Counselling Theory and Practice:- HUMANISTIC APPROACHES TO HELPING

PERSON – CENTRED THERAPY

Some Primary Aspects of the Approach

INTRODUCTION

There are several different models or approaches in the Humanistic ‘ school ‘ therapies.
Humanistic Approaches share the following two major assumptions:

* Actualising Tendency This is the PRIME concept of Person Centred

counselling. It is based on the concept that people are motivated by a desire to realise
their full potential i.e. the actualisation of the ‘self’

* Phenomenological This is based on the understanding that we acquire

knowledge based on our own response to phenomena and our subjective experience of
them. i.e. our experiences help to shape us. his note will outline some of the main
concepts that underpin Humanistic Approaches and particularly Person- Centred
Therapy.

Arguably the most influential and widely practiced of the humanistic approaches is
Person Centred Therapy. Person - Centred Therapy, formerly called Client- Centred,
was an approach developed over a period of about 40 years, mainly by Carl Rogers and
his associates. It has influenced other disciplines such as education, human
development, social work and conflict resolution. When Roger’s first proposed it in the
early 1940s, it challenged the two main prevailing models - Psychodynamic and
Cognitive- Behavioural

This note will briefly examine some of the main concepts of Person Centred Approach (
PCA) and the therapeutic basis for the Person- Centred Therapy. It will also provide a
solid basis of suggested reading ( see Bibliography)

INITIAL OUTLINE AND SOME CRITICISM OF THE PERSON CENTRED APPROACH.

Many criticise the person- centred approach both for its lack of academic structure and
supposed simplicity of its approach . Critics also stress that other approaches are person-
centred and that the PCA over emphasises the centrality of the ‘ Counselling
Relationship ‘. For those who have read Roger’s and also the many others who follow
the PCA this can readily be challenged as over simplistic .

Carl Rogers always tried to engage with and answer these criticisms. In many ways he
felt these were based on the lack of depth and understanding of some of his critics who
failed to grasp that his approach was deliberately at variance with what he saw as the

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overly mechanistic and medical approach of the majority of counselling models. Merry
(1999 outlines some of Rogers’ main contentions such as, the centrality of the person
(client), the relationship between counsellor and client and the Six Conditions for
therapeutic growth.

A more detailed answer to critics is outlined in Bozarth ( 1998) and Patterson ( 2000)
Rogers was influenced both by his background and also some contact with Eastern
Philosophy. In later years he used the following quotation from the philosopher Lao - Tzu
( A Daoist Master) . Although Rogers realised that this quotation presented an over
simplified view , he considered that it confirmed a deeper truth about his belief in human
growth and the practice of person – centred therapy.

If I keep from meddling with people, they take care of themselves.

If I keep from commanding people, they behave themselves.
If I keep from preaching at people , they improve themselves.
If I keep from imposing on people, they become themselves.

BASIC CONCEPTS / BELIEFS

Mearns and Thorne (1998) examine the basis of the person centred approach and argue
that it is influenced by the following beliefs about people:

* That people basically seek truth, understanding , rightness and goodness. Deep
down, individuals seek to grow and become whole (this is referred to as the
Actualising Tendency or self - actualisation) This is not to say that we are pure
and without defect.

* Individuals have valuable experiences.

* Individuals need ( to be challenged) to accept responsibility for their lives. This

‘challenge’ needed to empathically focus on the client’s internal ‘frame of
reference’

* Individuals need to trust their inner resources.

* Individuals need to face and live life in the ‘ present ‘ . This was best guided by an
understanding that their past experiences will have damaged their self concept. In
that way the past continues to effect the present.

* That the core self of individuals is basically good

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* That as long as ‘ injured’ ( my italics) individuals rely on others perception of their

self worth, then they will fail to reach their true potential and thus fail to become,
( in Rogers’ words) ‘ fully functioning human beings’.

Person- Centred counsellors deal with the present - the here and now. They also stress
the centrality of the therapeutic relationship and the paramount importance of it being
one of mutuality and equality.

