Person Centred Counselling

The idea behind this style of counselling is that the client is in control. It is non-directive. Sometimes this is referred to as 'Client Centered Counseling'. Carl Rogers (1902-1987) was the founder of the 'Person Centred Approach'. Carl Rogers believed that there are three core conditions that should be in place in the therapeutic relationship: Congruence, Unconditional Positive Regard and Empathy.

Congruence

Rogers believed that the therapist should be congruent with the client in order for the therapeutic relationship to work. What he meant by this was that it is no use being accepting and warm towards the client if you are feeling irritated. He believed it was better for the therapist to tell the client if he/she felt irriation or boredom etc during a session. That way the therapist is being genuine and not 'wearing a mask'. The counsellor/therapist is then transparent.

Rogers stressed that there is no need for the counsellor to blurt out every feeling they have to the client, only the ones that may be disturbing the therapeutic relationship.

Unconditional Positive Regard

This means that the counsellor gives the client respect and acceptance, and is non judgemental in their attitude. The client is appreciated as an individual, regardless of what they have done or how they are behaving. The word 'prizing' was used by Rogers to show there is more to this attitude than merely acceptance.

When a counsellor offers a client Unconditional Positive Regard, it enables the client to break down any defensive behaviour that may have been interfering with revealing their true inner self. A client can then feel secure that he/she is not going to be rejected by the counsellor for what he/she says or does.

Empathy

Empathy and sympathy are not to be confused. It's easy to feel sympathy when something awful happens to someone else. But empathy is different. It is a way of being which is all about entering into the other person's private world, and how they perceive it. An understanding. Another way to describe empathy is to 'walk in another man's shoes.' It's a way of understanding another as if you are that person. For a counsellor to be able to do this he/she needs to lay aside their own views and values in order to enter their client's world without being prejudiced.

Role of the Therapist

In person centred counselling the role between counsellor and client is regarded as equal. There should be no power balance. The counsellor should not seek to control by diagnosing, labelling or directing the content of the session. This type of counsellor seeks to understand the world of their client from the client's point of view (frame of reference.) The way Rogers perceived it was that he was a companion to his clients as they undertook a journey of self discovery.

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic