Vocational rehabilitation counselor characteristics as predictors of employment outcomes for visually impaired clients

The purposes of this study were to examine the relationships of vocational rehabilitation counselor characteristics to the number of clients they successfully rehabilitated in various categories and to investigate the particular relationship of gender to counseling outcomes. Twelve independent variables were used to predict four criterion variables: (a) the total number of successfully closed cases, (b) the number of cases closed as competitively employed, (c) the number of cases closed as noncompetitively employed, and (d) the number of cases closed as nonremuneratively employed. A national sample of 105 vocational rehabilitation counselors supplied selected biographical data and completed the Personal Styles Inventory (Kunce, Cope, & Newton, 1986). The independent variables included five biographical items, scores from six scales of the Personal Styles Inventory, and the size of the counselor's caseload. The mean number of closures in each criterion group were compared for male and female counselors to test for significant differences due to gender.

Results indicate that caseload size, age, experience, and counselor certification are biographical predictors of various criteria. Predictors from the Personal Styles Inventory include the scores on scales designed to measure the constructs enthusiastic, autonomous, reserved, affiliating, and ideological. No significant effect due to gender was found for any of the four criteria.

Suggestions are included for future research.