Italian Validation of the Expectations About Counseling–Brief Form (EAC-B) Among Students Attending a University Counseling Intervention

Patient expectations are recognized as a significant common factor influencing engagement and outcomes in psychological interventions, but their contribution in the context of brief university counseling remains understudied. the present study aimed to validate the Italian version of the expectations About Counseling – Brief Form (eAC-B) and assessed its predictive role with respect to the working alliance and intervention outcome. Study 1 involved 279 university students who completed the eAC-B at baseline and measures of working alliance and psychological distress after the intervention. An exploratory factor analysis (eFA), together with reliability and predictive validity analyses, supported a two-factor structure – Counselor expertise and Personal Commitment – which explained 40.9% of the variance. Both factors showed excellent internal consistency. Personal commitment significantly predicted all components of the working alliance (goals, tasks, bond) and greater reduction in psychological distress, indicating its central role in the effectiveness of brief counseling. Counselor expertise predicted only the bond dimension of the working alliance and was not related to decreased distress. Study 2, conducted on 315 students, examined the refined version of the 48-item scale. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) replicated the two-factor solution with satisfactory fit indices. overall, the results provide strong evidence for the psychometric validity of the Italian eAC-B and highlight personal commitment as the most robust predictor of alliance quality and counseling outcomes. Assessing expectations at intake may therefore be a valuable component in optimizing engagement and effectiveness in short-term university counseling interventions.