SOME FURTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF THEORY

Human Personality Rogers felt that personality was comprised of the core self and the
self concept. It is an important basic concept of his approach

Core Self The root of the self-actualising concept - the basic drive towards wholeness.
‘ To thine own self be true ‘

Self Concept Acquired or learned through our experiences , and particularly our
experiences and responses to others who both judge and criticise us or
give us qualified or conditional approval or love. In effect we attach ‘ good’
and ‘ bad’ labels to these experiences. This is our personal perception of
ourselves.

Good experiences are congruent with our core self. Bad experiences are incongruent, we
take them into ourselves ( introjections ) and they may or can affect us throughout our
life.

Worth Rogers felt that the need for positive regard from others is learned and
developed in early childhood. Positive experiences assist us in valuing
ourselves. Equally negative experiences of worth affect our self - concept.
These experiences are a form of internalised conditions of worth, that
together with our inherent core valuing form the two valuing processes we
use.

NOTE: A further more in-depth presentation and Handout will take place concerning
the concepts above.

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Processing Experiences Rogers asserted that an individual could respond to

experiences in life in one of four ways:

* Experiences can be ignored

* Experiences are either denied or not perceived at all.

Example a strict moral upbringing may result in an inability to perceive the need for
sex.

• Experiences may be distorted to resolve a conflict between our self-

concept and the actual experience.

Example A young woman , with a low self - concept of their appearance or dress
sense, may, on receiving a compliment on how nice they look, respond and perceive
that the comment was made merely out of sympathy or because the speaker had no
real dress sense.

• Experiences are accurately perceived as meeting the needs of the core

self or being consistent with the self concept and reinforcing it.

How do we manage all this and function in the world / The following pages begin to
outline this.

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FUNCTIONING IN THE WORLD The ability to function and to process experiences

can result in being either low- functioning or high functioning. The following diagram
contrasts Low and High Functioning peoples and is adapted from The Theory and
Practice of Counselling by Richard Nelson Jones ( 1992) and relate to our awareness
and/or experiences in life.

LOW FUNCTIONING PERSON HIGH FUNCTIONING PERSON

DENIED / IGNORED

DENIED / IGNORED

DISTORTED

DISTORTED

ACCURATELY PERCEIVED

ACCURATELY PERCEIVED

Low Functioning Person Low functioning people are out of touch with their
valuing processes ( for large amounts of their experiences ). In these areas their self-
concept is based on conditions of worth which cause them to ignore/ deny or distort the
experience.

High Functioning People High functioning people are the opposite. They have
fewer conditions of worth and are therefore better able to accurately perceive
experiences.

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THE HELPING/COUNSELLING RELATIONSHIP : -

The Conditions for Therapeutic Growth ( Self- Healing ).

The twin Primary Attitudes/ Guidelines of the Person Centred approach are the
actualising tendency and the counselling relationship. The latter tends towards the belief
that, providing the counsellor can develop a good relationship with her clients, then
growth and change will occur. The bedrock of this relationship are what Rogers ( 1957)
termed The Six Necessary and Sufficient Conditions. These are summarised as follows
:

1 Two persons are in psychological contact.

2. The first, ( the client) is in a state of incongruence, being vulnerable and anxious.

3. The second person ( the therapist) is congruent or integrated in the relationship

( my italics)

4. The therapist experiences Unconditional Positive Regard ( UPR) for the client

5. The therapist experiences empathic understanding for the client’s internal fame of
reference and attempts to communicate this to the client.

6. The client perceives Conditions 4 and 5 to a minimal extent

Three of these, Conditions 3 , 4 and 5 , are often referred to as The Core Conditions.
Admittedly, Roger's did comment to a great extent on these three conditions and
contended that the counsellor's ability to establish a good , therapeutic relationship was
to a large extent dependent on these core conditions.

