1. Carl Rogers Person-Centered Humanistic & Existential 1902-1987
Rogers (1959) Maintains that the human “organism” has the underlying actualizing tendency, which aims to develop all capacities in ways that maintain or enhance the organism toward autonomy
All creatures strive to make the very best of their existence:
Weeds will grow through the sidewalk
Saplings crack boulders, or animals survive desert conditions or the frozen north!
The course of ACTUALIZING creates society and culture

2. Major ConceptsPeople are basically good or healthy- or at the least not ill or bad!
People are trustworthy
The self as a process, ever changing
The Ideal of self (society) vs. Real self
Potential for self- understanding
Inherent drive for self- actualization
Personal power, solve own problems
Congruence & incongruence, degree of accuracy between experience and self picture

3. The evolution Rogers’ PCT
Nondirective- focus on understanding the client and communicating understanding
Client-centered- theoretical development of therapeutic change
Person-centered- application to family, groups and political activism as well as the individual

4. Influences on the development of PCT
Early theological training:
Otto Rank - creativity of individuals
Alfred Adler - value of the individual and good relationships
Abraham Maslow - self-actualization
Martin Buber - “I-Thou”
Rollo May - existentialism

5. PCT view of psychological development
Infancy - monitoring of pleasantness of environment
Children - develop trust in their reactions to the environment
Older children - develop a need for positive regard from others
Teens/Adults - develop a sense of self worth

6. Person-Centered Theory of Personality
Conditions of worth - lead to incongruence
Conditional regard - a sense of alienation
Psychological disturbance is related to the amount of incongruence between individual experience and self worth
Congruent relationships - a sense of being heard and understood
Fully functioning person - provide positive regard to others and receive it from others- a goal
Psychological maturity - openness, creativity and responsibility

7. The Fully Functioning Person
The need for positive regard from others and positive self-regard would match organism evaluation and there would be congruence between self and experience, with full psychology adjustment as a result.
The ideal human condition is embodied in the “fully functioning person” who is trusting in self, expresses feelings freely, acts independently, is creative and lives a rich live.
Carl Rogers, 1959

8. Goals of Person Centered Therapy
Client determines the goal
More deeply understand various aspects of oneself
Accepts oneself and others
More self-direction which leads to better problem solving ability and less defensiveness

9. Person Centered counselor…
Acts as a facilitator, collaborator
Unconditional positive regard and acceptance
Accurate empathetic understanding
Authentic responses to client
Provides necessary and sufficient conditions for change
Listens and understands
Holistic counseling, valuing and respecting

10. 6 Necessary and sufficient conditions for therapeutic change
1. Psychological contact between two people
2. Client is incongruent
Therapist provides:
3. Congruence and genuineness
4. Unconditional positive regard or acceptance
5. Empathy
The client perceives:
6. Empathy and acceptance

11. EMPATHY Acquired Skill Listener loses distance
Identification of feeling
“Hearing the Person”
Accurate interpretation of facial expressions and vocal cues
Responding accurately
NOT sympathetic or fact finding
Four Part Process
Tuning into your feelings
Expressing your feelings
Tuning into other’s feelings
Responding with understanding
Listen
Verbal and non-verbal cues
Acknowledge
YOU FEEL_______
YOU SEEM_______
Feeling + Content
Clarify
Are you feeling ?
Can you tell me more?
Can you give me an example?
Can you tell me how you feel?
I’m not sure I understand
Check Out
What you are saying is______
Let’s see if I understand

12. What the client experiences in therapy
Responsibility for self
The therapist’s empathy and unconditional positive regard which stimulates
The process of exploring oneself which allows the client to
Experience oneself
Experience therapeutic change

13. Contributions Talking Therapy
Concept of the importance of client counselor relationship
Genuineness, unconditional positive regard and empathetic understanding
Emotional focus of therapy, importance of affect
Active Listening technique
Empathetic responses

14. Limitations Too simple, support without challenge
Limited techniques of attending and Active listening
Ineffective skills leads a client “rambling”
Not focused on problem- solving
Not effective cross gender or culture
Not all individuals have the ability for:
Growth and self-actualization
Awareness of subjective knowledge, intuition, gut feeling
Questionable benefits of reflective listening

15. DVD
Person Centered Counseling