Carl Rogers

*Client-Centered *Humanistic *Phenomenological Therapy

*Individual is viewed as creative, responsible and developing.

*Real, caring, nonjudgemental therapeutic atmosphere

Person-Centered Therapy

Purpose

To foster a closer agreement between the clients idealized and actual selves for better understanding

Purpose

Lower levels of defensiveness, guilt and insecurity.

Foster positive relationships. Increased capacity to experience and express feelings.

Purpose

Person-Centered Therapy

Goal

Achieve a greater degree of independence and integration.

Goal

Provide a climate conducive to helping the client become a fully functioning person

Basic goal is to encourage the four characteristics of self actualized persons Characteristics of selfactualized individuals:
Openness to experience Trust in themselves Internal source of evaluation Willingness to continue growing.

Goal

Person-Centered Therapy

Threat occurs when we perceive incongruity between our experiences and self-concept. When in a threatening situation, we feel anxious. Anxiety is a sign indicating that there is trouble ahead. We avoid trouble by using defenses. There is denial and perceptual distortion.

And its purpose

There is unconditional and conditional positive regard. Unconditional positive regard: acceptance, respect, sympathy and love REGARDLESS of performance Conditional positive regard: the person is valued for what he/she has done; acceptance for doing what others insist upon

And its purpose

It is the built in tendency to develop in a positive way

And its purpose

Its purpose is to let the individual achieve autonomy, selfsufficiency and personal growth

Person-Centered Therapy

PCT has been applied to individuals, groups and families.

Person-Centered Therapy

PCT is applicable to a wide range of client problems including anxiety disorders, alcoholism, psychosomatic problems, agoraphobia, interpersonal difficulties, depression, cancer and personality disorders.

It has applications to education from gradeschool to graduate school.

PCT can be applied to crisis intervention

PCT in group counseling.

Person-Centered Therapy

Scientific shortcomings

Tendency to be very supportive of clients without being challenging.

Personal limitations of the therapist