Person-Centered Therapy

 

Person-Centered Therapy was developed by Carl Rogers. He was one of the first theorists to name the individuals who sought out for therapy as the client. The basic philosophy of PC theory is that humans are inherently good and have an innate need to grow. PC theorists believe that the only motivation of human behavior is the tendency to grow to full potential in constructive, positive ways (Murdock, 2013). According to Rogers, a healthy person is one who is open to experiences, are creative and are risk takers.

Therapists are usually known to be authoritative, PC therapists on the other hand are more equal with their clients serving more as a companion. The therapist's goal is to get the client to achieve his or her full potential or as Murdock (2013) states move from incongruent to congruent. PC therapists like to feel empathetic to the client's situation, they believe that if they feel what the client feel no judgments will be made.

What I find interesting about this theory is how individualistic it can be. It hardly dives into the person's surroundings, family or friends. How the environment plays a role in a client's behavior is key, but not so much in this theory. I do appreciate how the PC theory emphasizes on the development of the self, after all that is an essential purpose for counseling in general.