VERBAL, PARAVERBAL, AND NONVERBAL MEANS OF COMMUNICATION FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL COUNSELORS

Abstract

The article is devoted to a comprehensive analysis of verbal, paraverbal, and nonverbal means of communication in the professional activity of a psychologist-consultant. It is substantiated that the quality of consultative interaction is largely determined not only by the content of speech, but also by the peculiarities of its emotional and expressive and nonverbal accompaniment. The essence of verbal characteristics, in particular, content, accuracy, clarity, expressiveness, and relevance, which ensure the informativeness and logicality of communication and create conditions for building trust with the client, is revealed. It is shown that nonverbal manifestations – posture, facial expressions, gestures, eye contact, and interpersonal distance – perform the function of feedback, signal the authenticity and empathy of the consultant, and contribute to the establishment of partnership interaction. The role of paraverbal characteristics of speech, in particular intonation, tempo, volume, and pauses, which influence the emotional background of the conversation and regulate its rhythm, is highlighted. Based on an analysis of a counseling situation with a client who is in a state of adaptation after forced resettlement, the effectiveness of the integrated use of these means of communication for the client’s awareness of their own experiences, identification of internal resources, and formation of a sense of psychological security is demonstrated.The study emphasizes that the interaction of verbal, paraverbal, and nonverbal components creates a comprehensive communication strategy that is decisive for the effectiveness of psychological assistance.A promising direction for further scientific research is the study of cultural, age, and gender factors in the perception of communication tools, as well as the development of training programs to improve the communication skills of future specialists.