CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE WORKING ALLIANCE IN THE PRACTICE OF CAREER COUNSELING

We see the working alliance, a construct well articulated in the psychoanalytic counseling literature, as a key element in enhancing the counseling of those with career concerns. This article decribes the working alliance as that sector of the overall experience of counseling participants characterized by their collaboration, mutuality and cooperation with regard to the work of counseling. The dimensions of the working alliance, the counselor and client contributions to it, and the perspectives of others about it are discussed. This study reviews obstacles to building and sustaining the alliance, such as resistance in the form of fear of counseling, and confusion related to counseling goals, tasks, and bonds. Finally, mention is made of the possible research and policy implications of emphasizing the working alliance in career counseling practice.