Heather Cozen's Blog

What You Can Do About Career Confusion in the New Year

2011-01-01T13:27:00.000-08:00

Peter: Our high school guidance counselor used to ask us what you'd do if you had a million dollars and you didn't have to work. And invariably what you'd say was supposed to be your career. So if you wanted to fix old cars then you're supposed to be an auto mechanic.

Samir: So what did you say?

Peter: I never had an answer. I guess that's why I'm working at Initech.

-- Office Space (1999)

Wow, another year has come and gone, and it's already 2011!

A new year often brings desires to change things in our lives and in ourselves that haven't served us well in the past years, often called "New Year's Resolutions." Some of the most common New Year's Resolutions are to lose weight, quit bad habits, become more organized and spend more time with loved ones. However, for many young adults, the new year brings questions about life path and career goals.

As a young adult in your 20s and 30s, you question if you have made the right choice with your career. Every weekday in Century City, many nicely dressed young men and women are seen taking breaks, walking on Avenue of the Stars with their co-workers or on a business call. If this is you, how did you end up here? Did you land your dream position, or settle for a job because of the income? Are you living your passion or do you question if there is something more, a different path you could have chosen?

And just a short distance away, recent UCLA graduates are having similar experiences. If this is you, there were promises of dream jobs waiting at the other end of graduation. But suddenly it's 2011 and you're unemployed, back home living with your parents, searching Craigslist and Monster.com daily for something to get you some money and meaning.

These experiences are not uncommon. In 2001, Alexandra Robbins and Abby Wilner wrote the book"Quarterlife Crisis: The Unique Challenges of Life in Your Twenties."

This book is about how, as a modern day young adult, you struggle differently than previous generations. Your parents worked directly out of high school or college and had kids right away, not having time to think about life-path. You, however, may have had difficulty finding a job after graduation because of the economy, or may be at a high-paying job you settled for.

Because approximately 40% of you have seen your parents get divorced, you may choose to get married and have kids later than your parents to avoid the same fate. You were raised in the MTV generation, with movies like Office Space, where happiness and pleasure are a necessity, and working a meaningless job or quickly marrying someone with potential misery is unthinkable. This can create a great deal of thought about and pressure on the next step in life, and you may have had periods of anxiety, depression, frustration and feeling stuck.

What can be done about this career and life-path confusion in this new year? Borrowing silly advice from the high school guidance counselor Peter speaks of in Office Space, what would you do if you never had to earn money? Would you prefer to stay at your high-rise job or stay in your PJs till noon on your parents couch?

Or is there something completely different you'd love to pursue?

As a therapist, I have seen people of all ages, including those in their late 60s, go through the same training as me, which I find deeply inspiring. It's never too late to realize your dreams!

Another suggestion is to freely try new things—don't spend too much time ruminating over whether or not you've made the right decision. It's a new year, it's time to explore your passions! Even if it means making less money or waking up before noon!

Humor Can Heal

2010-08-25T19:49:00.001-07:00

Article By Heather Cozen, M.S.

A psychology professor once asked my class, “What do you think the biggest form of stress relief is?” Students began to shout out the answers.

“Meditation!”

“Yoga!”

“Exercise!”

Our professor merely shook her head and stood for a moment in silence. Finally, she said, “None of these answers are correct. The biggest stress relief is actually FUN!” In this moment, the class let out simultaneous exhales, and my life was forever changed.

I went to college at UC Santa Cruz and spent three years after graduating living there. Lifestyles that are considered obscure in Los Angeles are the norm in Santa Cruz, such as being a vegan, macrobiotic, yoga junkie or guru follower. I grew up in a Jewish household with a fair amount of anxiety, and so naturally I was attracted to methods of stress relief upon leaving home for the first time. After 7 years of Santa Cruz, I began to internalize the concept that stress relief comes from silent, serious and somewhat strict daily practices.

While I still deeply believe that eating healthy, exercising, practicing yoga and having some type of spiritual belief are of the utmost importance for living a balanced life, I now believe that many of these practices lack a central element— FUN! After my professor mentioned this concept in class, I became particularly fascinated with how fun can enrich our lives, and even more specifically, how adding humor can make life more fun.

I began to remember that during various challenging times in my life, I naturally gravitated towards watching funny movies, listening to hilarious comedians, and reading light-hearted books and magazines. While these forms of entertainment may seem superficial or unrelated to times of sadness, I now view them as a spiritual and psychological journey that shifted my perspective for the better.

Comedy provides us with the opportunity to not take ourselves and our issues so seriously. Laughing at ourselves and life serves to help us detach from our ego, and rising above the small individual “self.” Remember “Annie Hall” with Woody Allen? They took serious relationship issues and made them comical and light-hearted. At times, the characters even turn into cartoons, talked to the camera and had humorous flashbacks to when they were children. How fantastic is that? It personally provided me with a lot of food for thought, and also with a way to depersonalize and laugh at severe relationship issues that might otherwise bring me down.

I’ve spent countless hours researching the effects of humor on psychological health, and the research seems to be piling up. I even discovered that Sigmund Freud, who many consider to be the founding father of psychotherapy, said that humor is “a means to gain pleasure despite the painful affects which disturb it.” Two existential psychologists, Rollo May and Viktor Frankl, believed that using humor with clients increased their self-awareness, allowing them to decrease their anxiety and accept themselves and others more. May also saw humor as a way to distance oneself from their issues, giving and the individual a different perspective on it. What I found most fascinating is what May words, “people cannot laugh when anxious or panic-stricken.” You can’t laugh and feel bad at the same time, so laugh away! Have some fun.

I have to say, with all of the personal and professional evidence I’ve accumulated on the importance of humor for psychological healing, I know this will be an important part of my private practice in the future. I even try to use small bits of appropriate humor when supporting a struggling friend or when going through my own issues. I urge anyone reading this article to experiment with being a silly fool next time you’re are feeling sad, anxious, angry or stressed out. Pop on a stand up comedy CD, rent a Woody Allen movie or a season of Sex and The City, get together with a friend and make weird faces in the mirror, or simply sit back in a comfy chair and laugh about the sheer silliness and absurdity of being human, because after all we are quite the zany species!

Play Therapy with Children

2008-07-17T21:25:00.000-07:00

Therapy with children is different than therapy with adults. How can Virginia Axline’s play therapy be helpful when counseling young children? Cite references.

In her book “Play Therapy,” Virginia Axline says that children express themselves naturally through play, whereas adults express themselves verbally. Children ‘play out’ their emotions and issues, because words are an inadequate and awkward medium for them. Axline’s specific approach is called “Non-Directive Play Therapy,” which is composed of 8 specific principles that create a safe and self-directive experience for children in therapy.

Kranz (1993) says that Axline’s book is “one of the most widely used and best known resources in the field.” He explores the great impact that Axline’s book has had on the field of child counseling by stating “Axline’s book Play Therapy, published in 1947, serves as a model in instructional techniques for many students wishing to learn basic skills utilizing play therapy as an assessment and treatment tool. Her insight, examples, and direction give guidance and substance to future clinicians who want greater knowledge and skill in working with troubled children.” As Kranz states, this book is one of the most influential resources in the child counseling field, and it has been shown, over time, to be helpful to troubled children.

Non-directive play therapy was inspired by Carl Roger’s “Person-Centered Therapy,” which takes a self-directive stance, giving much of the healing responsibility to the client, while the therapist is non-directive. In a non-directive play therapy session, the child chooses how they would like to spend their time. They may be silent, talk, play by themselves, or play with the therapist. This freedom in therapy exists because the non-directive play therapist sees each individual as capable of solving their own issues and having the growth impulse to become a more mature person. A non-directive play therapist allows the child to completely be his or herself and accepts them fully, without trying to change or judge them. The therapist also clarifies the emotional attitudes of the client by reflecting what they express. By allowing the client to be his or herself, accepting him or her fully, and clarifying attitudes, the therapist creates a space where the client can become more self-directive and confident.
Principles

Non-directive play therapy is not made up of a set of specific techniques, as by it’s nature, it does not have a specific direction. Rather, Non-Directive Play Therapy is based on 8 “principles.” Ramirez, Flores-Torres and Kranz (2005) site Axline’s (1947) 8 principles. They are:
1. The therapist must develop a warm, friendly relationship with the child, in
which good rapport is established as soon as possible.
2. The therapist accepts the child exactly as he is.
3. The therapist establishes a feeling of permissiveness in the relationship so that
the child feels free in expressing his feelings completely
4. The therapist is alert to recognize the feelings the child is expressing and
reflects those feelings back to him in such a manner that he gains insight into his
behavior.
5. The therapist maintains a deep respect for the child’s ability to solve his own
problems if given an opportunity to do so. The responsibility to make choices and
institute change is the child’s.
6. The therapist does not attempt to direct the child’s actions of conversation in
any manner. The child leads the way; the therapist follows.
7. The therapist does not attempt to hurry the therapy along. It is a gradual
process and is recognized as such by the therapist.
8. The therapist establishes only those limitations that are necessary to anchor the
therapy to the world of reality and to make the child aware of his responsibilities
in the relationship.

Axline’s first principle for therapists practicing non-directive play therapy is establishing a rapport with your young client. She states that “the therapist must develop a warm, friendly relationship with the client, in which good rapport is established as soon as possible” (Axline, 1974). This principle seems simplistic enough, as one would think all the therapist needs to do is be inviting, friendly and caring towards the client. However, Axline notes instances where a therapist attempts to develop a warm relationship, when in fact they are not following other principles, such as accepting the child as they are. She mentions an situation where a therapist is inviting a child to play with toys, but the child refuses. The therapist is trying to be friendly, and states, “Lots of children come up here and enjoy our playroom.” While the therapist thinks they are establishing rapport, they are forgetting to accept the child as they are, realizing that the child may not want to play right now. In consequence, establishing a rapport must consist of treating the child client with warmth, while following all of the other non-directive principles. How the child is treated with warmth will depend on each specific client.

Another principle of non-directive play therapy is accepting the child completely. Axline says that there are often parts of a child that a parent rejects, especially if the child is in therapy. This is because parents usually send their children to therapy to get “fixed” in some way. In order for the child to feeling completely comfortable expressing his or herself, they must feeling fully accepted by the therapist. The therapist shows complete acceptance with their attitude. This is done by creating a calm, steady and friendly relationship with the client. The therapist does not show impatience, does not criticize, and also does not praise the child. Criticism and praise are mentioned in The Child Leads The Way, and they are also very important for Accepting the Child Completely. For the child to feel safe enough to open up to the therapist, they must never feel criticized by them. Also, the child must not feel like they are trying to impress the therapist, and thus the therapist must not offer them any praise. These tactics all create a safe, calm and steady environment for clients, a feeling of full acceptance, and the allowance to express emotions that may be difficult to share otherwise.

In Axline’s non-directive play therapy model, it is important for the therapist to create a feeling of permissiveness for the child, meaning the therapist is highly non-judgmental. This allows the child to feel like they can fully be his or herself and express his or herself completely. An example of permissiveness is a therapist saying, “You may play with these toys in any way you like for an hour.” Axline presents another example of permissiveness, by showing how a non-directive play therapist may introduce paints and the other materials in the playroom. The therapist can say, “The paints on this easel are used to paint pictures. Here are the large sheets of paper. Here are the paint rags…. Now you may play with anything in the playroom in any way you want to. You will have an hour all your own.” (Axline, 1974) This style is very different than directive play or art therapy, where the therapist may ask a child to draw a picture of their family, and interpret is based on specific guidelines. Non-directive play therapy presents a blank slate for the child in terms of what they choose to paint or play with and how they want to express themselves through art or play.

A next of Axline’s play therapy principles is recognizing and reflecting the child’s feelings. Axline states, “When the therapist catches the feeling that is expressed [through play] and recognizes that feeling, the child goes on from there and the therapist can actually see the child gain insight.” In noticing what a child is feeling and reflecting it back to them, the child can gain insight into their own behaviors, just as adults do. She says that when recognizing and reflecting the child’s feelings, the non-directive play therapist must be careful not to interpret these feelings, but rather to reflect them objectively. This can be a difficult task, as if the therapist translates the child’s
symbolic behavior into words, she is interpreting because she is saying what she thinks the child has expressed in his actions…. A cautious use of interpretation, however, would seem the best policy, with the therapist keeping the interpretation down to a minimum, and, when using it, basing it upon the obvious play activity of the child. Even then, the therapist’s response should include the symbol the child has used (Axline, 1974).
A therapist can still reflect a child’s feelings in an objective and cautious way, with minimal interpretation. This allows for the child to gain their own insight into their behavior, not clouded by the therapist’s perceptions.

