Process / pipelinetherapeutic-alliance

Working Alliance Inventory

The Working Alliance Inventory (WAI) is a validated, empirically supported measure of the therapeutic alliance—the collaborative relationship between therapist and client. Developed by Horvath and Greenberg in 1989, the WAI operationalizes Bordin's tripartite model of alliance: agreement on goals, agreement on tasks, and emotional bond. It is one of the most widely used alliance measures in psychotherapy research and is a strong predictor of psychotherapy outcome across diverse theoretical orientations and client populations.

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Sources

  1. Horvath, A. O., & Greenberg, L. S. (1989). Development and validation of the Working Alliance Inventory. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 36(2), 223–233. DOI: 10.1037/0022-0167.36.2.223

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Referenced by

ScholarGateWorking Alliance Inventory (Working Alliance Inventory (WAI)). Retrieved 2026-06-04 from https://scholargate.app/en/psychotherapy-research/working-alliance-inventory