The influences of Chinese and Chinese-American students' cultural worldviews and acculturation levels on preferences toward three psychotherapy approaches

The purpose of this study was to examine Chinese and Chinese-American college students' preferences toward three different psychotherapy approaches Psychoanalytic, Behavioral, and Client-Centered). This study focused on Chinese populations rather than grouping Asian populations together. This study also examined how the acculturation levels and worldviews, are related to an individual's preference for a particular psychotherapy approach.;The three theoretically derived psychotherapy approaches were selected instead of directive and non-directive psychotherapy styles, as used in previous studies. The participants' acculturation levels were measured through the Suinn-Lew Asian Self-Identity Acculturation Scale (SL-ASIA). Worldviews were measured through The Scale to Assess Worldviews (SAWV). The participants' preferences for a particular psychotherapy approach was measured through the Preferences of Psychotherapy Approaches Scale developed for this study.;A total of 300 Chinese and Chinese-American graduate and undergraduate students from two academic institutions in New York City participated in this study. The results showed that overall, the participants preferred Psychoanalytic approach the most, followed by Client-Centered approach and Behavioral approach. This result is not supported by the dominant view in the literature which concluded that Asians and Asian-Americans would prefer directive style of psychotherapy over nondirective style of psychotherapy. This study showed that the preference for the directive and nondirective styles of psychotherapy might be different than the preference for the theoretically derived psychotherapy approaches.;Both worldviews and acculturation levels failed to be strong predictors for an individual's preference for a particular psychotherapy approach. However, educational levels and previous psychotherapy experiences showed significant relationships with preferences for different psychotherapy approaches. Undergraduate students significantly preferred Behavioral approach more than graduate students. Also, individuals with previous psychotherapy experiences significantly preferred Psychoanalytic approach more than those who did not.;Future study should examine the relationships between different cognitive and learning styles (such as concrete or abstract learning styles) with preferences for different psychotherapy approaches among the Asian populations. Since this study is analogue in nature, it will be important to examine the preferences of the actual clients in psychotherapy.