The authors report the development of an instrument to assess the strength of the helping
relationship in social work The Helping Relationship Inventory has both client (HRI:C) and
worker (HRI: W) versions. The HRI:C measures the strength of the helping relationship m social
work practice from the perspective of the client, and the HRI: W measures the strength of the
helping relationship from the perspective of the worker. The HRI:C is composed of items that
capture those aspects of the helping relationship that are most salient to clients. The HRI: W is
composed of items that capture those aspects of the helping relationship that are most salient to
workers providing help. Both the client and worker versions of the inventory have acceptable
reliability and validity estimates.
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