of six Likert statements was significantly different across the three conditions. The only statement that was different was that the speaker was perceived to be significantly more friendly when disclosing stuttering at the end of the monologue than when not disclosing stuttering. There were no significant differences between the percentage of positive and negative comments made by listeners across the three conditions. Listeners' comments to each open-ended question showed they were comfortable listening to stuttering with or without disclosure and slightly more than half of the listeners believed their perceptions of the speaker did not change when he disclosed stuttering. The results also showed that the speaker who disclosed stuttering at the beginning of the monologue received significantly more positive listener comments than when he disclosed stuttering at the end of the monologue. Results are discussed relative to comparisons with the study, the clinical relevance of acknowledging stuttering as a component of treatment, and future research on the self-disclosure of stuttering. Educational objectives: The reader will be able to: (1) describe how different groups of listeners perceive and respond to two conditions of self-disclosure of stuttering and one condition involving non self-disclosure of stuttering; (2) summarize the range of listener responses to and benefits of self-disclosure of stuttering; and (3) describe the value of self-disclosure of stuttering for the listener and the speaker.     

Disclosing Extra-Dyadic Involvement (EDI): Understanding Attitudes, Subjective Norms, and Perceived Behavioral Control

Extra-dyadic involvement (EDI) is a complex issue that affects many individuals, couples, and families. One important, relatively unexplored issue concerns the disclosure of EDI. Despite some scholarly discourse on whether disclosure should be facilitated in a therapeutic context (e.g., Butler et al. in J Marital Fam Ther 35:125–143, 2009; Butler et al. in Am J Fam Ther 36:265–283, 2008), empirical research has not studied the intrapersonal or interpersonal processes related to disclosure. In this study, we explored potential factors involved in the decision to disclose EDI by looking at the relationships among attitudes towards EDI (in terms of perceived justifications and costs), subjective norms (obligation to disclose), and perceived behavioral control (difficulty) associated with EDI disclosure. Our sample included 337 individuals enrolled in at least one university course at one of three geographically distinct universities. Findings indicate that more permissive attitudes towards EDI are not significantly associated to the perceived difficulty in disclosing EDI or the obligation associated with disclosing EDI involving sexual intercourse. However, more permissive attitudes are related to lower felt obligation to disclose EDI that does not involve direct sexual intercourse. Conversely, more restrictive attitudes towards EDI (perceived severity, degree of perceived upset, and how detrimental it is perceived to be to the relationship) predicted greater difficulty but also greater obligation in disclosing all forms of EDI. Specific implications of these findings, including potential implications for therapy, are discussed. Overall, this study provides preliminary information regarding potentially useful factors to consider in understanding the EDI disclosure process that may also be useful in developing intervention points in therapy.     

Testing Two Theoretical Explanations for the Attraction-Enhancing Effects of Self-Disclosure

The study investigated the differential ability of similarity theory and social exchange theory to predict the effects of self-disclosure in a counseling versus a friendship encounter The participants were 80 undergraduates. A 2 (counseling or friendship) × 2 (positive or negative disclosure) × 2 (relevant or irrelevant disclosure) design was used in which participants rated the videotaped self-disclosure of an individual in an initial dyadic encounter. Unequivocal support was not obtained for either of the theories, but relationship context (counselor vs. peer) influenced the effects of disclosure as measured on counselor-peer and relationship characteristics. A unique feature of the study was the use of the Client Reactions System (CRS) to measure participants' immediate reactions to self-disclosure. The CRS demonstrated both relationship context and valence of disclosure (positive or negative) effects.     

Regrets and Advice from Mothers who have Disclosed their HIV + Serostatus to their Young Children

Qualitative interviews were conducted with mothers (N = 47) who had disclosed their HIV status to their child. Mothers described their preparation and the process of the disclosure event, and discussed any regrets they had about disclosing or the process of disclosing. They were also asked what advice they had for other HIV-positive mothers who were trying to determine whether to disclose their serostatus to their young children. Overall, the majority of the mothers (68%) did not regret disclosing their HIV status. Regrets fell into five categories: preparation, timing, context, content, and outcomes of the disclosure event. Based on these findings, mothers who have not disclosed their serostatus to their children need assistance with behavioral practice and support in order to prepare for the process. Furthermore, follow-up support for the children may be beneficial.     

The social and economic impact of trichotillomania: results from two nonreferred samples

Behavior therapy has been widely used as a treatment for trichotillomania. However, behavioral treatments for TTM have tended to focus on behavior reduction, while not paying as much attention to social and economic impact. The current study sought to clarify the social and economic impact of Trichotillomania (TTM) in two samples of persons with TTM. Members of the first sample attended a TTM patient conference (N = 36) and members of the second responded to an online survey (N = 381). Both samples completed self‐report measures that examined the impact of TTM on avoiding activities and relationships, as well as financial costs. Results indicated that both groups reported similar amounts of avoidance in social situations, sought help from multiple health professionals, spent considerable time engaged in hair pulling activities, and had interference in both work and school. The study suggests a number of ways to decrease the negative impact of TTM. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Characteristics of secrets and the frequency,reasons and effects of secrets keeping and disclosure

This longitudinal study examines secrets keeping and disclosure. College students filled in two questionnaires, with a 4 months time span in between. Their psychological and physical wellbeing was investigated, together with self‐esteem, the topic and some characteristics of their most important secret (if they had a secret), reasons for having the secret, to whom they confide the secret, how they felt about confiding, and whether they thought that their behaviour would reveal that they kept a secret when they talked with someone who is not aware of their secret. The findings showed that total secrecy was rare, and that most secret‐holders had informed at least one other person about their secret. Moreover, the findings challenge the view that secrets keeping has negative effects on secret‐holders. Results revealed some negative effects, but only when the secret was serious. No positive effects were found for secrets disclosure. Secret‐holders confided information to those with whom they felt emotionally close; were more reluctant to confide when they kept the secret to avoid disapproval, and more likely to confide when they believed that others would find out about their secrets by paying attention to their (secret‐holders) behaviour. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.