Comparison of Three Counseling Theories - Essay Example

? Comparison of Three Counseling Theories Introduction Counseling theories are important to the study of counseling because they provide a way for students and practitioners to guide their practice. Whether the counselor works in an agency or in other organizations, theories provide them with an understanding of what to expect in any situations. Also, counseling theories have been used as the foundation for understanding a variety of disorders and how clients with these disorders can be understood on a basic level. This research paper will define three counseling theories that include client-centered theory, cognitive theory and holistic theory. 2 Client Centered Theory Carl Rogers is credited with developing client centered theory which he called client centered therapy. This was an extension of his first theory which was personality development. Rogers believed that the client was the most important aspect of the counseling process and as such, the client should feel they were being served well (Hall 1). Rogers believed that each individual had inside them a movement towards what he called self-actualization. Because of this, the client continually moves towards self-actualization and is influenced by the world around them. Because of this, the therapist’s job is to totally accept the client where they are when they come to counseling. In order to help the individual, Rogers used a series of reflections. He would reflect back to the client what they say to the therapist so that the client can become aware of any negative feelings they may have (Hall 1). Rogers began to use the term client because it provided a better understanding of the individual. Before his use of this word, the individual coming to therapy was a patient but this did not accurately describe what Rogers was seeing. Instead, the people he saw were not mentally ill, but they needed assistance in some aspect of their lives. Rogers believed that the facilitator (therapist) had to show genuineness in order for the client to be comfortable talking about their issues. When applying this theory to case management it is clear that the case manager must provide an environment where the client feels safe and where the client is the most important aspect of the discussion. As an example, if an individual was presenting challenges with alcohol or drugs, the case manager’s role would be to help the individual talk about their situation. If the client said, “I just feel so out of control.” The response from the therapist might be, “I hear you feel so out of control”. It would be up to the client to give additional information. The case manager would also provide body language that supported what the client was say. As an example, the case manager may nod their head, smile, and actively listen to what the individual was stating. All of these gestures would be ways to help the customer understand they were being heard. 3 Cognitive Theories In general, the cognitive theories suggest that our thoughts are what cause our problems, so in order for a client to heal, they must change their thoughts. These theories contrast client centered theory because although the client is important in this situation, they are not the entire concern; instead, it is their thoughts that bring the most concern. Generally cognitive theories in psychology are encompassed with other types of modalities. As an example, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) has often been shown to do well in many different situations. A simple diagram for cognitive theories is shown here: (Mulhauser 1) In this example, a stimulus (situation) creates a thought and then shows an emotion. In cognitive theory, the emotions are the aspect of the process that the therapist or case manager will want to work with to help the client resolve the problem. Oftentimes the thought is an irrational one that the client thinks and this irrational thought must be resolved. An example of how the cognitive theory differs from the client centered approach is in a situation where the individual is afraid of the dark or has some other phobia. The situation could be that the individual used to sleep without a nightlight until their brother came into the room and scared them; from that point on, they began to sleep with a light on. The case manager’s role in this situation would be to help the client realize that the problem was not the dark, but instead it was the situation that caused him or her to be afraid. The case manager would work with the client to help them understand that their fear was irrational because things can happen in many different ways. 3.1 Differences between Client Centered and Cognitive Approach The difference between the client centered and the cognitive approach show that in the client centered approach, the therapist models unconditional positive regard for the client which allows him or her to present information needed for their movement forward. Also, the therapist shows empathy for the information they are given by the client and the therapeutic relationship between the client and the therapist is important. In The cognitive approach, the individual is guided by the therapist into situations that need to be addressed. Another difference between the two is that the client centered approach will not make a judgment into what the client is thinking and will not point out areas where the client’s thinking is irrational. In the cognitive approach, the challenging of irrational thoughts is very important. Finally, in the cognitive approach, clients will often have homework to do between sessions while in the client centered approach homework is not given. 4 Holistic Theory In holistic theory the entire individual is taken into consideration. This theory believes that all aspects of an individual must be taken into consideration for them to heal. This means that the mental, physical, emotional and spiritual aspects are important. This theory believes that clients act or behave based on their perceptions of the world and of their choices and values. Robert Stensrud and Kay Stensrud suggest that holistic theory is an “open process” that changes continuously as people interact with their environments (422). The history of this theory came from the humanistic and behavioral theories. Holistic theory does have aspects of cognitive theory in that therapists believe it is important to look at the thoughts as well as the physical and emotional aspects of a situation that the client is going through. The therapist’s role is to help the client find their own internal strengths to solve their problems. This method is more like client centered counseling than cognitive counseling. As an example, an individual having family problems may have several issues that appear at one time. They may find that they are angry with their family for some reason, that their behavior is different around their family and that spiritually they are feeling lost when dealing with their family. A therapist would deal with this situation by helping the client come to terms with each of these areas by drawing on their internal strength to do it. 5 Comparison of the Three Theories The client centered and holistic theories are very similar because they both expect the client to be able to express their needs. Both theories see a relationship between what the client has internally to solve their own problems and their need to heal their situation. Both theories suggest that the client has all they need inside of themselves to change their circumstances. Cognitive theory is the not as related to client centered and holistic because of the role of the therapist. In this situation, the therapist guides the client towards a look at their thoughts and how these thoughts are stopping them from moving forward in their life. Both cognitive and holistic deal somewhat with the behavior that a person expresses, but holistic takes into consideration the whole person rather than just their thoughts. Works Cited Hall, Kathy Jo. Carl Rogers (1902 - 1987). Web 1997. 11 November 2011. < http://www.muskingum.edu/~psych/psycweb/history/rogers.htm> Mulhauser, Gary. An Introduction to Cognitive Therapy & Cognitive Behavioural Approaches. Counselling Resource Mental Health Library. Web. 2011. 22 November 2011. < http://counsellingresource.com/lib/therapy/types/cognitive-therapy/> Stensrud, Robert, and Kay Stensrud. "Holistic Health Through Holistic Counseling: Toward A Unified Theory." Personnel And Guidance Journal 62.7 (1984): 421-24. ERIC. Web. 24 Nov. 2011. Read More