Carl Rogers Person Centered Therapy

Person/client-centered therapy

starts and ends with the subjective experience (conscious self-perception) of the individual where their subjective reality serves as the basis for all individuals judgment and behavior; therapist’s interpretation is insignificant

self actualizing tendency

an active, controlling drive toward fulfillment of our potentials that enables use to maintain and enhance ourselves

organismic valuing process

when individuals utilize their actualization tendency as criterion in making judgments about the worth of a given experience

fully functioning person

individuals who are utilizing their potentials to the maximum degree, engages in self realization/actualization

fully functioning person characteristics

1. open to experience

2. characterized by existential living

3. trust in their organism

4. creative

5. live richer lives than most

emerging person

people whose interpersonal relationships are characterized by honestly, cooperation, and concern for others, avoids facades and hypocrisy, and welcomes change, and opt for growth when difficult

emerging person characteristics

1. honest and open

2. indifferent to material comforts and rewards

3. caring persons

4. deep distrust of cognitively based science and technology that uses science to exploit and harm human nature and people

5. trust in their own experience and profound distrust of all external authority

social self

organized set of characteristics that the individual perceives as being unique to themselves and is primarily acquired through contact with others

true self

one’s self concept based on our actual feelings about out experiences

self concept

begins developing in childhood and influenced by parenting; who am i?

need for postive regard

learned or innate tendency to see and need approval from others

conditions of worth

experiences and behaviors are acceptable only if meet with approval from others

unconditional positive regard

total caring/prizing of the person for what and who one is, without any reservations or conditions of worth

state of incongruence

problem when the image of who we think we should be (ideal self) does not always match with our perception of we actually are (self-image)

q-sort

measure the discrepancies between the actual and ideal selves

3 things the therapist must be

1. genuine

2. empathetic

3. unconditional positive regard

3 things to active listening

1. paraphrase

2. clarify

3. reflect feelings