Maybe this approximation is only my own but I found Rogers' view to be similar to that of Zen Buddhism. The "goal" appears to be consistence and congruence of self-concept with the actual self, if it can be so called a "goal" in such an approach as this which attempts to free itself from value-judgments. Zen of course claims to also not be wholly transmitted through words but I would at least approximate it to experiencing experience. If you are so inclined to “really” read the book (sorry for my transference in this comment, it just appears that some of the reviewers failed to read the book, or grasp its concepts), I would highly suggest that you take your time and understand the last chapter, “A Theory of Personality and Behavior,” as the culmination, or “proof” if you will, about the fundamental soundness of the client-centered approach to counseling. I've felt fondly attracted to Carl Rogers years ago when I came across his concept of congruence. And Boy! After reading his textbook I can positively say that he is my favorite psychologist.

Grinnell College had about 1200 students and a generally middle-aged faculty devoted to teaching. The younger teachers were there either as visiting instructors or on probation, hoping for regular appointments. The faculty of the Department of Psychology were basically experimentalists, not psychotherapeutically inclined. What happens next is what makes Client Centered Therapy more subtle and complex than the touchy-feely impression people may get from it. Once the client has reached the layer of inner conflict, a psychological disintegration occurs. The old model of the world is shattered and the client finds himself psychologically lost. From this disintegration, the client comes to build a new model of the world that encapsulates contradictory experiences without conflict. The client doesn't leave the therapeutic process with fixed answers, one could say that they feel more lost after therapy than before, but therapy has equipped him with the ability to navigate the confusion of his inner contradictions. Rogers came to believe, based in his experience of counseling, that people have a fundamental capacity of positive reorganization of themselves, and that the therapeutic process is best left under their responsibility. He came to reject the idea that the therapist ought to be a source of authority, a moral reference, a problem solver for the patient; rather, he saw the therapist as one who can assist the client in his exploration and resolution of his inner contradictions.Lccn 51009139 Ocr tesseract 5.0.0-alpha-20201231-7-gc75f Ocr_detected_lang en Ocr_detected_lang_conf 1.0000 Ocr_detected_script Latin Ocr_detected_script_conf 0.9808 Ocr_module_version 0.0.11 Ocr_parameters -l eng Old_pallet IA18582 Openlibrary_edition My appreciation for Rogers is deeply magnified by the fact that he was a ruthless seeker of truth, wherever it may lead. He was cautious to submit his model of therapy to the scientific method and, when available, he defended his ideas with academic studies. When his ideas were unproven, he had the intellectual honesty to highlight the potential weak spots of his theory. In Client-Centered Therapy: Its Current Practice, Implications and Theory, Carl R. Rogers, Elaine Dorfman, Thomas Gordan, and Nicholas Hobbs, present a synthesis of the basic philosophy of nondirectional counseling. This book exposes the meaning through which personal counseling is achieved through a subtle process of self-realization.

C]lient-centered therapy, with the intense focusing upon self which it involves, has as its end result, not more self-consciousness, but less. One might say that there is less self-consciousness and more self…That the self functions smoothly in experience, rather than being an object of introspection. Or as one client states in a follow-up interview one year after the conclusion of therapy: ‘I’m not self-conscious like I used to be…I don’t concentrate on being myself. I just am’” (129). Equally admirable is Rogers' claim that the therapist must involve himself personally in the therapeutic process. He made that claim against all common wisdom that the therapist ought to be emotionally detached from the process. How could this make sense, given Rogers' approach of offering the client a non-judgmental, non-personal mirror? For Rogers, the warm attitude of the practitioner for the client, the love (if he dares to go that deep) is felt by the client, and that love assists the client in the scary process of exploring his inner depths. For Rogers, a therapy room where the practitioner forbids himself to involve himself emotionally to the client sends a message: in this room it is unsafe to explore emotions. One side note that I loved: through the exploration of his unconscious experiences and resolving his conflicts, the client comes to develop a more accurate symbolization of reality, a better representation. One can stop saying "my mother is bad", for a more accurate "she is denigrating in some aspects, but she cares about me in others". I had a general concept of client-centered therapy and a client-centered approach to counseling that I had acquired through working at my social service agency for the past thirteen years, but through reading this book I came to fully understand the foundational concepts of this approach and how it might work in implementation with clients in real life scenarios. I do not fully agree that a nondirective approach would work in all cases, but I feel that there is much benefit in beginning the counseling relationship with the idea that a client is worthy of respect and should be seen as someone who has an ability to make changes himself rather than someone needing to be taught the answers by the counselor. I also found the emphasis placed on the importance of the counselor having a genuine attitude of acceptance and empathy, as well as being comitted to achieving a high level of personal awareness and growth to be a refreshing reminder. This book is a mature presentation of the non-directive and related points of view in counselling and therapy. The final chapter presents a formal treatment of the psychological theory which is basic to the whole client-centered point of view, not only in counselling but in all interpersonal relations.

Open Library

In this bestselling book, one of America's most distinguished psychologists crystallises the great progress that has been made in the development of the techniques and basic philosophy of counselling. Carl Rogers gives a clear exposition of procedures by which individuals who are being counselled may be assisted in achieving for themselves new and more effective personality adjustments. Access-restricted-item true Addeddate 2020-03-04 11:01:47 Bookplateleaf 0003 Boxid IA1778810 Camera USB PTP Class Camera Col_number COL-609 Collection_set printdisabled External-identifier The publication is expected to be a bit outdated from the earliest manuscript in the 50s. The research support also seems to be meek, but again, psychology was and can still be considered in its infancy. This text expresses the deeply held belief that what is genuine and has real meaning cannot sometimes be expressed in words. Nondirective counseling is thought of as a process and experience in a dynamic relationship. The best vantage point for understanding behavior is from the internal frame of reference of the individual himself” (494).