However, this may be the basis on which so much misunderstanding about the PCA has
arisen. An over emphasis on the Core Conditions has led to many feeling that mere
‘portrayal of empathy and UPR will suffice . It is important to acknowledge that there are
in fact SIX Conditions and these come as a ‘package’. Both Merry ( 1999) and
particularly Bozarth(1998) address these issues in great detail. The latter ( Bozarth) ,
particularly in Chapters 5 and 6 , gives a very good review of the research carried out
concerning the six necessary and sufficient conditions.

Another point to note is that like other therapeutic approaches, the PCA has grown and
developed. Therefore serious students and/ or critics of the PCA need to be aware of the
considerable advances in theory and practice that have occurred over the past 20 years.
These are outlined by Merry ( 1999 ) , who provides a sound and excellent introduction
to the PCA and also by some of his more recent work , but particularly Merry (2001)
which examines the importance of edge of awareness.

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Mearns and Thorne ( 2000) look back over 20 years of the PCA and introduce some
important concepts and particularly that of ‘configurations of the self’. Finally, Bozarth (
1998) and Patterson ( 2000) provide an excellent overview of the PCA, particularly the
latter who reviews over 50 years of involvement with the PCA.. Some of the more
important aspects concerning ‘relational depth’, configurations of the self and edge of
awareness are briefly explored in the next few paragraphs.

ADDITIONAL CONCEPTS

Meeting Clients at Relational Depth

The essence of the PCA is its emphasis on, and attempt to, meet clients at ‘relational
depth’. In Mearns and Thorne ( 2000 p27 ) it is argued that ‘ the governing feature ..( of
the PCA) ..is not its humanistic orientation but its forsaking of mystique and other
’powerful’ behaviours of therapists’. Mearns and Thorne then go on to argue that this
requires considerable self-awareness and development on the part of the counsellor if
they are to work at relational depth with clients. Rogers ( 1951, 1961) argues that in order
to facilitate the six conditions, therapists have to ‘become a person ’ and offer these
conditions as a ‘way of being’

Recent advances in PCA Theory Recent advances ( Mearns & Thorne 2000) have
led to the concept of ‘configurations of the self ’ and to the importance of meeting all
parts of the client. It also amends Roger’s Theory of Self leading to a new ( but rough)
equation of SELF = Self-Concept + ‘edge of awareness’ . These more advanced
concepts are covered in Mearns & Thorne ( 2000) and Merry ( 2001). They are also part
of a more advanced exploration and study of the Person- Centred Approach.

Focusing

In the period from the mid-sixties until the death of Carl Rogers in the late 1980’s, with
few exceptions, very little new work was carried out on his theory of personality or the
Person-Centred therapeutic process. One exception was Eugene Gendlin who , in the
late 1960’s, began to explore the concept of the ‘felt sense’ , ‘edge of awareness’ and
focusing. This work was later updated in 1981 and again in 1984 – see The Client’s
Client: The Edge of Awareness , in Levant & Shien ( ed) New Directions in Theory,
Research and Practice , New York ( Praeger)

Before undertaking an experiential exercise using Gendlin’s SIX POINT FOCUSING

PLAN the following points need to be noted.

* The concept of ‘focusing’ is loosely associated to the Eastern concepts of pre-

meditation preparation as understood in the Hindu concept of awareness and the
Buddhist concept of mindfulness.

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The ‘felt sense’ is like the ‘inner client’ who is so often ‘blocked’ by the client’s own ‘inner
therapist’

The ‘inner therapist’ works on intellect, rationalisations, feelings. Old history etc.

The Inner Therapist tends to ignore, or even fail to recognise, the ‘felt sense’

About half to one third of people initially find it difficult to contact the inner client

The Levels of Felt Experience Modern psychology , particularly in the West, has
much to say and inform us about feelings and emotions. However, many confuse these
and in addition, fail to understand that emotions rise up from the deeper levels of our
felt experience. A separate note and experiential session on focusing, will explore the
four different levels of felt experience.

