Index Biography and Influences of Carl Rogers Beliefs about Human Nature Why People Have Problems Role of the Counselor Role of the Client Therapeutic Goals Works Cited Dr. Barbara LoFrisco, a professor at the University of South Florida, once said, “If you understand why something is important, not only will you be more motivated to understand it, but you will also be able to put your new knowledge into the appropriate context.” (LoFrisco, 2013). Think of theories as a set of frameworks for integrating competent and effective counseling. They provide consultants with a way to hypothesize and increase understanding of a problem. Educating yourself on different theories gives novice counselors guidance or direction in helping clients. Without them, consultants would have no objective to test. By applying the theory, we can draw on the experiences of others who have gone before us (Whitehead, 1916). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay I'm going to provide a brief overview of two of my favorite theorists: Carl Rogers and Albert Ellis. First, I want to educate the reader about each of the two theorists through research on their biography, influences, beliefs, conceptual understanding of people's problems, descriptions of counselor and client roles, how they construct therapeutic goals, and some considerations about multiculturalism . Next, I will point out some main points of each of the two theories, discuss similarities and differences comparing the two. Finally, I will express my personal reaction to the two theories and all applied research. As both of these two extraordinary theorists have influenced counseling over the years, I hope to persuade the reader to have a greater understanding and appreciation for the theories. Carl Rogers Biography and Influences Carl Rogers (1902-1987) is one of the most respected and influential psychologists and counselors of all time. He was born in Oak Park, Illinois, into a family of five boys and one girl. His parents maintained a religious home for their children and prevented them from being influenced by society. Rogers was sensitive as a child and feelings were not expressed much in his home, so Rogers expressed his feelings and imagination through schoolwork and childhood games. Rogers developed a passion for nature and a significant understanding of the scientific method as a teenager on their farm in Glen Ellen, Illinois. Because of his love of farming and his family heritage, he became a farmer. Then, after starting his college career, he had a religious encounter and changed his major to prepare him for ministry. After another religious encounter he felt motivated to pursue a degree in New York City at the liberal Union Theological Seminary. After graduation, he married Helen Elliott, his childhood sweetheart (all biographical details in this section come from Kirschenbaum, 1979, Kirschenbaum, 2004, and Rogers, 1967). While studying there, he also took psychology courses at Columbia University's Teachers College. . He quickly became more influenced by his fascination with psychology. He began his doctorate in clinical psychology and dropped out of the seminary. He and Helen had two children and while he was working on his thesis he had to work to support the family. He moved to Rochester, New York and became director of the Child Studies Department, later directing the Rochester Guidance Center. He was greatly influenced by many students he worked with in counseling. Before leaving his twelve-year residency in Rochester, Rogers published his first book, The Clinical Treatment of the Problem Child(1939). The next move for Rogers was to Ohio State University as a full-time professor. His students later influenced him to write his second book about his views on counseling and psychotherapy; Counseling and Psychotherapy: Newer Concepts in Practice (1942). ThroughWith the popularity of this book, Rogers gave new meaning to client work. Instead of viewing a customer as sickly, it allowed people to see customers as responsible beings. Furthermore, he presented the “non-directive approach”, relying on active listening. Rogers was the first psychotherapist to publish sessions. After four years he made his next move: Chicago. From 1945 to 1957, Rogers ran a counseling clinic and also taught psychology at the University of Chicago. In recent years he began to define his research as a "customer-centered approach". During his time in Chicago, he faced a challenge that all consultants feared. He lost sight of his self-awareness due to his relationship with a schizophrenic client. He received counseling himself for about a year. In 1951, Rogers wrote book number three: Client-Centered Therapy: Its Current Practice, Implications, and Theory. After tremendous technological advancement in audiovisual recording and scientific research into the therapeutic approach, Rogers received the "Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award" from the American Psychological Association in 1956. With the children grown and out of the home, Rogers' next move took him to the University of Wisconsin. He and Helen traveled and visited their children and grandchildren in their free time. In 1961, Rogers' best-known book: On Becoming a Person: A Therapist's View of Psychotherapy was published. He worked with ET Gendlin, DJ Kiesler and CB Truax on a huge and expensive research project on schizophrenia in patients which was extremely frustrating due to conflicting authorship. It was finally published in 1967. Due to Rogers' annoyance with the project and other influences Roger moved to La Jolla, California in 1963. Rogers spent the next twenty-five years at the Western Behavioral Sciences Institute. Ten years after moving to California, Rogers and colleagues planned the organization of the Center for Studies in which he spent the next fifteen years of his life. During this period he also wrote his books, some of the most popular include, but not limited to: Freedom to Learn: A View of What Education Might Become (1969), Becoming Partners: Marriage and Its Alternatives (1972), Man and the Science of Man (Rogers & Coulson, 1968) and Carl Rogers on Encounter Groups (1970). During the 1970s and 1980s, he continued to work on his person-centered approach and also expanded internationally. He and his colleagues traveled around the world, conducting seminars. He was recognized by the present Jimmy Carter and in his final years was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. His wife Helen died in 1979, so for the rest of Roger's life he travelled, wrote and started the Car Rogers Peace Project. In 1987, Roger died at his home in La Jolla, California due to a hip injury. Over the course of his life he wrote fifteen books and over 200 articles. He influenced millions of people around the world with his methods and theories. There are some critics of Rogers who believe his methods are unknowing or unrealistic. However, it is indisputable that Rogers has influenced our world of consulting through his philosophy. Beliefs about human nature As a humanistic psychologist, Carl Rogers built on Abraham Maslow's theory with the idea that in order for a person to grow internally, they would need an atmosphere that allowed them to experience genuineness, acceptance