Person-centred therapy, also known as person-centred or client-centred counselling, is a humanistic approach that deals with the ways in which individuals perceive themselves consciously, rather than how a counsellor can interpret their unconscious thoughts or ideas.
What is Person-Centred Therapy?
It is a humanistic approach that deals with how individuals perceive themselves, rather than how a counsellor may analyse them through subconscious thoughts or ideas. Through this, a person can reach their full potential and become their true self, which is termed as ‘self-actualisation.’
The American psychologist Carl Rogers founded it in the 1940s. He wanted a person-centred approach for therapy that focused on the clients’ experience of themselves, as opposed to a counsellor forcing their expertise and telling them what to do, or what was wrong with them.
Benefits of Person-Centred Therapy?
Person-centred counselling is better suited for clients who prefer the freedom of talking about their problems in a supportive and facilitative environment. Rather than follow a more directive, structured approach with specific techniques.
It is ideal for individuals who are motivated by self-discovery and work towards solving their issues.
During a person-centred counselling session, the person-centred therapist will encourage clients to bring their own issues to the session. Here, the client leads the entire counselling session, instead of the counsellor.
Person-centred counselling is a flexible form of therapy, because of its individualistic approach. Therefore, it’s used to treat several issues or conditions like:
- Relationship problems
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Bereavement
- Addictions
- Sexuality
- Anger
- Difficult transitions in life