Unconditional Positive Presence This is a concept from Buddhism which has

influenced may of the Humanistic, existential and Trans-personal approaches. It’s nearest
western comparison is UPR. Although this is a reasonable comparison, it is deeper and
wider than this and includes the important concept of compassion.

Further Experiential Exercises (to be advised) in the Levels of Felt Experience, Focusing
and Unconditional Positive Presence will hopefully assist in introducing these concepts.

THE PERSON-CENTRED THEORY OF SELF :- Further Aspects

This section deals with the Theory of Self in some more detail.
The famous quote ‘ To thine own self be true … ‘contains the germ of the person-
centered approach to counselling, because the quote suggests that somehow each
person has access to a central core or inner truth . This 'core' is a reference point within
the self and is one ‘in tune’ with each individuals true or best self – interest.

This note will examine some of the ‘root ‘concepts of the PCA. It will look, from another
angle as it were, at the actualising concept . It was from this concept that Rogers’ theory
of personality has developed. This led on to Rogers’ concept of the ‘self’, with its
attendant views of the self-concept and the organismic or ‘real’ self. Finally, some of
these ideas will be drawn together by the use of diagrams adapted from Margaret Hough
and Tony Merry, with some brief explanatory notes.

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ACTUALISING TENDENCY – SELF – ACTUALISATION

Mearns and Thorne suggest that the actualising tendency is an ‘ innate capacity of all
human beings to move towards the fulfilment of their potential’ . Merry ( 1999) maintains
that ‘ actualisation is a holistic concept ‘ and he goes on the quote Rogers ( 1963)
summation of this as ‘ … it is perhaps best conceptualized as a tendency towards
fulfilment, towards actualization … ‘ Out of the above ‘springs’ the concept of the self and
its journey towards fulfilment and actualisation.

SELF- CONCEPT and THE ORGANISMIC SELF

Two diagrams, adapted from

Hough(1998) now follow, These are
designed to clarify the important Self - Concept
concept of the self and the part
these play in Person- Centered Organismic self
Theory and therapy.

The first of these is shown opposite

Figure 1

Figure 1 demonstrates the concept of an inner, real or organismic self – something

inherent and present since birth. This is surrounded by the individuals own self-concept –
formed from experiences in the past and present. This self concept relates to the
individuals perception or image of self and this is coloured by experiences – good and
bad- and the way s/he sees themselves reflected by others attitudes and behaviours
towards her/him. These ‘significant’ others include family, friends and authority figures
e.g. teachers etc. The following figure relates some of the above and the concepts of the
organismic self.

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SELF - CONCEPT

Individual’s own Acquired mainly Reflected in the Reinforced by

Perception of self in early attitudes interaction with
Childhood expressed by others
others

THE ORGANISMIC SELF

The real inner life Present from Aims to mature Moves towards
of the person birth and achieve self harmony and
– actualualisation integration

Figure 2– ORGANISMIC SELF V SELF CONCEPT

( Adapted from Margaret Hough )

The above diagram contains the essence of much of the Person – Centered approach to
the self and its place in the theory. It certainly depicts the inherent ‘ struggle’ than
underpins every individual’s journey towards growth. It shows how our perceptions,
formed by our past and its experiences, can act against the organismic self. It is this
struggle which often results in individuals presenting for therapy and this is often
experienced at times of crisis in life – e.g. bereavement. It is at these times that Hough
suggests that people ‘ … get in touch with their inner feelings, needs and capacities ‘ In
other words with their true, real and organismic self. It is at these times that people often
make unexpected and dramatic changes to their lifestyles.

