Examining therapist estimation of client working alliance and client symptom outcome using truth and bias model and response surface analysis.

Objective: The aims of this study were to investigate the congruence and discrepancy between Chinese therapist trainees' estimated client working alliance (WA) and their clients' actual WA rating, and how the congruence and discrepancy predicted client symptom outcome.

Methods: Participants were 211 beginning therapist trainees and 1216 clients. Data from their 6888 sessions were analyzed using Truth and Bias Model and Response Surface Model.

The development of a Brief Working Alliance Inventory for clients and therapists using multilevel factor analysis and item response theory in the United States and China.

This study aimed to investigate the multilevel factor structure of the therapist and client versions of the 12-item Working Alliance Inventory-Short Revised (WAI; Hatcher & Gillaspy, 2006) in the United States and China, and to create a three-item brief version (WAI-B3) using multilevel factor analysis (M-FA) and multilevel item response theory (M-IRT). We gathered eight data sets from two samples each in United States and China with a total of 21,623 sessions from 376 therapists and 2,455 clients. M-FA results with the first four data sets (two American and two Chinese) suggested that the 12-item WAI across therapist and client versions, and in both United States and China showed a dominant general WA factor with three specific subgroup factors corresponding to the Goal, Task, and Bond items.

Exploring Therapist Self-Efficacy Change Profiles Using Latent Growth Curve Analysis.

Objective: This study investigated the overall developmental trajectories of three conceptually progressive aspects of counseling self-efficacy, including helping skills (HS), session management (SM), and counseling challenges (CH), among beginning therapist trainees in China.

Method: Participants included 103 beginning therapist trainees in a master's level counselor training programme in China, who filled out measures of counselor self-efficacy in three waves over one year of practicum.

Results: (a) Trainees showed highest initial level of HS, followed by SM, with CH being the lowest; and there were significant increases in all three aspects of self-efficacy.