Axline believes that it is important for the non-directive play therapist to maintain respect for the child when counseling them. She states that change in an individual’s behavior can only occur when an individual has achieved an insight on their own, allowing them to want to change. If a child is respected in therapy, and treated as an independent being that is responsible his or her self, then change can naturally occur. The child is able to express his/herself freely, and the therapist respects them for their individuality. Axline says, “Regardless of what he picks up [in the therapy room], there are no objections from the therapist.” This gives the child the freedom to be himself or herself, with pure respect from the therapist. The child may have never been given the opportunity to feel respected by a responsible adult, and thus they could not blossom and change in healthy ways. Axline’s non-directive play therapy gives children this opportunity.

Another principle of non-directive play therapy is the child leads the way, while the therapist follows. This principle says that the therapist should never ask any probing questions unless the child brings up a topic that is upsetting them. If this is the case, the only appropriate question would be “Do you want to tell me about it?” (Axline, 1974) Also, the therapist never gives help or directions unless the client specifically asks for them. These tactics, like all the other principles of non-directive play therapy, allow the child to be more self-directive in the therapy session. The therapist also never praises or criticizes the client, as both praise and criticism may inspire the client to act a certain way. For example, if the therapist were to praise a client’s artwork, the client may try to create drawings to win more praise from the therapist, rather than for their own release or catharsis. Similarly, the therapist should never criticize the client, as this may create a feeling of discouragement or inadequacy.

A next of Axline’s principles is that therapy with a child cannot be hurried. She states, “The law of readiness operates in the therapy session. When a child is ready to express his feelings in the presence of the therapist, he will do so. He cannot be hurried into it. An attempt to force him to do so causes him to retreat.” The therapist must be patient with the child, as each individual comes into readiness to express themselves at a different pace. If a child has a period of “seemingly uneventful play” in a therapy session, Axline suggests the therapist be patient with the child. She says this period may be one where the child is “gaining the readiness to express themselves. If the therapist can just let them alone, let them take their time, she will be rewarded for her restraint.” Again, as the other principles suggest, it is important for the therapist to let go of any agendas, and let the child dictate when they are ready to open themselves up in therapy. If the expression comes from a place of self-motivation, it will be much deeper than if the therapist pushes the child to open up.

Axline’s final non-directive play therapy principle is the value of limitations in therapy with children. She does not believe that very many limitations should be put on the child during therapy, however, a few limitations are very important. For example the child should not be allowed to damage the room, ruin the play materials or attack the therapist. These are similar limitations that exist in the world at large, and thus Axline believes the therapy room should not be any different. The child and therapist must treat each other with a level of respect, and the therapist must provide for the child a sense of security. An obvious limitation that exists in the therapy is session is the length of therapy. The child must be clearly shown that therapy only lasts and hour, and they must strictly adhere to that boundary, even if they are in the middle of playing. These limitations create a sense of constancy for the child, which can be helpful for them in the long run.

In conclusion, non-directive play therapy offers young clients a safe space where they can be themselves, open up and learn to become more self-directive. The principles of establishing rapport, accepting the child completely, permissiveness, recognition and reflection of the child’s feelings, maintaining respect for the child, the client leading the way, not hurrying therapy, and the value of limitations all facilitate feelings of safety and openness, and in turn inspire self-direction.

References

Axline, V.M. (1974). Play Therapy. New York: Ballantine Books.

Kranz, P.L. & Lund, N.L. (1993). Axline’s eight principles of play therapy
revisited. International Journal of Play Therapy, 2(2), 53-60.

Ramirez, S.Z., Flores-Torres, L.L., & Kranz, P.L. (2005). Using Axline’s
eight principles of play therapy with Mexican-American children.
Journal of Instructional Psychology, 32(4), 329-337.

Humor and Psychological Healing

2008-07-17T21:23:00.000-07:00

It has been said that humor can be psychologically healing. How can therapists use humor while counseling there clients? Cite references.

A great deal of research has been conducted on the positive effects that humor has on the psychological well beings of humans. It is obvious that humor has the short term effect of making us feel joyous in the moment. However, it has been shown that humor used in conjunction with psychotherapy can either help or hinder the therapeutic process.

Golan and Rosenheim (1986) summarize the positive psychological effects of humor from literature they have reviewed. They say that humor helps us by
enabling emotional catharsis, alleviating anxiety and tension, overcoming excessive earnestness, creating an atmosphere of closeness and equality, developing a sense of realistic proportions, exposing the absurdity of stereotypes, increasing flexibility, and confronting hidden internal processes.
With these grand and varied effects that humor has on the human emotional condition, it seems be the perfect adjunct to psychotherapy. Many of psychotherapy’s pioneers have similar perceptions on the use of humor in psychological healing.

Freud, who many consider to be the founding father of psychotherapy, said that humor is “a means to gain pleasure despite the painful affects which disturb it; it acts as a substitute for this affective development, and takes it’s place.” Adler would tell his patients that there are always comedic situations which are comparable to their individual neuroses, helping them to take their issues more lightly. Maslow believed that a sense of humor in an individual is a sign of them being self-actualized. May saw humor as a way to distance one’s self from their issue, and thus giving an individual a different perspective on it. (Bordan & Goldin, 1999) Both May and Frankl believed that using humor with clients increased their self-awareness, allowing them to decrease their anxiety and accept themselves and others more. Lastly, “According to May, people cannot laugh when anxious or panic-stricken.” (Dupey, et al, 2001)
Theoretically, humor is the perfect companion for psychological healing, and thus many research studies have been conducted to see if this theory has validity. Szabo (2003) did a study on the effects of both humor and exercise on lowering anxiety. 39 healthy university students, ages 20-23, exercised for 20 minutes and were exposed to 20 minutes of a humorous stand-up video. To measure the effects, they were then given both the Spielberger State Anxiety Inventory and the Subjective Exercise Experience Scale. He found that both humor and exercise lowered anxiety, however humor has a greater effect of lowering anxiety.

Kelly (2002) gave 140 undergraduates the Worry Domains Questionnaire and the Multidimensional Sense of Humor Scale. He found that “worry has a significant negative relationship to sense of humor. Thus, it seems that individuals with a sense of humor are less likely to worry.” He also notes that these results are similar to those of earlier studies, which showed that having low scores on a sense of humor scale is connected to “negative psychological outcomes,” such as coping poorly with stressful life events.
In Deutsch’s study (2002), participants were presented with the choice of watching comedy scenes or nature scenes. He found that non-depressed patients chose comedy scenes more than the depressed patients. Also, he discovered that non-depressed participants laughed more often. Deutsch says that these “results support existing literature supporting humor and laughter’s reinforcing properties and have important implications for the efficacy of humor-based treatments for anxiety, depression or pain management disorders.”

Carroll, et al (1998) did a study on 61 residents from 6 residential homes, ages 63-97. The experimental group received a structured intervention of a comedical old-time sing-a-long. These participants had lower anxiety and depression than the residents who only received standard residential care. This study “shows that a comparatively small amount of intervention (one hour per week) can have a beneficial impact on the psychological well being of older people in residential care.” The results of studies conducted by Szabo, Kelly, Deutsch and Carroll, et al all suggest that humorous interventions can effectively lower anxiety and reduce depression.

Conversely, other authors call attention to some of the negative issues that occur when using humor in a psychotherapeutic setting. Kubie (1971) wrote a paper called, “The Destructive Potential of Humor in Psychotherapy.” He says “humor might stem from aggressive, abusive discharge towards the patient, which could embarrass him and clock the natural flow of his associations.” (Golan & Rosenheim, 1986) He also talks about a specific type of humor called “gallows,” which occurs when a counselor or a client makes jokes about a client’s behaviors that are destructive. These jokes, he says, “in essence, send messages to avoid taking the client seriously,” and thus have a negative potential for the client’s therapeutic process (Bordan & Goldin, 1999).

Gladding also talks about when it is improper to use humor in a counseling context. He says that is it inappropriate, “a) when the counselor uses it to avoid dealing with client anxieties, b) when a client views it as irrelevant to his or her reasons for being in counseling, c) when it is experienced as a put-down, d) when it is used too frequently and becomes boring, and e) when it is inappropriately timed.” (Bordan & Goldin, 1999) Both Kubie and Gladding suggest that there is a fine line between using humor to heal and humor becoming harmful to the client’s process. With this perspective, it is important to conduct research on both the positive and negative effects that humor may have on clients.

A study was done by Golan and Rosenheim (1986) where they found that some patients greatly dislike humor in counseling. Golan and Rosenheim tested the reactions to humorous interventions in counseling sessions on hysterical, obsessive and depressive personality types. 36 participants, all adult females, listened to 12 recorded therapy session- 9 of which were humorous, and 3 of which were not humorous. The results were that patients favored the interventions that were nonhumorous. However, the degree of preference was different based on the personality style of the participant. “Obsessive patients stood out in their ardent repudiation of humorous interventions. The results suggest that the desirability of utilizing humor is therapy depends on a multiplicity of parameters.”

All of the aforementioned researchers seem to agree that if a therapist does use humor in their therapy sessions, they must use it with care. Golan and Rosenheim (1986) say that “when applying humor the therapist has to gauge the patient’s long-term needs and not just his immediate response which might well stem from resistance.” Gauging a client’s long-term needs would include assessing their psychological disorder, personality, comfort level with humor, and culture of origin.
In an article that discusses the importance of attuning to the ways other cultures practice humor, Dupey, et al, say,
“[Humor in counseling can reflect] the type of emotional release that leads to significant therapeutic gains. It can also be [disturbing if used inappropriately]. Counselors need to exert particular caution before attempting to apply humor in working with a client from a culture different from the counselor.” (Dupey, et al, 2001)
This article explores the different styles of humor predominant in Native American, Latino, African American and Asian cultures. This is yet another example of how important it is to be mindful of the use of humor in therapy, if it is to be used at all.

In conclusion, Lazarus (2006) eloquently summarizes the research I explored for this literature review. He says,
“[Humor] can be used to reframe various troublesome events so that a positive spin is gained and the proverbial silver lining comes into view. Humor can enhance rapport. It can enable people to take their problems less seriously….. Nevertheless, the use of humor requires the therapist to ascertain that the client will not see its use as disrespectful, trivializing or in bad taste.
With that being said, although humor can lighten a client’s view towards his own heavy issues, the issue of using humor in psychotherapy should not be taken lightly. If a therapist decides to use it, they should have an understanding of the client’s psychological disorder, personality, comfort level with humor, and culture of origin. Humor is a powerful tool, and if used mindfully, can be a wonderful companion to traditional psychotherapeutic healing.

References
Araoz, D.L., Bordan, T., Gladding, S.T., Goldin, E., Kaplan, D., Krumboltz,
J., & Lazarus, A. (2006). Humor in counseling: leader perspectives,
Journal of Counseling & Development, 84, 397-404.
Bordan, T. & Goldin, E. (1999). The use of humor in counseling: the laughing cure,
Journal of Counseling & Development, 77 (4), 405-410.
Carroll, L., Houston Diane M., Marsh, H. & Mckee, K.J. (1998). Using
Humor to promote psychological wellbeing in residential homes for
older people, Aging and Mental Health, 2 (4), 328-332.
Deutsch, D. (2002). Humor as a reinforcer with depressed and
nondepressed subjects, Dissertation Abstracts International: Section
B: The Sciences and Engineering, 63 (1-B), 510.
Dupey, M.F., Garrett, M.T., Linwood, V., Maples, M.F., Phan, L.T., Torres-
Rivera. (2001). Ethnic diversity and the use of humor in
Counseling: appropriate or inappropriate?, Journal of Counseling &
Development, 79 (1), 53-60.
Golan, G. & Rosenheim, E. (1986). Patients’ reactions to humorous
Interventions in psychotherapy, American Journal of Psychology, XL
(1), 110-124.
Kelly, W. (2002). An investigation of worry and sense of humor, Journal of
Psychology, Interdisciplinary and Applied, 136 (6), 657-666.
Kubie, L. (1971). The destructive potential of humor in psychotherapy, Am J Psychiatry,
127, 861-866.
Szabo, A. (2003). The acute effects of humor and exercise on mood and
anxiety, Journal of Leisure Research, 35 (2), 153-162.

Young Adulthood

2008-07-17T21:17:00.000-07:00

An individual experiences a great deal of change in early adulthood. What are some of the psychosocial developments that occur in early adulthood? Cite references.

An individual experiences a great deal of change during early adulthood. Many psychological researchers have theories about stage development, and the psychosocial changes that occur in individuals at various ages. For many generations and in many cultures, marriage was the marker of adulthood. However, in recent years the markers of adulthood have become less concrete and seem to focus less on marriage and more on personal growth, responsibility, fulfilling employment and self exploration.

Erik Erikson, often referred to as an “ego psychologist,” studied human development throughout the lifespan. He developed stages of psychosocial development, each of which are marked by conflict that can be resolved by an important life event. Harder (2002) says that the Erikson gained insight from studying the Sioux Indians on a reservation, and “became aware of the massive influence of culture on behavior… He felt the course of development is determined by the interaction of the body (genetic biological programming), mind (psychological), and cultural (ethos) influences.” From this standpoint, Erikson created eight stages from birth to death. Berk (2004) notes that from Erikson’s perspective, adults have three main stages, each of which “brings both opportunity and risk- ‘a turning point for better or worse.’” According to Berk, Erikson believes that the most prominent psychological issue of early adulthood, which occurs from ages 18 to 35, is known as intimacy and solidarity versus isolation. Berk states that intimacy versus isolation is “reflected in the young person’s thoughts and feelings about making a permanent commitment to an intimate partner.”

Harder (2002) further explains Erikson’s young adulthood stage. She states that during this stage, our most important relationships occur with romantic partners and friends. She says,
As we try to find mutually satisfying relationships, primarily through marriage and friends, we generally also being to start a family, though this age has been pushed back for many couples who today don’t start their families until their late thirties. If negotiating this stage is successful, we can experience intimacy on a deep level. [However], if we’re not successful, isolation and distance from others may occur. And when we don’t find it easy to create satisfying relationships, our world can begin to shrink as, in defense, we can feel superior to others.

Much like Erikson, Levinson, as sited by Berk (2004), has a theory of the life structure, which is the underlying design of an individual’s life. He says that in early adulthood, the life structure consists “of relationships with significant others individuals, groups and institutions. The life structure can have many components, but usually only a few, having to do with marriage/family and occupation, are central.” Scollon (2006) notes that Freud believed the two most prominent roles that adults experience are work and love. Scollon sites studies which show that “increases in martial satisfaction correlated with increases in well-being and effective functioning and decreases in anxiety over time.” When Freud, Erikson and Levinson developed their theories, romantic relationships and marriage were obviously a highly important step in living a fulfilling adult life.

In contrast to Freud, Erikson and Levinson’s theories on the importance of marriage for becoming a young adult, currently many individuals are not starting families until they are in their late thirties, and so this stage has to be updated accordingly. Arnett (1998) notes that anthropologists have found that in most cultures, mainly
traditional non-Western cultures, view marriage as the even that “marks the transition from boy to man and from girl to woman.” He notes that this was also true in most Western cultures until very recently. He conducted studies and notes that other studies have indicated modern day young adult Americans consider “the preeminent criteria for the transition to adulthood are the individualistic character qualities of accepting responsibility for one’s self and making independent decisions, along with becoming financially independent; marriage, in contrast, ranks very low.” Currently, this generation of young adults in America “rejects marriage and other role transitions as essential markers of adulthood, in favor of criteria that are distinctly individualistic.” It is clear that this current generation values independence on an emotional and financial level as a more significant marker of adulthood than significant romantic relationships/marriage.

Schlegel (1998) reviews Arnett’s work and says that the old markers of transition into adulthood are no longer are valid. This creates confusion for young adults, and those who participated in Arnett’s research “were not sure whether they were or were not adults.” Schlegel (1998) continues to say,
Nevertheless, widely held public opinion probably agrees with the respondents that there is no single status-transition marker the way marriage used to be for most people. If pressed, some might say that graduation from college, or getting a full-time job, or some other major event, is at least equivalent to marriage as a status-transition marker. The respondents who had children saw the birth of a child, in retrospect, as moving them into adulthood. This is also a marker in some traditional societies, where adulthood is assumed in steps- marriage, the birth of one or more children- rather than in one fell swoop.
The current transition into young adulthood has become more complex in recent years than it was in the past. It occurs in steps, such as getting a good job, becoming financially independent, getting married and or having children. This has lengthened the young adulthood stage and made the transition into it more gray than black and white.

Scollon (2006) says that finding a job that is fulfilling is a predictor of well-being in young adults. He states, “Subjective aspects of work also predict well-being in that satisfying and engaging employment predicts increases in positive emotion and decreases in negative emotion.” This further proves that independence has become an important part of the young adult’s psycho-social development. Berk (2004) sites Levinson by stating that at the beginning of young adulthood, many young adults develop a dream of how they see themselves in “the adult world that guides their decision making.” Levinson says that the more specific this dream is, the more meaningful “the individual’s structure building.” Men usually construct their dream about being “an independent achiever in an occupational role.” Women, on the other hand, often have “spilt dreams,” as they split their dream between their occupation and children. Levinson has found that for women, their “dreams tend to define the self in terms of relationships with husband, children and colleagues. Men’s dreams are usually more individualistic: They view significant others, especially wives, as vital supporters of their goals and less often see themselves as supporting other’s goals.” This evidence partially supports Arnett’s theory that marriage has become less important to young adults. It notes the gender differences in goals for young adulthood and how many contemporary women still view marriage as an important transition into and goal for young adulthood, whereas men are more focused on individualism and career.

Berk (2004) notes that the most common form of marriage in young adulthood is called “dual earner marriage, [where] both husband and wife are employed.” In a about one-third of dual earner marriages lies a moderate to severe amount of conflict from trying to balance family and work responsibilities, especially when the couple has children. Often times, young adults may feel “a sense of role overload, or conflict between work and family responsibilities.” This is a more prevalent issue for women and for those of low-socioeconomic status, as there may not be as many resources available and thus more stress when raising children. Dual earner marriages also present couples that have children with the issue less job flexibility, as decisions must now take both partners and children into consideration. Berk (2004) states that although dual earner marriages can cause conflict, “when couples cooperate to surmount these, they profit greatly from involvement in both work and family roles. Besides higher earnings and a better standard of living, a major advantage is women’s self-fulfillment and improvement well-being.” If young adults do choose to pursue both a career and a marriage and/or family, there many be stressful challenges, but generally the rewards can outweigh the stress in the long run.

Another important psychosocial development during young adulthood is identity exploration. Lefkowitz, Gillen and Shearer (2004) note that “recent work suggests that individuals engage in their most extensive identity exploration during emerging adulthood, [from ages 18 to 25], rather than early adolescence.” This identity exploration often intensifies for individuals who move away from home to attend college. Many individuals are entering young adulthood decide to leave home for the first time and are experiencing life without the influence of their parents. Living away from home for the first time allows young adults to explore “many social, political, religious and interest-related activities.” Lefkowitz, Gillen and Shearer (2004) state that religiosity and sexuality are highly impressionable during this young adult stage of development. They also state that young adults are more sexually active than high school students, and are more accepting of casual sex. Dating at this age is also highly focused on sexual interactions.

Even though it has been noted that young adulthood is a time of identity exploration, older models of personality thought that personality growth/change only occurred in childhood and adolescence. Watson and Humrichouse (2006) say,
Once individuals reached adulthood, however, traits were viewed as essentially being set like plaster and highly resistant to change. As evidence has accumulated, however, it has become clear that a simple ‘plaster’ model fails to capture the complexities of personality development across the lifespan. In fact, recent findings have established that personality traits are not static constructs but rather show meaningful change well into middle age.
It is clear from the Lefkowitz, Gillen and Shearer’s (2004) research that young adults are still exploring their identities and developing their personalities. Also, huge life transitions such as landing a fulfilling career, forming close friendship relationships, getting married and having children can significantly change an individual’s personality traits. These experiences promote growth on many levels and can continue to do so, as Watson states, “well into middle age.”

In conclusion, it is apparent that young adulthood is a time of much transition. From leaving home for the first time, to seeking out and landing a fulfilling job, to possibly marrying and starting a family, young adulthood is a highly eventful time in an individual’s life. Marriage and family has become less important for contemporary young adults, whereas finding meaningful work has become more important. However, many young women still view marriage as a marker for becoming an adult, so there are differences in gender and role fulfillment. Regardless, whatever dream a young adult chooses to pursue in life, it is clear that young adulthood is stage of much challenging yet exciting psychosocial and personal development and growth.

Arnett, J.J. (1998). Learning to stand alone: The contemporary American transition to
adulthood in cultural and historical context. Human Development. 41(5-6), 295-
315.

Berk, L.E. (2004). Development Through the Lifepsan (3rd Ed). Pearson Education, Inc:
Boston.

Harder, A.F. (2002). The Developmental Stages of Erikson. Retrieved July 9, 2008,
http://www.learningplaceonline.com/stages/organize/Erikson.htm

Lefkowitz, E.S, Gillen, M.M, & Shearer, C.L. (2004). Religiosity, sexual behaviors and
sexual attitudes during emerging adulthood. Journal of Sex Research. 41(2),
150-159.

Scollon, C.N. (2006). Love, work and changes in extraversion and neuroticism over
time. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 91(6), 1152-1165.

Watson, D. & Humrichouse, J. (2006). Personality developing in emerging adulthood:
Integrating evidence from self-ratings and spouse ratings. Journal of Personality
and Social Psychology. 91(5), 959-974.

Dual Relationships in Therapy

2008-07-17T21:12:00.000-07:00

It is generally unacceptable for a therapist to have a dual relationship with his or her client. What are the legal guidelines for dual relationships in California? Cite references.

The issue of dual relationships is a common concern in the counseling field, as these relationships are potentially very harmful to clients. The main types of dual relationships are sexual relationships, non-sexual social or professional relationships and financial-business relationships. Generally, all of these relationships are to be avoided, as they are dangerous for both the therapist and client. However, because this is a complex issue, some types of dual relationships are unavoidable, and, some argue, a few are potentially helpful.

Lamb and Moorman (2004) say that dual relationships with clients, supervisees and students appear to take on one more of these roles: “(a) sexual relationships (e.g., with clients, supervisees, students); (b) nonsexual social or professional relationships, such as having dinner with a former client or employing a current supervisee; and/or (c) financial-business relationships, particularly as they may occur in a rural practice and small communities.” The Ethical Principals of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (APA, 2002) adds to this definition by stating,
A multiple relationship occurs when a psychologist is in a professional role with a person and (1) at the same time is in another role with the same person, (2) at the same time is in a relationship with a person closely associated with or related to the person with whom the psychologist has the professional relationship, or (3) promises to enter into another relationship in the future with the person or a person closely associated with or related to the person (Moleski, 2005).

In general, a dual or multiple relationship occurs when the counselor takes on or promises to take on a secondary role/relationship with a client, supervisee or student. Because these relationships add complexity and harm to the counseling relationship, the APA has mapped out the above guidelines so counselors and clients can be weary of such relationships developing.
Cottone and Tarvydas (2002) say that the term dual relationship is associated with “a misuse of therapist power or authority.” The Association for Marriage and Family Therapy’s (AAMFT, 1991) Code of Ethics says that therapists should “make every effort to avoid dual relationships with clients that could impair professional judgment or increase the risk of exploitation” (Cottone & Tarvydas, 2002). Because the therapist is the individual in a position of power, they must take great care to not abuse this power and exploit their clients, students or supervisees. Thus, the therapist must be the one to withhold any desire to enter into a dual relationship, and if they are solicited to do so, they must use their authority to refuse. Cottone and Tarydas (2002) state that “feelings may develop and may be uncontrollable, but there are controls on actions of professionals.” A professional individual recognizes that feelings and desires to enter into a dual relationship may exist, but actions must be resisted, and authority must be used in a responsible manner.

Dual relationships can come about in two different ways: by choice and by chance. If a dual relationship comes about by the counselor’s choice, then “he or she must examine the potential positive and negative consequences that the secondary relationship might have for the primary counseling relationship. The counselor should choose to enter into the dual relationship only when it is clear that such a relationship is in the client’s best interests” (Moleski & Kiselica, 2005). On the other hand, sometimes dual relationships may come about by chance, such as “in sparsely populated rural areas, a dual relationship between a practitioner and a client may be unavoidable.” An example of this would be if a counselor is in personal recovery from alcohol addiction and attends the only AA group available in the small town they reside in. They may have a few clients also attending the AA group, and thus a dual relationship came about by chance and would be unavoidable.

Undoubtedly, the most harmful type of dual relationship is a sexual dual relationship. Moleski and Kiselica (2005) says that sexual dual relationships can be considered abusive. “Sexual relationships, according to Coleman and Schaefer (1986), include either overt forms of sexual contact with clients (e.g., passionate kissing, fondling, sexual intercourse, oral or anal sex, and sexual penetration with objects) and/or other less obvious expressions of sexual behavior (e.g. sexual gazes and seductiveness).” Moleski and Kiselica say that most, if not all, counselors agree that sexual relationships between a counselor and client are the most harmful type of dual relationship. Borys and Pope (1989) examined the opinions and practices of 4,800 mental health professionals about dual relationships. 98% of those surveyed stated that sexual activity with a client before termination of therapy’ is never ethical (Moleski & Kiselica, 2005).

However, even though almost all of the therapists surveyed rated sexual activity with a client before termination to be unethical, over half of those surveyed by Stake and Oliver (1991) said they have treated clients who have had sexual contact with a past therapist. Houseman and Stake (1999) have also found shocking results in their surveys of psychologists. “The percentage of psychologists reporting sex with current clients has ranged from 3% to 12% among male therapists and from 0.5% to 3% among female therapists” (Moleski & Kiselica, 2005). It is clear from these findings that although almost all therapists believe it is unethical to have a sexual relationship with their clients, a good percentage of them still have engaged in this behavior.

As evidenced above, male counselors are far more likely to engage in sexual dual relationships than female counselors. It has also been found that females are far more likely than male clients to be involved in sexual dual relationships (Hoffman, 1995). Hoffman (1995) also states that the “most effective predictor of whether a therapist is likely to involve a client in a sexual relationship is whether the therapist has previously engaged in sex with a client. The client’s personal history or characteristics do not seem to be significant factors in predictability.” It does not matter how the client behaves, or if they admit to having a sexual attraction to their therapist. The biggest indicator of a therapist engaging in a sexual dual relationship is whether or not they have engaged in one previously. This further indicates that the responsibility of engaging in a dual relationship lies on the therapist, as they have the authority in the client/patient relationship.

Gottlieb (1993) notes the American Psychological Association’s stance on sexual dual relationships. They state that because sexual behavior is “so frequently harmful… and undermines public confidence,” it is specifically prohibited for two years after termination, and it remains prohibited even after two years “except in the most unusual circumstances.” If sexual behavior between and therapist and past client does occur, the therapist must demonstrate that there has been no exploitation involved. The issue of sexual dual relationships is so harmful, that APA has developed a code with seven factors that must be considered if a sexual relationship can occur two years after termination. These seven factors are “the time since termination, the nature and duration of therapy, the circumstances of termination, the patient’s personal history, the patient’s current mental status, the likelihood of adverse impact and any statement made by the psychologist during therapy suggesting or inviting a post-termination relationship (Gottlieb, 1993).” It is exceptionally clear that a therapist should never engage in a sexual dual relationship with a current client, and should only engage in a sexual relationship with a past client after 2-5 years, in the most unusual of circumstances.

A second type of dual relationship is a nonsexual social or professional relationship. Moleski and Kiselica (2005) note the various types of nonsexual social or professional relationships that exist. Some examples are
personal or friendship relationships, social interactions and events, business or financial relationships, collegial or professional relationships, supervisory or evaluative relationships, religious affiliation relationships, collegial or professional relationships plus social relationships, and workplace relationships.

Such types of dual relationships, although not as harmful as sexual relationships, can be harmful to the therapeutic experience. These types of dual relationships blur the boundaries of therapy, and the therapist becomes more a friend than counselor. The client gains insight into the persona of the therapist in these types of relationships, and the focus can be placed on both the therapist and client, whereas the focus in therapy should rest mainly on the client.
Lamb (2004) notes that although nonsexual social or professional dual relationships do not seem overtly harmful, they may lead to sexual dual relationships. He states, “there is some evidence that certain activities within the professional relationship itself (e.g., nonsexual touching, self-disclosure by the psychologist) are associated with and may, depending on the circumstances and context of such activities, increase the likelihood of the development of an explicitly sexual MR.” While they may seem harmless at the time, nonsexual social or professional dual relationships have been shown to be a precursor to sexual dual relationships- yet another reason why they should be avoided.

A last type of dual relationship is a financial-business relationship, or, in other words, bartering. This type of relationship occurs when a therapist accepts goods or services in exchange for counseling. Woody (1998) sites the American Psychological Association’s ethics code, which states,
Psychologists ordinarily refrain from accepting goods, services, or other nonmonetary remuneration from patients or clients in return for psychological services because such arrangements create inherent potential for conflicts, exploitation, and distortion of the professional relationship. A psychologist may participate in bartering only if (1) it is not clinically contraindicated, and (2) the relationship is not exploitative (APA, 1992).
Woody notes that these types of relationships may be problematic for a few reasons. First off, if a client offers a service as trade, such as house painting, and the counselor is not satisfied with the end product, conflict can arise. Another issue is if a client performs a personal service for a counselor, such as housekeeping or babysitting, the client will have privy to personal information to the therapist’s home life. This becomes a boundary issue, as the client will know a great deal about the therapist’s life, and the emphasis may be taken off of the client in therapy sessions. Business and financial relationships can also lead to both negative and positive personal and/or sexual relationships, both creating conflict in the therapeutic relationship. A last reason why financial-business dual relationships are harmful is because the psychologist is always left with the liability, even if the client needs special financial arrangements (Woody, 1998).

Dual relationships are harmful because they disrupt the therapeutic relationship, creating a secondary relationship that can have highly negative repercussions. Pearson and Piazza (1997) note that the advantage of power and authority that therapists possess is the main culprit in creating harmful dual relationships. Keith-Spiegel and Koocher (1985) note that counselors can ‘hold an advantage of power over the people with whom they work, especially when they are psychotherapy clients or students. They occupy a position of trust and are expected to advocate the welfare of those who depend on them.’ Because they have a position of power, their client’s interests become subordinate to their own, which can create exploitation. Pearson and Piazza (1997) state that having a secondary relationship with a client makes it easier to abuse the power and authority a therapist has over their clients. Lastly, they note that dual relationships are not always abusive or exploitative.

Although dual relationships are generally not advisable, there are some cases where they are not harmful to clients, and can even be beneficial. Lamb and Moorman (2004) note that multiple relationships may not be considered unethical “depending on (a) the nature of the MR (e.g., sexual relationships with current clients are prohibited whereas other MRs are not), (b) the degree to which the MR may impair the psychologist's effectiveness, or (c) whether there is a risk of exploitation or harm to the person with whom the professional relationship exists.” The APA (2002) even states that “multiple relationships that would not reasonably be expected to cause impairment or risk exploitation or harm are not unethical.” Even though some types of dual relationships are not considered unethical, there is little consensus as to what these relationships may look like. More clarification is needed from the APA as to what types of dual relationships are ethical, as it is currently a gray and undefined area.

Cottone and Tarvydas (2002) state that a friendship that grows organically during the therapy or supervision process can be a positive dual relationship. They say, “As to whether there is danger of physical or emotional harm, a healthy friendship that develops during a formal counseling or supervisory relationship and lasts beyond the formal contracted services may not be considered harmful.” Although this is a gray area, and can lead to other types of unethical dual relationships, a positive friendship that develops in the course of therapy or supervision can have a great impact on both the therapist and client alike.

In conclusion, Moleski and Kiselica (2005) sum of the issue of dual relationships beautifully by stating, “Ethical decision making is an ongoing process with no easy answers. In order to promote the well-being of clients, counselors must constantly balance their own values and life experiences with professional codes of ethics as they make choices about how to help their clients effectively.” If counselors use their authority over their clients with great care and responsibility, they will naturally make the most ethical and beneficial choices regarding their relationships with their clients.

References

American Psychological Association (1992). Ethical principles of psychologists and
code of conduct. American Psychologist, 47, 1597-16111.

Cottone, R. R. & Tarvydas, V. M. (2002). Ethical and Professional Issues in
Counseling: Second Edition. Pearson Education, Inc.: New Jersey.

Gottlieb, M.C. (1993). Avoiding exploitive dual relationships: a decision-making model.
Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, Practice, Training, 30(1), 41-48.

Hoffman, R.M. (1995). Sexual dual relationships in counseling: confronting the issues.
Counseling and Values, 40(1), 15-23.

Keith-Spiegel, P. & Koocher, G.P. (1985). Ethics in psychology: professional standards
and cases. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Lamb, D.H., Catanzaro, S.J., Moorman, A.S. (2004). A preliminary look at how
psychologists identify, evaluate and proceed when faced with multiple
relationship dilemmas. Professional Psychology, 35(3), 248-254.

Moleski, S.M. & Kiselica, M.S. (2005). Dual relationships: a continuum ranging from
destructive to the therapeutic. Journal of Counseling and Development, 83 (1),
3-11.

Pearson, B. & Piazza, N. (1997). Classification of dual relationships in the helping
professions. Counselor Education and Supervision, 37(2), 89-99.

Woody, R.H. (1998). Bartering for psychological services. Professional Psychology,
29(2), 174-178.

Existential Vs Humanistic Therapy

2008-07-17T21:06:00.000-07:00

Existential and Humanistic theories have a lot in common, but are also fairly different. In what ways are they similar, and in what ways are they different? Cite references.

Existential and Humanistic psychological theories have a great deal in common, but there are some notable differences between them. Existential and humanistic psychologies are similar in that they both emphasize life meaning, objective reality and human potential. However, these two psychologies are not interchangeable with one another. Generally, humanistic psychology is seen as having a more positive view on humanity, whereas existential psychology delves more into the darkness of humanity.

Since Freud, who is known as the father of modern day psychology, there have been a few “forces” which have shaped the field of psychology. The first force of psychology focused on psychodynamics- theories developed by Freud. Psychodynamic psychologists believe that humans consist of an id, ego and superego. Put more simply, the first force state that as humans, our internal cravings come into conflict with societal constructs, and the issues that develop because of this may become pathological.

After a few decades of first force psychology dominating the field, second force psychology, or behaviorism, developed. This force was popular from the 1930s to the 1950s, and its emphasis went from internal psychodynamics to a more observable and scientific approach. Behaviorism, as developed by Watson and Skinner, stated that human behavior was no different from animal behavior, in that humans have behaviors and instincts that can be shaped through punishment, reward and modeling. Corey (2005) says, “The behavior therapy movement differed from other therapeutic approaches in its application of principles of classical and operant conditioning to the treatment of a variety of problems.”

In the 1960s and 1970s the third force in psychology developed, as a backlash and alternative to the extreme scientific focus of behaviorism and the strictness of psycholoanalysis. Peavy (1996) says the third force, “in their multi-fold variations, [is] a partial antidote to the emphasis on conformity to normative values which characterises both psychoanalytic and cognitive-behavioural perspectives.” Third force psychology focuses on existential and humanistic philosophies, which state that individuals have unique inherent capabilities and can live fully actualized lives when they are valued, supported, provided with meaningful life activity and can express their emotions. Existential psychology comes from turn of the 20th century existential European philosophers, such as Kierkegaard and Sartre. These philosophies became more prevalent after World War II, as the horrific results of the war produced questioning as to the purpose of human existence. Existential philosophers believe that there is no absolute life meaning, and thus life has no purpose. However, from this dark statement, existential philosophers find a great deal of value in life and the freedom of choice that arises from having no absolute meaning.

Victor Frankl, the most famous existential psychologist, was a Jewish doctor and therapist in Vienna before living for years in a few Nazi concentration camps during World War II. From the experiences Frankl had while living in concentration camps, Frankl developed a form of existential psychology called Logotherapy, which is deeply rooted in existential philosophy. Logotherapy’s premise is that a striving to find meaning in ones life is mans’ primary motivational force. Frankl (1959) says, “[In] Logotherapy the patient is actually confronted with and reoriented toward the meaning of his life. And to make him aware of this meaning can contribute much to his ability to overcome his neurosis.” Keshen (2006) further explains existentialism and Logotherapy, stating,
[Human] beings have a will to purpose, or in other words, a need to engage in something that gives their life purpose. If this will to purpose cannot be fulfilled, an existential vacuum, or void, is created and this may in turn cause an existential neurosis. In order to cope with this existential neurosis, people will often engage in activities, which I view as defense mechanisms, to fill their existential vacuum.

As noted by Frankl and Keshen, existential psychologists generally strive to help individuals find their own subjective life meaning in a world with no absolute purpose.
Similarly, humanistic psychology studies “qualities unique to human life, such as love, personal freedom, greed, lust for power, mortality, art, philosophy, religion and literature, as well as science” (Charnofsky, 2006). Peavy (1996) states that humanistic counseling views human existence as an acorn. He says, “A person contains endless possibilities for development and simply needs a nurturing, facilitative environment which fosters growth. There is little stress on conformity to normative values and standards, and unrealistic stress on 'you can become whatever you want to become.”
Humanistic psychology takes a nurturing and supportive stance on human development, and on the limitless possibilities for growth within each of us. Humanistic counseling also emphasizes change, evolution and self-determination.

Humanistic and existential psychology have a great deal in common, and are often referenced together, using the term “humanistic-existential therapy.” Cain (2002) states that many modern day existential therapists “refer to themselves as existential-humanistic practitioners, indicating that their roots are in existential philosophy but that they have incorporated many aspect of North American humanistic psychotherapies.” One reason they are referenced together is because they share similar theoretical backgrounds. Corey (2005) states that humanistic and existential therapies overlap in that they both “share a respect for the client’s subjective experience and a trust in the capacity of the client to make positive and constructive conscious choices. They have in common an emphasis on concepts such as freedom, choice, values, personal responsibility, autonomy, purpose and meaning.” These types of therapy highly value individuality, as they emphasize subjectivity, personal meaning and personal choice.

