Comparison of group and individual counseling approaches in relation to measured changes in scholastic probation students

The purpose of this study was to compare the relative effectiveness of group and individual counseling procedures in promoting changes in achievement and self-perception in scholastic probation students. The investigation sought to determine whether individual or group counseling procedures had a significantly greater relationship with change in academic achievement and a measure of claimed intellectual self-concept. The student's GPA was used as a measure of achievement. Intellectual self-concept scores were obtained by administering an adjective checklist scale. The subjects of the study were male liberal arts students at Texas A&M University. All subjects were on scholastic probation for failing to maintain a "C" average (a 1.00 on a 3.00 grading system). Of the 88 probationary students who volunteered for the study, 44 were members of four counseling groups and the other 44 members participated in individual counseling. The participating subjects were randomly selected from a list of students who volunteered for group counseling. Group counseling was provided in four separate subgroups. Two of the subgroups met for 90-minutes a week for eight weeks. The two remaining subgroups met for six hours a day for two consecutive Saturdays. The individual counseling sessions ranged from 12 to 25 minutes in length and no student had more than one such interview. The counselors, who served as group leaders, were selected from the professional staff at Texas A&M. Each counselor employed an unstructured, group-centered approach.