Active placebo describes that counselor and client expectations play a major role in the helping process. Which option reflects this idea?

• A. Active placebo describes that counselor and client expectations play a major role in the helping process.
• B. It refers to a pharmacological placebo with active ingredients.
• C. It asserts that expectations have no impact on outcomes.
• D. It refers to a therapy technique using exposure

Answer: (A)

The idea being tested is that what clients and counselors expect can shape how effective therapy is—the expectancy or placebo effect in psychotherapy. The best choice states that counselor and client expectations play a major role in the helping process, which directly captures how belief, perception, and the therapeutic relationship can drive improvements beyond technique alone. This aligns with how expectancy effects operate: when clients anticipate improvement and feel supported by the therapist, they’re more likely to experience positive change. The other options miss the psychosocial focus: one describes a pharmacological placebo with active ingredients (not about counseling), another says expectations have no impact (the opposite of the concept), and another points to an exposure technique (a specific therapeutic method, not the expectancy mechanism).