Charnofsky (2006) notes the definition of existential-humanistic psychology by quoting Thomas Greening, the editor of the Journal of Humanistic Psychology for 30 years. Greening says,
Existential-Humanistic psychotherapy is a meeting and conversation between two people in which they confront finiteness and death, determinism and chaotic freedom, isolation and enmeshment, dogma, absurdity and meaninglessness… When the meeting goes well there is a movement from nonbeing to being, reactivity to intentionality, estrangement to engagement, deficiency motivation to creativity.
Put more simply, existentialism and humanistic psychology overlap in that they are both concerned with how humans can lead a meaningful life and how they handle the inevitability of death.
Bugental (1992) speaks about several postulates that are crucial to the hybrid of an existential-humanistic perspective. One important postulate, as noted above, is that the only way significant life change can occur is through the subjectivity of the client. Another is that both the client and therapist are fully present and committed to the therapy process. Bugental also states that the task of existential-humanistic therapy is to assist clients in noting how they “constrict their awareness and, thus, their lives.” This allows them to see “alternatives not previously available and to follow through on choices with greater resolution.”
Hoffman (2004) also notes many similarities between humanistic and existential psychology. Both psychological theories are phenomenological, meaning that “they value personal experience and subjectivity.” He states that in an attempt to become more scientific, Psychology often values objective reality rather than subjective. Phenomenological approaches, on the other hand, “focus on the limitations of objectivity. This… means objective knowledge is only one part of the big picture.” Another similarity between the two psychologies is the focus on the “here-and-now” in therapy. While the past is viewed as important, it is necessary for the client to stay in the present moment, to process, understand and value the current therapeutic relationship. “While many psychoanalytic approaches see the therapy relationship as primarily a product of transference, humanistic and existential approaches focus on the real in the relationship in addition to the transference/countertransference patterns.” By focusing on the current client-therapist relationship, transference and countertransference can serve as an important microcosm in the macrocosm of the client’s interpersonal relationship world.

Lastly, Hoffman (2004) says that humanistic and existential approaches both value the basic goodness in people and the human potential. “Part of the therapy process is understood as freeing the individual up to embrace their basic goodness and potential. In doing this, it is believed they will be happier and satisfied with life.” As noted by Corey, Greening, Bugental and Hoffman, both existential and humanistic psychologies allow client’s to experience their individual potentials, by embracing the limitless possibilities of human existence.
Because existential and humanist psychologies have a great deal in common, some may find it unclear as to how they differ. Corey (2005 says) says,
Partly because of this historical connection and partly because of representative of existentialist thinking and humanistic thinking have not always clearly sorted out their views, the connection between the terms existentialism and humanism have tended to be confusing for students and theorists alike. The two viewpoints have much in common, yet there are also significant philosophical differences between them.

Corey (2005) speaks of how humanistic and existential psychologies differ by referencing humanistic psychology’s acorn metaphor, where the acorn will automatically grow into an oak if given the appropriate conditions. Humanistic psychology focuses on growth and stimulating positive change in others. Existentialists, on the other hand, believe that humans do not have an internal nature we can count on. They believe that at every moment, we are given the choice about what to make of our conditions. Similarly, Milton (1993) states that although humanistic psychology is rooted in existential thought, humanistic and existential psychologists value different aspects of human existence. For example, existentialism “emphasizes the boundaries of human existence while the humanistic stance puts the accent on human choice.”
Hoffman (2004) expands on the differences between humanistic and existential psychologies, as noted by Corey and Milton. He says that while both psychologies believe in individual potential and goodness, “existentialism has focused more on the potential for evil and human limitation… In other words, humanistic psychology typically espouses a similar position to existentialism, but humanistic therapists have not spent as much time dwelling in the shadow or demonic.” Hoffman states that because of these differing focuses, humanistic psychologists have been accused of being too “warm and fuzzy,” whereas existential psychologists have been known to be attracted to the darkness and bleakness of humanity.

In conclusion, both humanistic and existential psychologies are highly similar in terms of theories and practice. Generally, they both focus on life meaning, subjective reality and human potential. On the other hand, these theories are not to be confused with one another, even though some psychologists use them in combination. Humanistic psychology tends to focus more on limitless possibilities and goodness, whereas existential psychology emphasizes evil and the shadow sides of existence. In general, however, these theories seem to have more similarities than differences, and can be used together to form a more balanced and holistic perspective on the human experience.

References

Bugental, J.F.T (1992). The future of existential-humanistic psychotherapy.
Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, Practice, Training, 29 (1), 28-33
Charnofsky. S. (2006). Therapy with couples. Madison: Thomson Corporation.
Corey, G. (2005). Theory and practice of counseling & psychotherapy: seventh edition.
Belmont: Brooks/Cole- Thomson Learning.
Frankl, V. (1959). Man’s search for meaning. New York: Pocket Books.
Hoffman, L. (2004). Humanistic psychotherapy. Retrieved May 26, 2008, from
http://www.existential-therapy.com/HumanisticPsychotherapy.htm
Keshen, A. (2006). A new look at existential psychotherapy. American Journal of
Psychotherapy, 60 (3), 285-298.
Milton, M. J. (1993). Existential thought and client centered therapy. Counseling
Psychology Quarterly, 6 (3), 239-248.
Peavy, R.V. (1996). Counseling as a culture of healing. British Journal of Guidance &
Counseling, 24 (1), 141-150.

Myers-Briggs and Career Counseling

2008-07-17T21:04:00.000-07:00

The Myers-Briggs helps assess personality characteristics. How can career counselors use it to help individuals find fitting jobs for themselves? Cite references.

The Myer-s Briggs Type Indicator is an instrument that can aide in the understanding of personal preferences and personality typing. Career counselors have been known to use the MBTI to assist their clients in finding fitting jobs. However, even though the MBTI can be a great tool for career counselors, they should always use a variety other tools to help their clients find fitting careers.

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a personality instrument that was developed by Isabel Briggs Myers and her mother, Katherine C. Briggs. Both Myers and Briggs were students of Carl G. Young, a Swiss psychiatrist who did a great deal of research on personality types and preferences in the early 1900s. Kennedy and Kennedy (2004) state that
Jung confirmed that individuals have mental or psychological preferences for performing certain tasks, just as they have physical preferences such as a dominant hand or eye. Many human mental processes are not conscious but nonetheless dictate various personal traits and choices (e.g. preferred communication patterns, study habits, modes of relaxations, stressors). Jung used this knowledge in dealing with patients, students, and people with whom he came into contact, and he wrote and lectured extensively on his theory of personality preferences.
Myers and Briggs used Jung’s findings on personal traits and choices and conducted their own research in the 1940s on ways to measure personality preferences. From all of their research and development, they developed the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) as a “personality instrument having numerous applications (Kennedy & Kennedy, 2004).”

The MBTI can be described as a “self-report questionnaire designed to make Jung’s theory on psychological types understandable and useful in everyday life… The MBTI can help people better understand themselves: their motivations, natural strengths, and potential for growth (Kennedy & Kennedy, 2004).” This instrument cuts across many areas, such as self-understanding and development, stress management, team building, organizational development, understanding learning styles, and preferred communication styles. Generally it is an instrument that allows individuals to understand themselves on a deep psychological and interpersonal level with the simple combination of four letters.

In terms of how the MBTI works, it has four main categories, each of which have two options. The first category is Extroversion or Introversion (E-1). “The extravert’s interests focus on the outer world of action, objects, and persons, whereas the introvert’s interests focus on the inner world of concepts and ideas (Stilwell, Wallick & Tal, 2000).” The extrovert is stimulated and excited by the external world, whereas the introvert is excited by the internal world. The second MBTI category is Sensing or Intuition, which are S or N. “The sensing person collects information from immediate, real, practical facts of life, whereas the intuitive person sees the possibilities, the relationships and the meaning of the experience (Stilwell, 2000).” Generally speaking, a sensing type is believes more in collecting facts, where as the intuitive type is more experiential.

A third MBTI category is Thinking or Feeling, which are T or F. “The thinker makes judgments objectively and impersonally, considering the causes of events and where decisions may lead. The feeler makes judgments subjectively and personally, weighing values of choices and how they affect others (Stilwell, Wallick & Tal, 2000).” The thinking type of personality uses their mind to make decisions, whereas the feeling type uses their heart and empathy of how they will affect others to make decisions. The last MBTI category is Judging or Perceiving, or J or P. “The judger prefers to live in a decisive, planned, and orderly way, so as to regulate and control events. The perceiver lives in a spontaneous, flexible way, aiming to understand life and adapt to it (Stilwell, Wallick & Tal, 2000).” Generally the judging type attempts to control their life events by planning and logical decision-making. The perceiver, on the other hand, attempts to adapt constantly to their environment by living in a flexible manner.

The MBTI is a written test that individuals take in no allotted timeframe. They answer about 70 written questions, and then their tests are scored. “[The individual receives] a score on each dichotomous dimension, resulting in a four-letter "type" (e.g., ENFJ); because there are four dimensions, there are 16 possible types (Stilwell, Wallick & Tal, 2000).” Each of the 16 different types are highly unique and have varying personality types and interests. The theory behind the MBTI states that certain types will be interested in certain activities. This theory states that “the intrinsic appeal of any kind of work (as distinguished from external advantages such as money or status) lies in the chance to use the mental processes one likes best, in the way one likes to use them (Stilwell, 2000)." Because the MBTI can help determine individual’s motivations and interests, it can be a very helpful tool for career counselors to use in helping their clients.

Vacha-Haase and Thompson (2002) state that the MBTI has become highly popular for three main reasons. First off, it helps to “assess normal variations in personality, and more people have normal as opposed to abnormal personalities.” People like to understand themselves and how they differ from other “normal” individuals. The MBTI helps put people in categories so they can better understand the normal variation in individuals. A next reason why the MBTI may be so popular is because its’ “results seem to have high face validity for many clients. That is, when participants were asked to choose the type description that best suited them, the description of their actual tested type was chosen to a statistically significant degree more often than descriptions of other types.” This means that the results of the MBTI tend to be an accurate portrayal of how individuals see themselves. It seems that the MBTI is a great test of our individual perceptions of ourselves, and thus many are attracted to taking this test. A third reason why this assessment is so popular is because the measures are “value neutral and view different type preferences merely as “gifts differing”; that is, there are “no good or bad, or sick or well types. All types are valuable.” This test does not stigmatize or pathologize individuals, rather it focuses on the strengths each type has to offer.

The MBTI is a fantastic tool for career counselors to use with the individual job seeker. Kennedy and Kennedy (2004) state “knowledge of psychological preferences enables individuals to look at themselves in relation to others, to their work, and to their overall environment.” The information that one gains from the MBTI shoes that different personality types will bring their unique strengths and weaknesses with them to their jobs. For instance,
In the realm of energizing, or how and where one gets one’s energy, extroverts- as a result of being confident and outgoing- usually have a larger network of friends, associates and acquaintances from whom to draw in identifying potential employment opportunities. Extroverts also possess the ability to verbalize their strong points, aspirations, desires and so forth. At the same time, they may tent to be too verbal or overcommunicative and not listen enough. Introverts, conversely, are thoughtful in preparation of applications and other written documentation used in the job search, focusing on the most important points. Some of the personality issues introverts may need to address or overcome are a tendency to spend too much time thinking about the job search when action is required, appearing unassertive and lacking energy; and having only a small circle of friends and acquaintances, which can reduce employment leads and network resources regarding employment opportunities (Hirsh, 1991).
Both introverts and extroverts have strengths and weaknesses in their personal and professional lives. Similarly, each letter combination offers strengths and weaknesses to the working world. It is helpful for career counselors to make individual job seekers aware of their strengths and weaknesses, and the MBTI can radically aide in this helpful self-knowledge.

Kennedy and Kennedy (2004) believe that understanding ones’ MBTI type can free an individual in a few ways. They say,
It can provide confidence in one’s own direction of development and help to reveal the areas in which one can become excellent with the most ease and pleasure. It can also reduce guilt one might feel at not being able to do everything in life equally well. Acknowledging one’s own preferences opens the possibility of finding constructive values instead of conflicts in the differences one might encounter with someone whose preferences are opposite one’s own (Kennedy & Kennedy, 2004).
Similar to Hirsh, Kennedy and Kennedy note that each personality type has its’ strengths and weaknesses. Kennedy and Kennedy state that by becoming aware of your own personal preferences, you can gain more confidence and reduce guilt. By understanding that your personality is a unique “type,” with strengths and weaknesses, you can let go of feeling bad for not being good at certain things. For instance, if an individual is a Feeling type, they may have never excelled in jobs that require rational thinking skills. However, a career counselor can use their MBTI results to educate the individual about career choices that are better for Feeling types than Thinking types. This can create a higher level of confidence, because while this individual may not excel in one job, they may be fantastic at another that is more fitting for them.

