The Theory of Person-Centred Counselling - Book Report/Review Example

Counselling Psychotherapy: Carl Rogers' Three Core Conditions for Successful Change Introduction: After years of study, research and experience in the fields of psychology, psychiatry and education, Carl Rogers developed the theory of 'person-centred counselling as the way to achieve therapeutic personality change. Based on the importance of the role of the counsellor, the theory has contributed to the fields of psychotherapy, counselling, nursing, education and all areas in which health professionals seek to assist in the processes of mental health and well-being. It is a Humanistic approach, centred on the individual, treating them as the expert, capable of finding their own answers to problems. In a therapeutic relationship, the individual can thus change and grow. The 'here and now' and the future matter more than analytical digging into past events. Rogers' theory was that certain conditions were 'necessary and sufficient' to bring about successful change. They are: * Two persons are in psychological contact * The first, whom we shall term the client, is in a state of incongruence, being vulnerable or anxious. * The second person, whom we shall term the therapist, is congruent or integrated in the relationship. * The therapist experiences unconditional positive regard for the client. * The therapist experiences an empathic understanding of the client's internal frame of reference and endeavors to communicate this experience to the client. * The communication to the client of the therapist's empathic understanding and unconditional positive regard is to a minimal degree achieved. (Rogers, 1956) The three conditions for counsellors and therapists have been assimilated into many therapeutic and counselling scenarios. Empathy: In simple terms, this means being able to understand the other person's feelings, behaviours, language, culture and so forth, as if the therapist were experiencing them. They should put themselves in that persons place, seeing the issues from their perspective, but not let their own feelings, experiences and so on interfere. Words, tone, body language, would be used to demonstrate the empathetic sharing. A good description of this is given in BACP Guidelines (2007): "Empathy: the ability to communicate understanding of another person's experience from their perspective" In contrast, a MISS Foundation leaflet (n.d.) on helping when a child dies, quotes examples of total lack of empathy with 'words to avoid', like "Aren't you grateful you have two other children." So any situation in which one person seeks to ease another's pain would demand the use of empathy. Congruence: This is about the therapist knowing and accepting him/herself, and about being open, authentic and genuine with the other person in the counselling or therapeutic relationship. The therapist would be transparent to the person, so they are not deceived or surprised by any hidden agendas or false facades, the therapist would not pretend to be other than what he/she is. With congruence, there would be no attempts to create distance by using an "air of authority or hidden knowledge, and the client does not have to speculate about what the therapist is 'really like'." (Mulhauser, 2003) This concept can be linked to the 'therapeutic use of self', something taught and encouraged in the mental health nursing domain. (Perraud, Delaney, Carlson-Sabelli, Johnson, et al, 2006). Horrocks, (2005, p.6) stated his interpretation, which supports Rogers' 'congruence' as follows: "The chief tool of the psychotherapist is his or her own personperhaps the most important quality is humility - a sense that the client is the real expert." Being congruent is not always easy, as a therapist must not be tempted to offer advice, or cover up their reactions. Unconditional Positive Regard: This means there should be no 'ifs' or 'buts', conditions either inferred or laid down, that would prevent the therapist from accepting the person. In practice, this means caring, valuing and, as Rogers put it, 'prizing' the individual, remaining non-judgemental. It might simply be described as "I am here for you, no matter what." This is not always easy, as personalities can clash, values and attitudes, cultural, ethnic and religious differences are all part of everybody's life experiences. These should not influence the interaction, or affect the therapeutic relationship. It is basically having and showing total respect for the other person. Westerman, (2004), in an article on the role of cultural differences in Australia, regarding the take up of mental health services, highlighted how such an apparent lack of positive regard impacted on those in need of help. "Indigenous people do not access mental health services at a level that is commensurate with this need." She considered that service deliverers needed to gain 'cultural competence', in other words, not only know about Aboriginal culture, but treat the clients as Rogers' condition