Morality and Adult Attachment Style as Predictors of Psychotherapy Process and Outcome Expectations

Abstract

This study examined whether moral foundations and adult attachment style predict expectations for counseling. Hierarchical regression models were used to analyze self-report questionnaires of 963 participants. Moral foundations related to harm-care, fairness-reciprocity, and authority-respect were significantly positively related to both process and outcome counseling expectations. Adult attachment anxiety was positively related to outcome expectations, whereas adult attachment avoidance was negatively related to process and outcome expectations. Moral foundations and adult attachment style are important predictors of therapy process and outcome expectations. Implications for practitioners and future research are discussed.