Person-Centered Therapy
Person-Centered Therapy is a therapeutic model of treatment
developed by Carl Rogers, an American psychologist. This approach
focuses on the patient, the person, as the key element that leads the
discourse with a trained counselor. In theory, as the conversation
expands and progresses, the therapist and client will have developed a
bond similar to that of a coach and a player. (Rogers, 1951) This means
that, rather than the psychologist working as a subject-matter expert
that tells the client what to do and how to do it, the dynamics will go
both ways: the client expresses his or her emotions and thoughts to
the therapist, and the therapist will use acceptance, empathy and
impartiality to direct the client into a more positive way of seeing their
current situation. (Hazler, 2016)In Person-Centered therapy, the
clinician is non-judgmental. This is done so that the client feels free to
share deep thoughts and emotions he or she would not share
otherwise. There is also the aspect of empathy, which means that the
therapist will accept those thoughts and feelings as valid. The client
will feel validated and heard with the feedback from the therapist.
Finally, there has to congruence, which is something comparable to
transparency, or honesty. In all, once the therapist shows that he or
