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The effects of an equine assisted learning supervision intervention on counselors'-in-training performance anxiety and counseling self- efficacy
Meola, C. C., Sias, S. M., Atherton, W. L., Leierer, S. J., Crowe, A., & Scroggs, L. B. (2022). The effects of an equine assisted learning supervision intervention on counselors'-in-training performance anxiety and counseling self- efficacy. Journal of Creativity in Mental Health, 17(2), 154-168. https://doi.org/10.1080/15401383.2020.1848674
Counseling deals with a myriad of complex human emotions, and competency takes years of practice and experience. Counselors-intraining (CITs) who do not expect this complexity experience overwhelming performance anxiety. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of an equine assisted learning supervision (EALS) intervention on CITs' performance anxiety and counseling self-efficacy. The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-State and Counseling Self-Estimate Inventory measured CITs' pre-post (N = 20; treatment group, n = 10; control group n = 10) performance anxiety and counseling self-efficacy. Results yielded a significant difference between the treatment and control groups' counseling self-efficacy but not their performance anxiety. Participants were able to relate their interaction with horses to interactions with clients. Counseling self-efficacy of the treatment group increased ten times more than the control group. This study supports that a one-hour EAL-S intervention may improve CITs' counseling self-efficacy and improve their tolerance for performance anxiety.