Even though the MBTI can help individuals understand themselves and what types of careers they are attracted to, it is important to remember that the test only represents preferences, and is not an indicator of a person’s professional abilities. Tieger and Barron-Tieger (2001) believe that “respondents should be told that Type reflects an individual’s preferences, not abilities or intelligence, nor is it a predictor of success. People should not be counseled toward or away from certain jobs solely on the basis of type.” When researching your personal MBTI type, each one has a specific name, such as “The Guardian,” and various jobs are recommended for that type. However, as stated by Tiger and Baron-Tieger, these recommendations are not to be taken as the only professions an individual would be good at, rather, they are merely preferences. Lawrence and Martin (2001) note a similar point, and state,
“[It] is very important to understand that type alone is not enough information to make a career choice. Virtually all types are found in all careers. People making career decisions need to understand not only their personality type, but also their history, values, interests, skills, resources and goals, among other things (Lawrence & Martin, 2001).”
Lawrence and Martin note that when providing career counseling to an individual, the MBTI is helpful, but so are many other holistic factors about the person. By looking at a person as a whole being, with their MBTI results and their unique “history, values, interests, skills, resources and goals,” a career counselor can help the person find a fitting and fulfilling job.

Myers conducted a research study in the 1950s, while developing the MBTI. Data was collected from 5,322 students that attended 45 different medical schools. Myers found that all of the 16 types were “admitted to medical school in approximately equal numbers. Myers concluded that [the medical field] has appeal for- and gains strength from- all psychological types (Stilwell, 2000).” Stilwell notes that this study shows that the MBTI is a helpful tool to understand “some aspects of personality and how they relate to choice of medical specialty.” While this study shows that the MBTI can be a helpful tool in relating personality type and career choice, it also shows that all MBTI types work in any professional field. While the MBTI can help with preferences, it also, as Tieger, Baron-Tieger, Lawrence and Martin believe, is not the only predictor of career choice. Career counselors can use the MBTI to help their clients, but it should never be the only tool that is used to help them.

In conclusion, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, when used by career counselors, can offer clients a newfound confidence in their job skills and an understanding of the weaknesses in the working world. It can help clients narrow in on career paths that are fitting for their particular type, and have a deeper understanding of why they are attracted to their personal preferences. However, even though the MBTI can help a client on a many levels, a career counselor should always assess the client using a holistic perspective. This holistic perspective should always include, as Lawrence and Martin (2001) say, the individual’s “history, values, interests, skills, resources and goals.” A personality inventory should never be the only medium a counselor uses to help a client, no matter how comprehensive or insightful it may be.

References

Hirsch, S.K. (1991). Using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator in organizations (2nd
ed.). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

Kennedy, R. B & Kennedy, D.A. (2004). Using the myers-briggs type indicator in
career counseling. Journal of Employment Counseling, 41(1), 38-44.

Lawrence, G.D. & Martin, C.R. (2001). Building people, building programs: A
practitioner’s guide for introducing the MBTI to individuals and
organizations. Gainesville, FL: Center for Applications on Psychological
Type.

Stilwell, N.A., Wallick, M.M. & Tal, S.E. (2000). Myers-briggs type and medical
Specialty choice: A new look at an old question. Teaching and Learning in
Medicine. 12(1), 14-20.

Tieger, P.D. & Barron-Tieger, B. (2001). Do what you are: Discover the perfect
career for you through the secrets of personality type (3rd ed.). Boston: Little,
Brown & Company.

Vacha-Haase, T. & Thompson, B. (2002). Alternative ways of measuring counselees’
Jungian psychological-type preferences. Journal of Counseling &
Development, 80(2), 173-179.

Group Therapy- Irvin Yalom's Therapeutic Factors

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Irvin Yalom has eleven Therapeutic Factors that he believes create therapeutic change in group therapy. What are these factors and how do they help clients change? Cite references.

Dr. Irvin Yalom’s eleven Therapeutic Factors have had a great impact on group therapy facilitators. His Therapeutic Factors are useful for group therapists to gain a better understanding of the group therapy process and the elements that help create a cohesive and
therapeutic group.

Yalom believes that his eleven Therapeutic Factors (sometimes referred to as Yalom’s Curative Factors) can significantly help facilitate change within individuals in the group therapy setting. Yalom (2005) says,
I suggest that therapeutic change is an enormously complex process that occurs through an intricate interplay of human experiences, which I will refer to as ‘therapeutic factors.’ There is considerable advantage in approaching the complex through the simple, the total phenomenon through its basic component processes.

Kivlighan and Kivlighan (2004) note that Yalom saw the group leaders role as the “creation of the therapeutic group climate.” They quote Yalom (1995) stating, “If it is the group members who, in their interaction, set in motion the many therapeutic factors, then it is the group therapist’s task to create a culture maximally conductive to effective to group interaction.” This is in contrast to individual therapy where the therapist is directly therapeutic by giving the clients support, feedback, and making interpretations. Group therapists are more facilitative than individual therapists who are directly therapeutic. Yalom’s eleven Therapeutic Factors he created are: Instillation of hope, universality, imparting information, altruism, the corrective recapitulation of the primary family group, development of socializing techniques, imitative behavior, interpersonal learning, group cohesiveness, catharsis and existential factors. Each serve their own unique purpose and facilitate psychological change in ways that individual therapy cannot.

A first Therapeutic Factor is the instillation of hope, meaning that a group facilitator should help a client feel optimistic about the group therapy experience- that change and resolution are possible. If a client feels hopeful and has faith that the treatment of group therapy can help their individual healing, then the other Therapeutic Factors can take effect. Clients must first see that the therapist passionately believes in the therapeutic process. Similarly, when clients witness other group members transforming themselves during the process of group therapy, they become hopeful that this type of therapy can work for them as well.

Another Therapeutic Factor is universality, which helps a client know that they are not alone and isolated with unique psychological issues. Simply being in a group therapy setting, amongst individuals who have similar issues to your own, can be healing in itself. Yalom (2005) states that “no one is unique, there is no human deed or thought that is fully outside the experience of other people.” Many individuals suffer with their issues in silence, feeling alone, afraid and shameful. When group members are accepted by other members despite their supposed weaknesses, feelings of shame and isolation begin to fall away. Also, knowing that there is a universality of human experience and emotion can provide a sense of connection, and in turn, great healing.

Yalom’s next factor is the imparting of information, which can also be known as psychoeducating clients. Group therapists may give instructions, advice and/or suggestions to client. Yalom (2005) says that “didactic instruction is used to transfer information, alter sabotaging thought patterns and explain the process of illness… Direct advice which provides systematic, operationalized instruction or a series of alternative suggestions on how to reach a goal is most effective.” A therapist can be direct with their clients and educate them on their mental illnesses and ineffective thought patterns, providing them with a sense of reality checking. Also, information can be imparted the therapist sharing how effective group therapy can be for the psychological transformation of individuals.

Altruism, meaning, the act of giving without expecting anything in return, is another of Yalom’s Therapeutic Factors. If a client is given to by others, they can understand that people find them to be of value and importance. Similarly, if a client gives to another client, they can see that they have something of importance to give. Yalom (2005) notes that we receive through the act of giving and not expecting anything in return. Also, by giving without expecting anything in return, we become absorbed in someone outside of ourselves, thus allowing us to have space from our own issues. Like Yalom, Adler believed that “to transcend interpersonal interaction [is] to develop the feeling of being part of a larger social community. Adler suggested this to be the most important of all social attitudes, as it inhibits egocentrism while promoting social interest (Mosak, 2000).” Group therapy is fitting venue to practice altruism, as clients express such vulnerable parts of themselves, which can inspire other group members to support them freely.

A next Therapeutic Factor is the corrective recapitulation of the primary family group. Yalom says that the majority of psychotherapy clients had unsatisfactory experiences in their first, and most important group- their primary family. The group therapy setting can give clients a chance to correctively relive early family conflicts, and relationships that inhibited growth. Yalom says,
The therapy group resembles a family in many aspects: there are authority/parental figures, peer/sibling figures, deep personal revelations, strong emotions, and deep intimacy as well as hostile, competitive feelings…. Members will interact with leaders and other members in modes reminiscent of the way they once interacted with parents and siblings.
The group therapy setting is a safe place to work out unfinished business with family members from childhood. This is because old family issues will often resurface in the group setting, and problems can be worked through with therapists and other group members, serving as corrective emotional experiences.

Yalom states that the development of socializing techniques is an important Therapeutic Factor that occurs in the group therapy setting. Yalom says that “social learning the development of basic social skills- is a therapeutic factor that operates in all therapy groups…” Therapy groups help clients obtain sophisticated social skills, as they learn how to process emotions, resolve their conflicts with others, to be helpful, less judgmental of others and more empathetic. These deeper social skills are indirectly learned by getting feedback from other group members and from group leaders. These skills, when taken out into the world at large, can help clients greatly with in their relationships with others.

Yalom’s Therapeutic Factor of imitative behavior says that those in group therapy will try out parts of the therapist’s and other member’s behavior to see what fits them well. When clients experiment with the behavior of others, they find out who they are, and who they are not. “Clients during individual psychotherapy may, in time, sit, walk, talk and even think like their therapists. There is considerable evidence that group therapists influence the communicational patterns in their groups by modeling certain behaviors, for example, self disclosure or support…” Much like the development of socializing techniques, imitating the behavior of the therapist and other group members can teach clients great skills that can be used in their lives outside of therapy.

A next Therapeutic Factor is interpersonal learning, meaning that interpersonal relationships are highly important, they are ground for experiencing corrective emotional experiences, and the group is a social microcosm of the members’ external lives. Yalom says,
From whatever perspective we study human society- whether we scan humanity’s broad evolutionary history or scrutinize the development of the single individual- we are at all times obliged to consider the human being in the matrix of his or her interpersonal relationships. There is convincing data from the study of nonhuman primates, primitive human cultures, and contemporary society that human beings have always lived in groups that have been characterized by intense and persistent relationships among members and that the need to belong is powerful, fundamental, and pervasive motivation. Interpersonal relatedness has clearly been adaptive in an evolutionary sense: without deep, positive, reciprocal interpersonal bonds, neither individual nor species survival would have been possible (Yalom, 2005).
As humans, we are interdependent on each other in many ways for our species survival. Yalom notes that no one can transcend the need for human contact, as it is in our evolutionary make-up. Members experience corrective emotional experiences in group by expressing their emotions to other group members and taking these risks in a supportive and emotionally intelligent environment. These types of corrective emotional experiences help individuals interact with each other more deeply and honestly.

Group cohesiveness, another Therapeutic Factor, allows members to feel the warmth and comfort of being part of a group. They feel like they belong somewhere, they value the group and feel valued by the other members, they feel unconditionally accepted and supported by the group members. Yalom states that for the other Therapeutic Factors to function at the optimal levels, a strong group cohesiveness must be present. Marmarosh, Holtz and Schottenbauer (2005) say,
In his theory, Yalom (1995) described cohesiveness as the primary curative group factor in group therapy, arguing that it facilitated greater collective self-esteem, hope for the self, and well-being. He described cohesiveness as the ‘necessary precondition for effective therapy,’ and he argued that the experience of being in cohesive group enabled group members to engage in the necessary self-disclosure and the personal exploration that is the hallmark of effective therapy.
If group members feel connected to one another and there is a group cohesion, then they will try harder to influence other group members, be more open to be influenced by other members, be more willing to listen to other members, be more accepting, feel a greater sense of security, a relief from tension in the group and will self-disclose more.

Catharsis is a Therapeutic Factor that occurs when an individual can express their deep emotional feelings and experience a release and healing. Merely having a conscious awareness of repressed feelings and experiences allows for their release. If there is a strong level of cohesiveness in a group, the support of others members can help facilitate a powerful cathartic experience for a member having an intense emotional release. It can also be cathartic for other group members to witness someone having an intense emotional experience, as they can relate to it and grow by sitting with them in their emotional release.

A last Therapeutic Factor is existential factors, or the ability to simply be with others as part of a group. Existentialism is a psychological and philosophical theory that recognizes that life can be unfair and unjust at times, that there is no escape from pain, that no matter how close we get to other individuals we are ultimately alone, and that there is no escape from the inevitability of death. When an individual can face the basic issues of life and death, they can life more fully and honestly in the here and now, not being caught up in trivialities. Also, individuals must take complete responsibility for how they live their lives, no matter how much guidance or support they receive from others. In a study done on older women (McLeod & Ryan, 1993), existential awareness was seen as the most important Therapeutic Factor by members of the group. This may be because the basic issues of human life, such as death and isolation, become more important as we age and get closer to our individual deaths.

In conclusion, Yalom’s Therapeutic Factors in group therapy present clients with many diverse ways to facilitate change in their individual lives. Group therapy offers many forms of interpersonal learning and growth that cannot exist in individual therapy, and thus it can be an important adjunct or substitute for those struggling with various psychological issues.

