Clients' Expectations About Counseling and Perceptions of the Working Alliance

Abstract

Abstract We examined the relations between clients' expectations about counseling and their ratings of working alliance dimensions. Thirty-seven clients seeking individual counseling at university-based counseling facilities completed the Expectations About Counseling-Brief form (EAC-B) prior to their first counseling session and the Working Alliance Inventory (WAI) after their third session. Results of multiple regression analyses revealed that clients' expectations for personal commitment were positively related to their WAI ratings for agreement on tasks and agreement on goals. Expectations for counselor expertise were inversely related to client WAI ratings for agreement on tasks. No significant relations were found for expectations for facilitative conditions or for WAI bond ratings. Implications for counseling and recommendations for future research are discussed.