and empathy. A tree will not be able to growif it does not have water and sunlight, the same applies to the growth of an individual. Without having surrounding needs, healthy relationships and personalities will not have the opportunity to develop properly. Roger firmly believed that every individual is capable of realizing their desires and goals throughout their lives. When a person desired a particular goal, it created self-fulfillment. “The organism has a fundamental tendency and strives to actualize, maintain, and improve the organism it experiences” (Rogers, 1951, p.487).One of the most significant thoughts that Rogers contributed to psychology is the understanding that people they must satisfy many factors before achieving the highest level of satisfaction. Human beings are believed to have only one primary motive: the tendency to self-actualize (Rogers, 1959). This means that an individual always tries to reach the highest level of "human being". People will develop in different ways based on personality. All people try to be creative and good, this is what Rogers believed. Self-actualization occurs when the “ideal self” is congruent with a person’s “self-image.” He believes that the main factor for self-realization is a person's experience in childhood. To become a fully functioning human being, Rogers linked five characteristics a person needs: openness to experience, existential living, feelings of trust, creativity, and fulfilled living (McLeod, 2014). In addition to working to become a fully functioning human being, Rogers also expressed the idea of ​​the concept of self. Rogers describes it as “the organized and coherent set of perceptions and beliefs about oneself” (Rogers, 1959). A person's inner personality is influenced by their own life experiences and how they interpret those experiences, as well as the evaluation of others. Roger believes that people think of themselves based on their self-worth and the way they think. , how one behaves, and how one feels affects the self-image that is portrayed. As children, Rogers (1951) considered two basic needs to be the most important: self-esteem and the positive regard provided by other beings. Someone who has great self-confidence and has faced many challenges accepting failures and sadness as well as being open-minded towards individuals is considered to have self-esteem. Congruence will occur in someone's life if their ideal self and self-image is consistent and when the ideal self and self-image are not consistent it is called incongruence. Rogers believed that congruence must be in order before a person can achieve self-actualization. Rogers strove to help clients achieve this through the practice of person-centered therapy, which will be discussed in more detail in the following sections. Why People Have Problems Rogers believed that the main reason a person has problems is because of the communication the individual has with him. his inner feelings. Another way to describe it, “unconscious, repressed, or denied desires have created distortions in how they communicate to others. Therefore, they suffer both within themselves and in their interpersonal relationships” (Rogers & Roethlisberger, 1991). The main obstacle in communicating with customers is the individual's “tendency to evaluate”. Human beings seek personal growth and development but are unaware of how to achieve it. Through Carl Rogers' theory, it approaches feelings of anguish and increases self-esteem and openness to all experiences related to anguish. Role of the Counselor In Carl Rogers' article, A Counseling Approach to Human Problems (1956), he expressed his strategy for helping a "troubled and confused person" by asking the question“How can I provide a relationship that this person can use for their own personal growth?” The first condition that Rogers believed a counselor should achieve in session is genuineness of character. The more genuine and real the consultant is, the more helpful he or she will be to the client. For a counselor to be completely genuine, they must be aware of their feelings and express them openly with clients. “It is only by providing the genuine reality that is in me that the other person can successfully seek the reality that is in him” (Rogers, 1956). Second, a counselor must provide true “acceptance and sympathy” for the client. This will create a more productive relationship with the customer. Ultimately, Rogers found that the more a counselor can understand a client's feelings and relate to their thoughts, the deeper connection of empathy exists. After the three conditions were established in session, Rogers' hypothesis was that the client would be able to discover their ability to benefit from the relationship to create growth within themselves. The most important element in this sequence of steps is for the client to explore feelings of being left out of self-awareness. Allowing the client to transcend through their own self-awareness will allow them to create connections between experiences and emotions. Once this understanding is achieved, the client should be able to create acceptance and growth from within. It should enable the client to change the way they think about themselves. Ultimately, the client is able to implement the new attitudes and awareness he or she has discovered. Rogers expressed his enthusiasm for his research and discoveries through using a therapeutic relationship to create more meaningful connections in life. Not only did he believe this to be true in a counseling session, he believed it was possible in all of life's relationships. If a person knew how to create a functioning therapeutic relationship, the relationship would strengthen and produce a healthy, happy connection. Role of the Client Carl Rogers (1961) stated the following: It is the client who knows what hurts, what directions to take, what problems are crucial, what experiences have been deeply buried. He began to think that unless I needed to demonstrate my intelligence and learning, I would be better off relying on the client for direction of movement in the process. (p. 11-12) Because the client is the one with the problems, Carl Rogers believed that the client should be responsible for all goals, desires, and outcomes. The client should be challenged to become master of their own thoughts. Clients should work on building confidence within the body and acquiring the skills to achieve an authentic life. One of the most important skills the client must acquire is active listening. Once a person is able to listen to others productively, then they should begin to learn to listen to their own personal thoughts and feelings and understand why those feelings occurred and how to accept change and desires to achieve goals. The main technique used to achieve understanding and knowledge of oneself is through reflection. Reflection is an extremely important factor in achieving a positive outcome in counseling. Therapeutic Goals The most important therapeutic goal in person-centered therapy is for the client to achieve independence. Once this is achieved, the client should be able to deal with future problems on their own. The therapy does not focus on particular problems the client is suffering from, but all the attention is on the person. A., &.