Conceptualizing Common Factors in Counseling

The purpose of this study was to conceptualize the common factors across many counseling approaches that were crucial for the process and outcome of counseling. The proposed conceptual framework consisted of four constructs comprising common factors: the client's characteristics, the therapist's characteristics, the process of change (counseling relationship; counseling techniques; placebo, hope and expectancy; and rituals), and the counseling context. All of the common factors, derived from preceding literature and integrated into a systematic form, were interactive and embedded within a process-based holistic framework. Implications for counseling research, practice and education/training were elaborated.