Factor Structure of the Short Version of the Working Alliance Inventory and Its Longitudinal Measurement Invariance Across Individual Career Counseling Sessions

Abstract

The aim of the present study was 2-fold: (a) to examine the factor structure of the short version of the Working Alliance Inventory (WAI-S) in clients who were engaged in individual career counseling sessions and (b) to investigate whether the factor structure of the WAI-S is invariant across the first and the third career counseling sessions. A total of 283 clients seeking individual career counseling completed the WAI-S at the end of the first session (T1). Of the 283 clients, 217 also completed the WAI-S at the end of the third session (T2). Confirmatory factor analyses were performed to assess the fit of one-factor, two-factor, three-factor, and bilevel hierarchical models. The results showed that the three-factor and the bilevel hierarchical models had the best fit to the data at both T1 and T2. The factor structure of the WAI-S was invariant across the first and the third career counseling sessions. Results suggest that researchers and clinicians can use the WAI-S knowing that it adequately measures Bordin’s theoretical model of working alliance in the specific context of individual career counseling.