Person-Centered Therapy Chapter 7
1
Person-Centered View of Human Nature
At their core, humans are trustworthy and positive
Humans are capable of making changes and living productive, effective lives
Humans innately gravitate toward self-actualization
Actualizing tendency
Given the right growth-fostering conditions, individuals strive to move forward and fulfill their creative nature
2
Person-Centered Therapy (A reaction against the directive and psychoanalytic approaches)
Challenges:
The assumption that “the counselor knows best”
The validity of advice, suggestion, persuasion, teaching, diagnosis, and interpretation
The belief that clients cannot understand and resolve their own problems without direct help
The focus on problems over persons
3
Person-Centered Therapy
Emphasizes:
Therapy as a journey shared by two fallible people
The person’s innate striving for self-actualization
The personal characteristics of the therapist and the quality of the therapeutic relationship
The counselor’s creation of a permissive, “growth-promoting” climate
People are capable of self-directed growth if involved in a therapeutic relationship
4
Therapy is a Growth-Promoting Climate
Congruence
Genuineness or realness in the therapy session
Therapist’s behaviors match his or her words
Unconditional positive regard
Acceptance and genuine caring about the client as a valuable person
Accepting clients as they presently are
Therapist need not approve of all client behavior
Accurate empathic understanding
The ability to deeply grasp the client’s subjective world
Helper attitudes are more important than knowledge
The therapist need not experience the situation to develop an understanding of it from the client’s perspective
5
Six Conditions **Necessary and sufficient for personality changes to occur
1. Two persons are in psychological contact
2. The first, the client, is experiencing incongruence
3. The second person, the therapist, is congruent or integrated in the relationship
4. The therapist experiences unconditional positive regard or real caring for the client
5. The therapist experiences empathy for the client’s internal frame of reference and endeavors to communicate this to the client
6. The communication to the client is, to a minimal degree, achieved
6
The Therapist
Focuses on the quality of the therapeutic relationship
Provides a supportive therapeutic environment in which the client is the agent of change and healing
Serves as a model of a human being struggling toward greater realness
Is genuine, integrated, and authentic, without a false front
Can openly express feelings and attitudes that are present in the relationship with the client
Is invested in developing his or her own life experiences to deepen self- knowledge and move toward self-actualization
7
Application to Group Counseling
Therapist takes on the role of facilitator
Creates therapeutic environment
Techniques are not stressed
Exhibits deep trust of the group members
Provides support for members
Group members set the goals for the group
Group setting fosters an open and accepting community where members can work on self-acceptance
Individuals learn that they do not have to experience the process of change alone and grow from the support of group members
8
Person-Centered Expressive Arts Therapy
Various creative art forms
promote healing and self-discovery
are inherently healing and promote self-awareness and insight
Creative expression connects us to our feelings which are a source of life energy.
Feelings must be experienced to achieve self-awareness.
Individuals explore new facets of the self and uncover insights that transform them, creating wholeness
Discovery of wholeness leads to understanding of how we relate to the outer world.
The client’s inner world and outer world become unified.
9
Conditions for Creativity
Acceptance of the individual
A non-judgmental setting
Empathy
Psychological freedom
Stimulating and challenging experiences
Individuals who have experienced unsafe creative environments feel “held back” and may disengage from creative processes
Safe, creative environments give clients permission to be authentic and to delve deeply into their experiences
10
Limitations of the Person-Centered Approach
Cultural considerations
Some clients may prefer a more directive, structured treatment
Individuals accustomed to indirect communication may not be comfortable with direct expression of empathy or creativity
Individuals from collectivistic cultures may disagree with the emphasis on internal locus of control
Does not focus on the use of specific techniques, making this treatment difficult to standardize
Beginning therapists may find it difficult to provide both support and challenges to clients
Limits of the therapist as a person may interfere with developing a genuine therapeutic relationship
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