The Halo Effect: Considerations for the Evaluation of Counselor Competency

The following experimental study investigated the relationship of the halo effect and gender influence in the counseling evaluation of graduate students using the Counseling Skills Scales-Revised (CSS-R). Participants (N=74) were assigned to two groups where recipients of a digitally recorded counseling session were led to believe a novice performed the counseling session, and the second group was led to believe an expert performed the counseling session. Overall, the findings indicate the halo effect is a significant source of bias.