Working alliance as a mediator and moderator between expectations for counseling success and counseling outcome among Korean clients

The study examined client’s perceptions of working alliance as a mediator and moderator between client expectations of counseling success and counseling outcome. Participants were 284 adult clients in counseling in university or community counseling centers or private practices in South Korea. Level of functioning at the start of counseling was used to control for counseling outcome. Results of structural equation modeling analyses indicated that working alliance fully mediated the relationship between client expectations of counseling success and counseling outcome. In addition, moderation of counseling expectations by working alliance on counseling outcome was supported. Implications for research and practice are discussed.