Perceptions Of Fee For Counseling And Psychotherapy

This study will explore the relationships among fees, expectations about counseling, counselors'competence and clients'satisfaction from clients'perspective.In study one, using real-life client perception to examine counselors'fee levels and the relationship between the perceptions of counselor counseling competence and client satisfaction. Result found Fee level may affect perception of attractiveness, expertness and counselor counseling competence, high-fee condition rated the counselors higher than did clients in the middle-fee condition and low-fee condition; fee level will directly affect client satisfaction through counselor counseling competence. Result also found that counselor counseling competence will mediate the relationship between fee and clients' satisfaction.In study two, using real-life clients to explore fee level how to affect clients expectation about counseling. Clients who entered the counseling center for counseling were asked to fill in expectations about counseling measurement. In the meantime, we explore the relationships between fee level and clients'expectations about counseling. Result found fee level will affect clients in different level of expectations about counseling. But, low-fee payment clients have the lowest expectation than free payment clients and middle fee payment clients have the highest expectation among the four kinds of payments.In study three, using analogue study to ask non-students participation to fill in the questionnaire. The questionnaire have four fee level(fee, low, middle, high) designs in counseling services. Questionnaire insides described will ask subjects to imagine themselves as the client who will enter counseling service center. We want to explore the subjects who have no counseling intention, whether be affect their expectations about counseling and perception of counselor competence by fee level or not. Result found, fee still affect subjects expectations about counseling no matter they have no counseling intention. But, fee won't affect subject's perception of counselor competence. In the meantime, clients expectations about counseling have no relevant with perceptions of counselor competence. In study four, we used the data of study one study two and study three to explore the difference of real-life clients between analogue subjects. Result found that real-life clients no matter in expectations about counseling or in perception of counselor competence, all have higher expectations about counseling and perception of counselor competence than analogue subjects.In study five, we used qualitative method to explore how fee affect the perceptions of clients and counselors. We want to know how many differences between clients and counselors in their fee attitudes and perceptions. Actually, we found can category two core concepts, nine main concepts, and twenty six minor concepts. We can say the perceptions of clients will use two core concepts of outside factor and inside factor to category. Outside factors contain economic income, prior counseling experiences, problem severity, counseling information acquired. Inside factors contain clients' expectation, cognation, motivation, and outcome.