Shifting Perspectives A Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Working Alliance Inventory (Short Form) With High-Risk Violent Offenders

• NCJ Number: 237224
• Journal: International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparartive Criminology Volume: 55 Issue: 8 Dated: December 2011 Pages: 1308-1323
• Author(s): Elizabeth C. Ross; Devon L. L. Polaschek; Marc Wilson
• Date Published: December 2011
• Length: 16 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study examined the Working Alliance Inventory (WAI).

Abstract

The Working Alliance Inventory (WAI) is the most widely used measure of the therapeutic alliance. However, previous studies of the factor structure of the WAI have obtained disparate results. This study examined ratings from three rater perspectives (therapists, clients, and observers) in a rehabilitation program for high-risk violent prisoners with high PCL-psychopathy scores. The authors used confirmatory factor analysis with a short version of the WAI and examined one-, two-, and three-factor models. It was hypothesized that the context and client characteristics could alter the factor structure of the ratings. However, no differences were found in factor structure by perspective; the results from all rater perspectives suggested that a two-factor structure was the best fit for the data. Thus, the authors concluded that therapists, observers, and prisoners all saw the goals and task aspects of the therapeutic alliance as distinct from the bond component. (Published Abstract)