one piece: transforming dialogue

(illustration credit below)

The following is an excerpt from "Carl Rogers, Anarchist Incognito" a paper discussing the life, practice, and theoretical underpinnings of Carl Rogers.

The familiar refrain through Carl Roger’s work is the centrality of the client. Rogers affirms that the client-centered or person-centered approach to therapy “expresses the primary theme of my whole professional life” (Kirschenbaum,H., Henderson,V., 1989). His methods are supremely dependent upon the establishment of trust. Rogers states that “this is perhaps its sharpest point of difference from most of the institutions of our culture. The individual is seen as…someone who must be constantly watched over” (Kirschenbaum, 1989, p.137).

 Rogers’ notions go beyond superficial psychological repairs and stress a concern for the vital health of the client and what he envisioned as the “fully functioning person” (Kirschenbaum, 2004). Believing in the vast internal resources accessible to the client, his practice focused on creating a safe environment that would nurture uncommon transformation and growth.  His work with his clients utilized a non –directive approach. This approach assumes the belief that the client best knows what is needed. This method is distinguished from the more traditional role of the psychotherapist as the driver of the session who has a plan and a guideline for fixing client problems. In Rogers’ view the therapist serves as a guide and facilitator. He shunned the use of techniques that put the client in a position of being controlled by the therapist (Kirschenbaum, 1989).

Rogers emphasizes three conditions that are non-negotiable for the success of the therapist-client (or person-to-person) encounter. These are: congruence, unconditional positive regard, and empathetic understanding (Rogers, 1980).

Congruence precludes pretense or any attempt at maintaining a façade. The facilitator sets the pace in the communicating environment or therapy session by offering his own transparency and genuineness. In A Way of Being (Rogers, 1980), Rogers further defines congruence:

“By this I mean that when my experiencing of this moment is present in my awareness and when what is present in my awareness is present in my communication, then each of these three levels matches or is congruent. At such moments I am integrated or whole. I am completely one piece” (p.15).

If the client senses he is prized and regarded unconditionally, the flow of the interaction will be smooth and promote a sense of well-being.  Rogers encourages the therapist to accept what feelings are occurring inside the client with no reservations. “It is a nonpossessive caring. When the therapist prizes the client in a total rather than a conditional way, forward movement is likely” (Kirschenbaum, 1989, p.136).

The third condition for the life-changing kind of success of this interaction is empathetic understanding. Empathy demands intentional and attentive action on the part of the facilitator. An active, focused, and deep listening serves as a dynamic tool. Within the context of these purposeful and safe environments and the connection that results, verifiable changes are able to occur that promote the release of human potential in the client as well as the therapist.

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