The communicative potential of counseling psychologists

The author emphasizes the need to obtain empirical data on the communicative characteristics of practicing consulting psychologists and the dynamics of their communicative qualities in the process and outcome of their professional activities. The significance of studying this problem is highlighted for addressing the tasks of optimizing the training programs for practical psychologists, improving the quality of practical psychological work, while noting the insufficient investigation of this issue in domestic psychological science. All of the above has predetermined the choice of the subject and object of the study. The subject of the research is the features of the communicative potential and its dynamics among psychologists engaged in consulting practice. The empirical object of the research includes practicing consulting psychologists (50 individuals) with 10–15 years of consulting experience. The following methods were used: "Emotional Response Scale" (A. Mehrabian, N. Epstein); "Diagnosis of Communication Features" (V.N. Nedashkovsky); "Diagnosis of Communication Style Type" (V.V. Boyko); "Self-Regulation and Success in Interpersonal Communication" (V.N. Kunitsyna). For statistical data processing, "Statistics 13.4" was employed: descriptive statistics and correlation analysis (Spearman's coefficient). The main conclusions of the research are as follows. The identified high empathy of consulting psychologists can be regarded as a significant determinant of the effectiveness of psychological counseling; simultaneously, the high probability of developing professional burnout syndrome, or "compassion fatigue," is noted. A complex combination of varying degrees of professionally significant communicative qualities of consulting psychologists has been established: high levels of self-esteem, partnership communication style, satisfaction with communication with close individuals, sensitivity, and trust in people; a low degree of some communicative qualities that hinder communication, and an increased degree of others, which may lead to the development of professional deformation. There is a complex transformation of the communicative potential of consulting psychologists associated with experience: the development of empathetic abilities, significant overcoming of shyness and conflict, strengthening of partnership orientation, and a reduction in overt forms of aggression while simultaneously accumulating negative communication experiences and increasing pessimistic attitudes, reflecting both positive aspects of professional development and risks of professional deformation. Shyness, conflict, and empathy are the most dynamic and sensitive to the influence of professional experience, undergoing the most significant changes during the professional development of consulting psychologists.