References

Kivlighan, D.M. & Kivlighan, M.C. (2004). Counselor intentions in individual and group treatment. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 51(3), 347-353.

Marmarosh, C., Holtz, A., & Schottenbauer, M. (2005). Group cohesiveness, group
self-esteem, group-derived hope, and the well-being of group therapy members.
Group Dynamics: Theory, Research and Practice, 9(1), 32-44.

McLoed, J. & Ryan, A. (1993). Therapeutic factors experienced by members of an
out-patient therapy group for older women. British Journal of Guidance &
Counseling, 21(1), 64-72.

Mosak, H.H. (2000). Adlerian psychotherapy. In R. J. Corsini & D. Wedding, (Eds.),
Current psychotherapies. Itasca, IL: F.E. Peacock Publishers, Inc.

Yalom, I.D. (2005). The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy: 5th Edition.
New York: Basic Books.

Gestalt Therapy for Couples

2008-07-17T20:58:00.000-07:00

Each theoretical orientation counsels couples differently. How do Gestalt Therapists work with couples? Cite references.

Gestalt Therapists attempt to help their clients live whole, fully aware and vibrant lives. In terms of counseling couples, Gestalt therapists help individuals become aware of their personal issues and how they relate to the problems in their relationship. By becoming aware and whole, an individual can exist in a much healthier and more understanding romantic relationship.

Gestalt therapy is both an existential and experiential form of therapy that was developed by Fritz Perls in the 1940s. Latner (1992) says that Gestalt therapists believe
the proper focus of psychology is the experiential present moment. In contrast to approaches which look at the unknown and even unknowable, our perspective is the here and now of living. [Gestalt therapist also believe] we are inextricably caught in a web of relationship with all things. It is only possible to truly know ourselves as we exist in relation to other things.
Also, Gestalt therapists emphasize personal responsibility in every moment. Carl Jung (1973) exemplifies this when he says, “To know where the other person makes a mistake is of little value. It only becomes interesting when you know where you made the mistake, for then you can do something about it.” Jung’s quote exemplifies both personal responsibility and how individuals exist in relation to their environments. We must look at ourselves in situations that involve others to elicit personal change.

Fritz Perls (1969) says that Gestalt therapy is one of the three forms of existential therapy, the other two being Frankls Logotherapy and Dasein’s Therapy of Binswanger. Gestalt therapy however, according to Perls, is the “first existential philosophy to [stand] on its own feet.” In this form of existentialism, an individual’s goal is to become real and to develop their own center. Perls says that in this moment, an individual cannot be different from what they are, just as “a rose is a rose is a rose.” Perls also states that “Gestalt Therapy is a philosophy that tries to be in harmony, in alignment with everything else, with medicine, with science, with the universe, with what is.” As stated above, Gestalt Therapy emphasizes that an individual does not exist without their environment, and thus it is important to become in alignment with the world around us to be fully whole and human.

Perls (1969) speaks about modern day psychotherapy’s seeming desire for an instant cure to our psychological issues. He says that Gestalt therapy requires dedication and work to see significant change. Pearls says,
[In Gestalt therapy] we are here to promote the growth process and develop the human potential. We do not talk of instant joy, instant sensory awareness, instant cure. The growth process is a process that takes time. We cant just snap our fingers and say, “Come on, let’s be gay! Let’s do this!” You can turn on if you want to with LSD, and jazz it up, but that has nothing to do with the sincere work of that approach to psychiatry which I call Gestalt Therapy. In therapy, we have not only to get through the role-playing. We also have to fill in the holes in the personality to make the person whole and complete again.
Perls believes there are no easy answers to challenging psychological growth and human potential. An individual must be willing to do the challenging and sometimes painful work of becoming fully aware in each moment. Gestalt therapists believe that for a person to be fully functioning, they must be “whole and complete.” This means that for two people to come together and have a romantic relationship, they must come together as two whole people, and not as fragmented individuals.

The Gestalt Prayer, by Fritz Perls (1969), states, “I do my thing, and you do your thing. I am not in this world to live up to your expectations. And you are not in this world to live up to mine. You are you, and I am I, And if by chance, we find each other, it's beautiful. If not, it can't be helped.” This prayer exemplifies how Gestalt therapists work with couples. Individuals are to deal with their own issues, live their own lives, and meet each other in a romantic relationship as two wholes who come together. Similarly, Fow (1998) says that in Gestalt Therapy, the “emphasis is placed on the individual (albeit in interaction with the environment… Each partner is treated as an individual with choices, that are better informed when the partner’s perspective is understood without undue defensive encumbrance.” Fow notes that in Gestalt therapy, couples are to attempt to understand each other without defensiveness. This comes from an understanding of each of us being individuals with our own histories and choices.

Much like Perls and Fow, Kimball (2007) states that conflict occurs in couples because individuals will mirror each other’s unfinished business, “projecting their own unaware personal issues onto their partner. This continues in an escalating fashion until most couples break up.” If individuals are not aware of their own personal issues, they will project them onto their partners. Also, as stated in the Gestalt Prayer, as individuals, we live our own lives, and not attempt to live up to each other’s expectations. If we can meet as two whole people, then a relationship can work out beautifully. Kimball (2007) also says, “Gestalt helps couples become aware individually and as a couple how they keep repeating old patterns of behaviors and acting out old beliefs about how their relationship should be.” This awareness is the first step to change, and Gestalt therapy is helpful in bringing unconscious issues into awareness for individuals and couples.

Kimball (2007) says the goals for couples in Gestalt Therapy is to “unlock the subconscious beliefs, desires, and patterns for relating to each other. Couples will learn healthier communication, conflict resolution, how to get their needs met, rebuilding of trust and mutual respect.” Like Perls, Kimball believes that for couples to exist in a harmonious romantic relationship, they must first unlock their own beliefs, desires, patterns and needs within themselves and in how they relate to each other. Kimball notes other ways that those involved in Gestalt couples counseling will improve. She states that individuals will
have increased awareness of [themselves] and [their] partner if doing couples work; assume ownership of [their] experience rather than making others responsible for what [they] are thinking, feeling, or doing: become aware of all [their] senses (smelling, tasting, touching, or doing); to be able to ask for and get help from others and be able to give to others. It will improve [their] relationships with [their] own mind, body, spirit and all the other areas in [their] life by resolving your internal conflicts and unfinished business from [their] past healing to an integrated wholeness with [themselves] and others (Kimball, 2007).
Generally speaking, couples attending Gestalt therapy will experience the benefits of learning about both themselves and each other. Once an individual can become aware of their issues and “assume ownership” of them, they can experience their romantic relationship on such a deeper level. They are taking responsibility for themselves and not simply blaming the other person, which creates a deeper level of intimacy.

Gestalt therapists frequently use role-play and reversal as counseling tactic. Fow (1998) talks about the Gestalt therapy interpersonal boundary concepts of contact and confluence, and how therapists can use these tactics with clients. Confluence “refers to a boundary disturbance in which interactions are fixed and rigid, [where the couple is] caught in a ritual playing out of roles.” These roles that the couple is playing out come from prior experiences, old patterns, and responses. This makes “opportunities for ongoing changes in the relationship required to accommodate individual needs [limited].”

The other concept, contact, occurs when a couple’s boundaries are flexible. Fow (1998) explains contact in his own words and also quotes Kaplan and Kaplan (1978), “The goal of increasing contact gets to the heart of the rationale for using reversal with couples. In a relationship characterized by contact, each person has the ‘experience of reaching out [or in reversal, reaching in] to recognize and discover, or rediscover, the human in one's presence’ (Kaplan & Kaplan, 1978).” While couples that are confluent have rigid roles based on old patterns, couples who use contact have increased empathy for each other. They may role-play or take on each other’s roles in an effort to deeply listen and feel where the other person is coming from. Individuals in a couple using contact feel safe to examine their own behavior because the other is also doing it. Another tactic used by Gestalt therapists with families, organizations and couples is called the Gestalt Interactive Cycle. Papernow (1987) says, “The Gestalt family therapist uses the Gestalt Interactive Cycle to see patterns in the way an intimate system completes and interrupts contact among its members, to raise the family’s awareness of its strengths, and to teach the skills that are missing (Papernow, 1987).” The Gestalt Interactive Cycle’s phases are awareness, contact and finishing. The awareness phase is when individuals give their experience words in a way that others can understand, that “elicits curiosity and interest what the other person is thinking and feeling about the subject at hand… A full awareness phase leads to gathering energy and action as family members begin to engage each other with more excitement and intensity (Papernow, 1987).”

In the Gestalt Interactive Cycle, the concept of contact (as explored above) is considered to be a phase. The contact phase occurs when members come together “in a fresh understanding, a fully shared notion of what to do… Good contact requires checking for clarity and accuracy of understanding (Papernow, 1987).” Role-playing can be used in an effort to help a couple of family have a fresh understanding of each other. The last phase in the Gestalt Interactive Cycle is called good finishing, which is
awareness turned backward over experience. Intimate systems that do this well ask each other what they liked about how they did something together and what was not satisfying. Over time, good finishing ensures that a family can do some things without effort (plan a successful vacation, come together at the end of the day, discipline a child) because family members have come to understand each other’s needs by checking regularly with each other about what worked and what did not (Papernow, 1987).

Good finishing is the final result that Gestalt therapists strive for. This shows that the therapy has been successful, as the couple or family has internalized the skills the therapist has taught. Clients genuinely understand each other’s needs from the therapy process and have become comfortable asking each other about their needs outside of therapy. The therapy process is complete, as the clients can now communicate with each other clearly and effectively.

In conclusion, Gestalt Therapy has a great deal to offer couples that are struggling with relationship issues. The general principle of this therapy is to become whole in yourself and peaceful with your external environment. If two individuals can come together as whole people, who have worked through their past issues, they can create a harmonious relationship together. Gestalt therapy can help individuals come to this place, and furthermore to develop clear communication and empathy skills within a romantic relationship.

References

Fow, N.R. (1998). Partner-focused reversal in couples therapy. Psychotherapy:
Theory, Research, Practice, Training. 35(2), 231-237.

Latner, J. (1992). The theory of Gestalt therapy. In Nevis, E.C.: Gestalt
Therapy Perspectives and Applications. Cleveland: Gestalt Institute of Cleveland Press.

Kimball, S.P. (2007). What is Gestalt therapy? Retrieved July 6, 2008,
http://www.susankimball.net/what-is-gestalt-therapy.shtml

Papernow, P.L. (1987). Thickening the ‘middle ground’: Dilemmas and
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Perls, F. (1969). Gestalt Therapy Verbatim. Mohab: Real People Press.

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Homosexual youth struggle with many psychological issues and are at a high risk for suicide. How can therapists best support homosexual youth? Cite references.

Homosexual youth struggle with many external and psychological issues, the most severe of with can result in untimely and unnecessary deaths. Externally, homosexual youth may be rejected by family, friends and society. Because of these external effects, homosexual youth often suffer from anxiety, depression, substance abuse, sexual promiscuity, suicide attempts and completion. However, with the support of helpful resources an individual counselor, group therapy, and family members, homosexual youth can survive and thrive from the challenges of being both an adolescent and homosexual.

It is estimated that 10% of the population may be gay, lesbian or bisexual. This means that 1 in 5 families may have a gay, lesbian or bisexual child in it (Dahleimer & Feigal, 1991). Generally, awareness of same sex attraction occurs in childhood, self-labeling and sexual activity happen around puberty, and disclosure occurs in late adolescence or early adulthood (Floyd & Stein, 2002). It is already challenging to experience puberty, late adolescence and early adulthood, and the added stigma of a homosexual orientation can makes these life phases only that much harder.

In their external lives, homosexual youth experience harassment, being shunned by family and friends, getting kicked out of their homes and societal rejection (Tharinger & Wells, 2000). A research study was conducted using data from a 1988 national survey of 1,463 identified heterosexual male youth between the ages of 15 and 19. Participants rated their agreement with various statements about homosexuals. 89% of these males strongly agreed with the statement: “The thought of men having sex with each other is disgusting.” Only 12% of these males agreed with the quote: “I could be friends with a gay person” (Marsiglio, 1993). Because only 12% of straight males believe they could be friends with a homosexual male, it’s no wonder homosexual youth have difficult social lives and suffer psychologically.

Aside from the intolerance of peers and friends, homosexual youth struggle with being shunned by their families. Bass and Kaufman (1996) state,
Gay, lesbian and bisexual people have been portrayed as a threat to the family. But in reality, virtually all gay people care very much about their families- and when there is alienation, it is the straight relatives who are rejecting them, not vice versa. Fear, hatred and misinformation are the true threats to family unity.
Homosexual youth, after coming out to their families, may be rejected through unkind words, physically violent attacks, or even kicked out of their homes. About 30-40% of homeless youth are gay, lesbian or bisexual (Bass and Kaufman, 1996). Because homosexual youth know the potential for these occurrences, they often keep their sexual orientation hidden, and suffer the psychological effects of living in deep secrecy.

