In reality therapy, which practice helps clients take responsibility for their actions?

• A. Dream interpretation
• B. Free association
• C. Goal-setting and contracts
• D. Transference

Answer: (C)

Reality therapy centers on personal responsibility and choosing actions that meet needs in the present moment. The way this accountability is reinforced is through goal-setting and contracts. When a client and therapist set specific, achievable goals and formalize them in a contract that outlines what will be done, by when, and how progress will be measured, the client has a concrete plan and a commitment to follow through. This structure turns intentions into actions and makes responsibility for outcomes clear.

Dream interpretation and free association come from other therapeutic traditions and focus on exploring unconscious material or past experiences rather than shaping present behavior and accountability. Transference is about the client’s unconscious feelings toward the therapist, a phenomenon more linked to psychodynamic work than to promoting responsible action. So, goal-setting and contracts best foster the sense that the client is in control of their choices and their path to change.