here demanded. Critique of 'Sufficient and Necessary': Rogers believed, after years of experience, observation, collaboration and research, the conditions expressed in his theory were measurable, and as a hypothesis, could be proved or disproved. So if he was wrong, at least he had laid a foundation for testing the hypothesis and for further research. He contended: "I am not just speaking of vague qualitiesI am presenting conditions which are crudely measurable, even in the present state of our technology." And "certain definable conditions precede certain definable changes and that this fact exists independently of our efforts to account for it." (Rogers, 1956) The 'necessary' elements cover many behavioural, attitudinal and therapeutic relationship skills that have proved effective in many settings. They contain concepts of holistic, nurturing, supporting approaches that, whether totally Rogerian or modified versions, have been seen to work. The most important would seem to be empathy in every case. A study carried out on nursing home residents with dementia (Camp, Cohen-Mansfield and Capezuti, 2002) showed that engaging with individuals, giving them time, interacting with them as people with needs for social and physical stimulation, reduced the use of drugs and restraints, and also reduced inappropriate behaviours. Much evidence supports Rogers' 'necessary conditions', but the question of 'sufficient' shows the disadvantages. Not every client/person has the potential to direct themselves towards a solution, depending on their condition, personality, degree of anxiety, and level of mental illness. Often, a person seeks the reassurance of concrete, practical ways to improve. Coyle (NCGE Handbook, 2007) cites some disadvantages, which call into question the 'sufficiency' issue as follows: * "The process of counselling may be too lengthy. * It may place too much emphasis on the person of the counsellor and on their ability to provide the necessary conditions for change and growth." Conclusion: There is no doubt that the three core conditions have made a huge contribution to assisting individuals to achieve therapeutic, successful change. They are embedded in the practice of counselling, in some form or another and are applicable to many domains of health service delivery, not just in the field of psychotherapy. In the final analysis, Rogers' theory might seem too simple, and it cannot claim to be wholly effective in all circumstances, but it has the necessary components in any counselling relationship, with empathy as common to all interventions, centred on the person, as Roger's intended. Reference List Boeree, Dr. C. G. (1997-2006) Introduction: Theories of Personality. 1-12 Personality Theories. Retrieved May 2 2007 from: http://www.ship.edu/cgboeree/persintro.html British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. (2007) Ethical Framework For Good Practice in Counselling and Psychotherapy. Leicester: BACP Camp, C. J., Cohen-Mansfield, J., Capezuti, E. A. (2002) Mental Health Services in Nursing Homes: Use of Nonpharmacological Interventions Among Nursing Home Residents with Dementia. Psychiatric Services 53: 1397-1401, November 2002. Horrocks, R. (2005) Foundations of Psychotherapy: An Introduction to Individual Therapy. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Maslow, A. (1954) Motivation and Personality. Retrieved May 2 2007 from: http://www.pateo.com/article6.html. Merry, T. and Lusty, B. What is Person Centred Counselling A Personal and Practical Guide. Essex: Gale Centre Publications. M.I.S.S. Foundation (nd) Psychosocial Outreach: Helping the Family Facing Death Retrieved May 2 from: http://www.missfoundation.org/kids/pdf/professionals1-pdf Mulhauser, Dr. G. (2003-2006) An Introduction to Person-Centred Counselling. Online Counselling Resources. Retrieved May 2 2007 from: http://counsellingresource.com/types/personcentred/index.html National Centre for Guidance in Education (2007) The Guidance Counsellor's Handbook: Section 1. Dublin: NCGE. Also available online. Retrievable from: http://www.ncge.ie/resources.htm Perraud, S., Delaney, K. R., Carlson-Sabelli, L., Johnson, M. E. et al (2006) Advanced Practice Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing, Finding Our Core: The Therapeutic Relationship in the 21st Century. Perspectives in Psychiatric Care. November 2006. APA. Retrieved May 1 2007 from: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3804_is200611/ai_n17194652 Rogers, C. (1956) The Necessary and Sufficient Conditions of Therapeutic Personality Change. In APA Online Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. Dec. 1992. Vol 60 No. 6. 827-832. Retrieved May 1 2007 From: http://www.drlinden.net/ccp606827.pdf Westerman, T. (2004) Guest Editorial: Engagement of Indigenous clients in mental health services: What role do cultural differences play Online Australian Journal for the Advancement of Mental Health. Vol. 3, Issue 3, 2004. Retrieved May 2 2007 from: www.ausienet.com/journal/ Read More