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PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

The preceding diagrams contained an overview of much of the theory of an individuals

self- concept and their organismic self. They show the inter-relation of the part played by
individual items in the growth of the self-concept and the struggle that ensues when the
self-concept is ‘out of step’ with reality and therefore in ‘opposition’ to the organismic or
real and authentic self in its struggle to achieve actualisation and harmony. This struggle
is basically caused by the twin needs of the developing self – namely positive self-regard
and positive regard from others. The latter of these can often lead to imposition of
conditions of worth ,which because of our need for acceptance by and from others, are
informed from an external locus of evaluation. These complex ideas are succinctly put
together in the following diagram from Merry

With reference to the proceeding diagram. If an individual only received UPR then no
conditions of worth would develop and therefore there would be no difference/ conflict
between the self-concept and the real self and an individual would become a ‘fully
functioning being’ However, it is important to note that Rogers saw this as a continuous
process and Merry emphasis this when he notes ‘ All of Rogers theories concerned a
continuing process of change and movement towards more openness to experience and
the concept of ‘self’ as tentative and dynamic ‘ ( my emphasis )

We have a tendency to select what we admit into our awareness and to ensure that this
accords with our self- concept. This is outlined in Rogers 19 Propositions but particularly
covered by propositions V111 to X111. Merry suggests that this selective ‘ …
processing of internalising conditions of worth results in the emergence not of a true ..
self , but of a false or conditioned self’ Merry goes on the suggest that it is this ‘self’
that actualises in the world and can ‘distort the general actualising tendency ’ The
proceeding diagram outlines the two possible paths.

CONCLUSIONS

This has been a brief ‘tour’ of some of the important assumptions of the person-centered
theory of therapy , particularly with regard to self. It contrasts the ‘struggle’ between the
emerging self- concept and the organismic or real self and how individuals can selectively
deny certain experiences that do not accord with their self- concept. It is these
concepts/assumptions that inform the person-centered approach to therapy and how this
can assist clients to ‘find’ their true or real self and journey towards becoming fully
functioning and the achievement of greater inner harmony

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Person-Centred Theory
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REFERENCES

Mearns, D & Thorne B ( 1994) Person Centered Counselling in Action SAGE

Merry, T ( 1999) Learning & Being in Person Centered Counselling PCCS

Hough , M ( 1994) A Practical Approach to Counselling LONGMAN

Rogers Carl ( 1951) Client Centered Therapy CONSTABLE

Mearns, D ( 1994) Developing Person Centered Counselling SAGE

Conclusions

The Person- Centred Approach is founded on two primary principles, that of the
actualising tendency and the six necessary and sufficient conditions. It has a theory of
personality which emphasises the difference between the ‘core self’ and the ‘self
concept’, the latter being informed by experiences throughout life which can lead to
conditions of worth and either denied or distorted perceptions. The process of Person
Centred Therapy is to work at relational depth to provide clients with the opportunity to
recognise their core self. This involves reducing the amount of distortion in their
perception and increasing their level of accurately perceived functioning. Thus improving
their functioning in the world.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bozarth, J (1998) Person-Centered Therapy – A Revolutionary Paradigm PCCS Ross-

on Wye
Nelson - Jones , R (1992) The Theory and Practice of Counselling Psychology
CASSELL
McLeod, J ( 1997) An Introduction to Counselling OU Press
Mearns, D & Thorne, B ( 1994) Person Centred Counselling in Action SAGE London
Mearns,D & Thorne, B ( 2000) Person-Centred Therapy Today – New Frontiers in
Theory and Practice , SAGE London
Merry, T (1999) Learning & Being in Person Centred Counselling PCCS Ross-
on-Wye
Merry, T ( 2001) Psychotherapy and the Edge of Awareness Person- Centred
Practice Volume 9 No 1 Spring 2001 BAPCA ( London and Ross –on- Wye)
Patterson, C.H ( 2000) Understanding Psychotherapy – Fifty Years of Client-Centered
Theory and Practice – PCCCS , Ross – on – Wye
Rogers, C.R ( 1951) Client Centred Therapy CONSTABLE London
Rogers,C.R ( 1957) The Necessary and Sufficient Conditions of Therapeutic Personality
Change, Journal of Consulting Psychology, 21 95-103)
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Rogers, C ( 1961) On Becoming a Person CONSTABLE London

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