Analysis of Counseling Theories - Research Paper Example

Counseling Theories Rogerian theory Humanistic approaches in psychology emphasize the human capacity for integrity, creativity and autonomy. Originally developed by Carl Rogers, client-centered, or Rogerian psychotherapy has been one of the most influential humanistic approaches in psychology. Underlying Roger’s approach is the assumption that organisms have a fundamental desire to improve themselves: to self-actualize. Self-actualization is an organism’s inherent drive to develop its capabilities in order to function well and progress. Rogers (1986, pp. 197-208) examined the person’s capacity for change within the therapeutic relationship and found that psychological dysfunction occurs when individuals are prevented from efforts toward achieving self-actualization; to realize who and what they truly are. Rogers (1957, pp. 95-103) outlined that in order for effective personality change to occur and for a truly therapeutic relationship to exist between the client and therapist, it is necessary that the therapist and the client are in psychological contact, that the client is in a state of incongruence, that the therapist is congruent and integrated in the relationship, that the therapist experiences unconditional positive regard and empathic understanding for the client, and that there is an attempt and also some degree of achievement in communicating this understanding to the client. Of these criteria the three most fundamental ‘core’ conditions the therapist must aim to achieve are congruence, unconditional positive regard and empathy. Central to Roger's model is the premise that the potential psychological development of an individual can be unlocked through a relationship where the therapist feels and conveys genuine caring, sensitivity and non-judgmental understanding in a non-directive manner towards a client (Mearns, 1994, pp. 34-36). Roger's model is considered non-directive, as unlike directive approaches, where information is collected and presented, Rogerian counseling sees information conveyed from client to therapist and explicit directions from the therapist are avoided. During a counseling session the client is encouraged to express and explore self-directed inner feelings. The counselor responds through reflection and through paraphrasing the emotional content, helping the client consider the meaning of their inner experiences (Corey, 2009a, pp. 56-77). The therapist accepts the client’s statements without judgment or interpretation attempting to understand them as the client would. Genuineness or congruence requires an absence of defensiveness and openness to experience and is essential in the interactions of both the therapist and client in effective client-centered therapy. The counselor’s congruent attitude conveys to the client a genuine concern to understand the world from the client’s perspective (Greenberg, Elliott & Lietaer, 1994, 109-139). A main objective of client-centered therapy is to bring a client’s experience and awareness back into congruence. The better the congruence of experience and understanding for the therapist and the client, the greater the likelihood of reciprocal communication. Once this transpires it is hoped that the client can recount their experiences openly and accurately. Egan’s 3-stage theory Egan (1994, pp. 19-32) considers his problem management model to be humanistic, flexible and broadly based. Egan’s 3-stage model is directive and focuses on goals. However, Egan (1994, pp. 36-48) regards his model as client-centered as the client’s needs are the starting point. With the help of the therapist the client is aided to explore what they want and determine what they need to do to achieve what they want. It is important that the therapist establishes a therapeutic relationship in order for the client to be able to trust them. If clients find it difficult to be open about their struggles the amount of change they will be able to achieve will be limited. Egan (1994, pp. 36-48) believes that the relationship between the therapist and the client should be subservient and instrumental in achieving the goals that have been set out to be achieved and that there should not be too much focus on the quality of the relationship. There are guidelines regarding communication skills. For example the therapist is expected to show that they are being attentive with their body language by facing the client, adopting an open posture, and leaning towards the client, maintaining eye contact and being relaxed and natural whilst adopting these behaviors. Being aware of bodily reactions should also be utilized to aid an awareness of psychological reaction (Egan, 1994, pp. 76-88). During Stage 1 clients tell their story in order to explore their current situation. Clients identify their problems and recognize missed opportunities. As a part of Stage 1 the client needs to identify and clarify blind spots in order to see different perspectives on their problems. Egan (1994, pp. 65-82) believes that we all have our unique perspectives on life based on our personal experiences and knowledge which can shape our beliefs about ourselves. In Stage 2 the clients aim is to discover their preferred situation. The role of the therapist is to help clients develop goals, objectives or agendas based on an action oriented understanding of the problem situation (Egan, 1994, pp. 112-136). Having established what the problem is, the client must begin to explore new avenues of what is possible and consider how they would want to