Students’ Impressions of Psychotherapists’ Offices

Abstract

Research suggests that the softness, personalization, and order of the interior design elements of an office might affect appraisals of its psychotherapist. This research examines whether these perceptions are stable across students’ judgments in three cultures: the United States, Turkey, and Vietnam. Participants in each country responded to 30 color photographs of psychotherapists’ offices viewed from the client’s perspective, rating the quality of care and comfort expected in each office. Analyses revealed strong correlations between responses by participants from each country. Perceived quality of care and comfort improved with increases in office softness/personalization and orderliness. Analysis of the reported reasons in making judgments confirmed the importance of these dimensions. Future research could test the consistency of these responses to broader and more diverse sets of respondents and offices. The findings suggest the potential value of psychotherapeutic environments that are soft/personalized and orderly.