Predicting openness to experience among counselors: Sensory processing sensitivity and psychological well-being

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of psychological well-being and sensory processing sensitivity in predicting psychological counselors'/candidates' levels of openness to experiences. In the current study, a relational research design was used. The study group of the research consists of senior students, undergraduate students and postgraduate students who are studying or have studied in the GPC program in Turkey. Participants were required to have conducted at least one psychological counseling session during their education or professional career. The research sample consists of 306 senior psychological counselors and graduate psychological counselors from different universities with GPC programs in Turkey during the 2022-2023 spring academic year and 2023-2024 fall semesters. In the study, the Miville-Guzman Universality-Diversity Scale Short Form (M-GUDS-S) in order to determine individuals' openness levels to experiences; Sensory Processing Sensitivity Scale in order to measure individuals' sensory processing sensitivity levels and; Psychological Well-Being Scale in order to measure the psychological well-being of individuals; and the Personal Information Form designed by the researcher was used. SPSS 26.0 version and Jamovi program were used to analyze the data. The study revealed that psychological well-being strongly predicts the levels of openness to experience among psychological counselors and candidates. Additionally, sensory processing sensitivity emerged as another significant predictor of their openness to experience. The research findings were discussed within the framework of the relevant literature and recommendations were made to practitioners, researchers and policy makers. Openness to Differences, Psychological Well-Being, Sensory Processing Sensitivity