make their present situation better. Egan points out that new scenarios should not be far-fetched, idealistic an unrealistic but merely how things would look if the current situation was improved (Egan, 1994, pp. 98-116) In Stage 3, the action stage, clients are helped to develop action strategies for accomplishing the goals they have set themselves in order to get from their current situation to their preferred scenario (Egan, 1994, pp. 102-132). Firstly the client must spend time brainstorming some strategies for action. As there is usually more than one method for achieving the defined goals the therapist must encourage the client to explore all possible options. Gestalt theory The Gestalt theory is a humanistic approach that stresses the importance of present moment, awareness and personal responsibility (Harman, 1992, 77 – 114). Relationships are viewed in terms of the surrounding field. Gestalt theory is based on an interrelationship between the client and the environment. Gestalt theory focuses on how the client perceives reality. Gestalt theory is experiential in that it promotes direct and lively experiencing instead of abstractness. Emphasis is made on process, but content is not excluded. Why people behave as they do in the present is not as crucial to self-understanding as how they do. Gestalt theory aims at integration rather than analysis. Metaphors, fantasies and imagery are particular characteristics of the Gestalt theory. One of the key concepts of the Gestalt theory is contact. Increasing awareness and change is done by a technique of giving primary importance to the me/you relationship. Growth is experienced through good contact as the client gets the ability to express themselves, have full energy and have clear awareness. Awareness is another key concept of the Gestalt theory. Clients develop increased awareness as a result of a genuine therapeutic encounter. Focus on awareness is made on sensations and actions, feelings, wants and values and assessments (Clarkson, 1989, pp. 45-67). Contrast and comparison The counseling session using the Rogerian theory will be unstructured and the client will be free to talk about anything that they want to whilst Egan’s 3-stage theory and Gestalt theory is directive and with a focus on making and working towards particular goals. Unlike the Rogerian theory, Egan’s 3-stage theory and Gestalt theory presents to the therapist a formula for how the counseling work can be carried out. All three theories emphasize being genuine in the therapeutic relationship and that the practitioner should be prepared to confront any issues that arise for them and also try to be congruent in their experience of the therapeutic relationship. All three theories emphasize the importance of active listening Although all three theories consider the therapeutic relationship to be significant Egan (1994, pp. 112-143) purports that it is not essential to place too much emphasis on it. All three theories expect their practitioners to respect and value diversity and individuality although Rogers’ and Gestalt theories place greater emphasis on the importance of feeling a deeper level of empathy. Egan (1994, pp. 143-167) holds that empathic understanding is not sufficient and that it is necessary to challenge clients in order for them to learn new ways of coping and for the client to examine internal and external maladaptive behaviors. Challenging is considered fundamental in helping clients translate the new perspectives that they have gained and turn them in to constructive action. Conclusion Those who would like a counselor to offer them extensive advice and help them find particular solutions and modes of action would probably find the Rogerian theory less helpful and find Egan’s 3-Stage and Gestalt directive theories more beneficial (Bowen, 1999, 27-36). For example Egan’s 3-stage model may be useful for those who are unhappy with their current choice of University course or career and would like to come to a decision about what to do next. The 3-stage model could be utilized to enable the client to think about what they like and dislike about the choice they have made and how they would like to go about implementing changes. A goal in such a session might be to go to different open days and read prospectuses in order to collect more information about the desired course of action (Corey, 2009b, pp. 93-121). References Bowen, M. (1999). Psychotherapy: The process, the therapist, the learning. The Counseling Psychologist, 5(2), 27-36. Clarkson, P. (1989). Gestalt Counselling. SAGE. Corey, G. (2009a). Student Manual for Theory and Practice of Counseling and Psychotherapy. 8th ed. Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole. Corey, G. (2009b). Theory and Practice of Counseling and Psychotherapy. 8th ed. Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole. Egan, G. (1994). The skilled helper: A problem-management approach to helping. 5th ed. Brooks Cole. Greenberg, L., Elliott R. & Lietaer, G. (1994). Research on experiential psychotherapies. Educational Change and Development, 3(3), 109-139. Harman, B. (1992). Gestalt Therapy as Brief Therapy. The Gestalt Journal, 17(1), 77 – 114. Mearns, D. (1994). Personal therapy is not enough. Journal of Humanistic Psychology. 25(4), 34-36. Rogers, C. (1957). The necessary and sufficient conditions of therapeutic personality change. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 21(2), 95-103. Rogers, C. (1986). A client-centred/person-centred approach to therapy. The NAMTA Quarterly, 8(4), 197-208. Read More