Psychologically, Muller and Hartman (1998) note that homosexual youth are more likely than other youth to suffer from depression and anxiety. These psychological problems lead them to substance abuse, promiscuity/STDs, and suicide attempts/suicide completion. A research study surveyed 1,725 9th graders from rural high schools. The students were asked about their attraction towards the same and opposite genders, and about their frequency of marijuana and alcohol use in the past three months. Students who reported same-sex attraction had significantly higher marijuana and alcohol use (Rostosky, Owens, Zimmerman, & Riggle, 2003).

A study from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health examined 12,000 adolescent students. This study asked about sexual orientation and suicidal thoughts and behaviors. The results show the connection between anxiety, depression, substance abuse and suicidality. 58% of gay and bisexuals meet the criteria for substance abuse (Remafedi, 1987).
“Higher levels of depression and alcohol abuse are reported by youths with same-sex sexual orientation… For gay and lesbian youths who are concealing their sexual identities, alcohol may be used to numb the related anxiety and depression. Research and prevention efforts with this population should focus on depression and substance abuse as precursors to suicidality” (Russell & Joyner, 2001).

Because homosexual youth may be too ashamed to speak to anyone about their sexual identity, they may use drugs and alcohol in an attempt to self medicate their depression and anxiety rather than seeking psychotropic medications. Although drugs and alcohol may temporarily medicate against anxiety and depression, they can also have an undesired negative effect of lowering inhibitions and good decision-making, possibly leading to dangerous outcomes.
Unprotected sexual encounters and suicide attempts increase with substance use, as cognitive skills are not at their peak when individuals are under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol (Rotheram-Borus et al, 1994). Homosexual adolescents are at high risk for STDs, the most deadly of which is HIV. In 2002, an estimated 112,000 to 250,000 American adolescents were HIV positive. About half of these adolescents were males who have sex with other males (Goodenow, Netherland & Szalacha, 2002). The high level of HIV in this population may be associated with a lack of education on how it is contracted. Homosexual youth may not seek education on STDs, for fear of having to coming out to others (Hunter and Schaecher, 1994). This shows that unprotected sexual encounters between homosexuals occur because of substance abuse, lack of proper sexual health education and the shame associated with possibly being outed to others.

In terms of sexual health education, a qualitative research study was conducted on 72 men who identify as homosexual. These men were extensively interviewed to explore recommendations for the HIV risk prevention of homosexual adolescents. Those interviewed believe that HIV prevention programs should be fun, comfortable and accepting, and should address dating and intimacy, sexuality and arousal, drugs and alcohol, self-esteem and self-worth, abuse and coercion, sexual identity (Seal, Kelly & Bloom, 2000). Unfortunately, sexual education in schools is not currently this open-minded and savvy to the needs of homosexual youth. Individual and group counselors can, however, provide their clients with this type of information, which is, at least, a starting point.

Along with sexual promiscuity, the most dangerous expressions of the psychological pain experienced by homosexual youth are suicide attempts and suicide completion. Gay, lesbian and bisexual youth comprise 1,500 of the 5,000 completed youth suicides each year (McFarland, 1998). Hellquist says, “I certainly know more people in our [gay] community who have taken their own lives than I know who have died from AIDS” (Hellquist, 1993, as cited in Bagley & Tremblay, 1997). A research study was done on both homosexual (n = 394) and heterosexual (n = 336) junior high and high school students. They were surveyed on their suicidal intent and self-reported suicide attempts. Results found that suicide attempts were reported by 28.1% bisexual/homosexual males, 20.5% bisexual/homosexual females, 14.5% heterosexual females and 4.2% heterosexual males. There is a significant link between suicide risk and bisexuality/homosexuality in males, and not significant link between suicide risk and bisexual/homosexual females (Remafedi, French, Story, Resnick & Blum, 1998). This is obviously a highly serious issue that needs to be addressed by individual therapist, group therapists and family members.

Individual counseling can be highly beneficial for adolescents struggling with their sexual identities. Skilled counselors can help these clients deal specifically with their depression, anxiety, promiscuity, substance abuse and/or suicidality. However, these issues obviously do not exist in a vacuum, as homosexuality is stigmatized by society at large. This may be why person-centered therapy has been shown to be effective for helping GLBTQ youth. Person-centered therapy’s humanistic tenets (The Big Three: congruence, empathy and unconditional positive regard) present GLBT adolescent clients with self-exploration and self-understanding. The Big Three’s tenets can help normalize the adolescent’s same-sex feelings, which is imperative for self-disclosure and eventual acceptance (Lemoire & Chen, 2005).

Counselors of homosexual youth can help their clients feel comfortable by having resources available to them. Counselors can have written materials, waiting room posters, library resources, information on gay and lesbian community centers, support groups and websites (Fontaine and Hammond, 1996). As noted by Hunter and Schaecher (1994), homosexual youth may not seek information on sexual health because of the fear of having to come out to others. Solomon and Dejong (1986) believe it is the responsibility of all counselors to ensure that their adolescent clients have enough information to protect themselves from HIV. This information should be realistic, clear, nonjudgmental and culturally sensitive. Having information readily available can help prevent unnecessary STDs and even untimely deaths.

Before counselors work with questioning and homosexual youth, they must come to terms with their own attitudes and feelings about homosexuality to effectively help their clients (Fontaine & Hammond,1996). Counselors are obviously all human beings, most of which have been socialized by cultures that are intolerant of homosexual identities. Heterosexual counselors may have internalized cultural stereotypes about homosexuals. Similarly, homosexual counselors may experience negative self-perceptions about their own identities. In turn, it is important that both heterosexual and homosexual counselors examine their own belief systems and prejudices before they can positively impact their clients.

Group counseling can have a highly beneficial impact on sexual minority youth. This is because group counseling emphasizes universality, hope and interpersonal learning. (Muller & Hartman, 1998). Because homosexual youth are generally isolated from society at large, an environment of allies and likeminded individuals is essential. Also, this gives sexual minority youth the space to see that others struggle with the same issues as them. In a similar vein to person-centered therapy, group therapy helps homosexual youth feel supported, understood and connected to others.

Lastly, it can be highly beneficial if individual counselors can have access to the family members of sexual minority youth. It has been shown that adolescents who come from supportive families often come out sooner than those from unsupportive families. These youth have higher self esteem, greater feelings of security in terms of relationships with family members, a more positive attitude about their sexual orientation (Beaty,1999). If a homosexual youth is struggling and in therapy, the therapist can conduct family sessions and help the family become more supportive of their child’s sexual identity.

In conclusion, research shows that homosexual youth struggle with many potentially dangerous external and psychological issues. However, with proper education, the support of a therapist, a therapy group, and family members, a homosexual youth can feel more accepted, and will be less likely to abuse substances, engage in dangerous promiscuous behavior and attempt suicide.

Domestic Violence Essay

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1. Domestic violence (physical, emotional, verbal and/or sexual) is a serious issue in romantic relationships. What can individual and couples counselors do when working with domestic violence victims and/or their partners? Cite references.

Domestic violence is a serious issue in romantic relationships, as it can be highly emotionally and physically damaging for the woman, and in the worst cases, it can be fatal. Women who have been abused suffer from a loss of self-esteem, depression and PTSD. Individual counselors can be greatly help women deal with these psychological issues. Battered women can also benefit from being in support groups with other women who’ve been in similar situations. Although couples counseling may seem productive for those in abusive relationships, experts in the field of domestic violence believe that couples therapy can be counterproductive for these couples, and even terribly dangerous. Lastly, individual therapy for batterers has not proven to be effective, however batterers programs, if strictly upheld, can sometimes help abusive men.

Over 1 million women suffered from domestic abuse in 2002, 1,200 of which were killed by their intimate partners (Haugen, 2005). Women who have been subjected to verbal, emotional, physical and/or sexual violence can exhibit a number of negative psychological symptoms, the most common of which are low self-esteem, depression and PTSD. Counseling can be beneficial for those who have been through any type of trauma in their lives. In terms of counseling for domestic violence victims, Berry says, “counseling does not have to focus on changing something that is ‘wrong.’ On the contrary, it can help a person see that she is perfectly fine, that she deserves a good life and has the inner strength to find it. It can help her access her own healing abilities, and reassure her that her feelings are normal” (Berry, 1995). This model is helpful for those who have endured abuse, as it focuses on validation, empowerment and self-soothing.

Often times, battered women have endured abuse throughout their lives, in both their childhoods and romantic relationships. Berry (1995) says,
“This [long term abuse] can establish a pattern of other behaviors and characteristics in a woman, such as low self-esteem and mental ‘tapes’ that play over and over, telling her she is weak, is not good enough, has to please others first and herself second.”
This low self-esteem in a battered woman, if not addressed by a therapist, can aide in creating more abusive relationships in the future. This is because if a woman feels poorly about herself and puts others ahead of herself, she may accept men who abuse her and put his needs above hers. Berry (1995) says that, “Counseling can help replace these learned thought patterns with more positive messages. Therapy can be helpful in this and other components of building a new life.”

Another psychological symptom that often comes from experiencing abuse is depression. Berry (1995) says, “Depression is also a frequent problem for women who have been abused, and traditional therapy and drug treatment (which must be prescribed by a physician or psychiatrist) have been beneficial to these women.” It is often said that a woman who is abused has had her “spirit broken.” She feels so poorly about herself, and overwhelmed by a relationship that, for a myriad of reasons, she may have stayed in for much longer than she wished to. Depression is a natural reaction to feeling overwhelmed by a loss of control over your own life. By regaining control through psychoeducation about abuse, working on self-esteem, processing childhood issues and sharing your stories of domestic violence, talk therapy can greatly reduce depression. However, some women many also need psychotropic medication to aide in their healing process, if their depression effects the overall quality of their daily lives.

A last, and quite serious psychological diagnosis that battered women experience is post-traumatic stress disorder. The DSM IV (2000) states that post-traumatic stress disorder occurs when an individual has been exposed to a “traumatic event where they were confronted with actual death, threatened death or serious injury.” In turn, their “response involved intense fear, helplessness or horror.” This event must be re-experienced, the person must “avoid stimuli associated with the trauma, and have a numbing of general responsiveness. “ Also, the duration of this traumatic experience must have occurred for over a month, and the individual must have “clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational or other important areas of functioning.” When physical, verbal, emotional and/or sexual abuse have occurred for years in a romantic relationship, PTSD is a likely reaction. Berry (1995) states that “women suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, which can have long-term, devastating effects that seriously impact their ability to work and form new relationships, often testify that they simply could not have rebuilt their lives without therapy.” Therapy can help clients with PTSD, just as it can help clients with low self-esteem and depression.

Groups can be effective an effective therapeutic treatment for women who have experienced abuse. Berry (1995) says, “One of the most common and highly recommended forms of therapy for abused women is group therapy that involves others who have shared similar experiences, [feelings, ideas and encouraging words.]” Battered women often spend many years in silence, unaware that others share a similar reality. For women to share their often hidden experiences, and to receive feedback, validation and empathy can be highly therapeutic. Women in these groups often become friends and support systems outside of the group therapy setting. Group therapy provides a much needed space for women to express their traumas and feel supported.

Although individual and group counseling have proven to be highly therapeutic for women who have experienced domestic violence, couples counseling is not recommended for couples with abusive issues. Many women believe that if only their abusive partner would attend couples therapy, their relationship issues could improve. Relationship therapists are known to help with a wide variety of relational issues, however working with couples in abusive relationships is generally not advised.

Lundy Bancroft has worked with abusive males for 17 years and wrote the groundbreaking book, “Why Does He Do That? Inside the Minds of Angry and Abusive Men.” He has strong opinions on the topic of couples therapy for abusive relationships. Bancroft (2002) says,
Attempting to address abuse through couples therapy is like wrenching a nut the wrong way; it just gets even harder to undo than it was before. Couples therapy is designed to tackle issues that are mutual… But you can’t accomplish any [of the goals non-abusive couples aim for] in the context of abuse. There can be no positive communication when one person doesn’t respect the other and strives to avoid equality.

Bancroft states that couples therapy is created for those who want to address relationship issues through equality, as a team. When one partner is abusive, he does not strive for equality, rather he strives for power and control. If both partners are not on the same page in regards to counseling, positive change is a difficult, if not impossible task to achieve.
Bancroft (2002) also speaks of how couples counseling can have a negative, and possibly dangerous, impact on a relationship that has abuse in it. Bancroft says,
The therapist’s reassuring presence in the room can give you the courage to open up to your partner in ways that you wouldn’t normally feel safe to do. But this isn’t necessarily positive; an abuser can retaliate for a woman’s frank statements during couples sessions. Later, when he is screaming at you, ‘You humiliated me in front of the therapist, you made me look like the bad guy, you told things that were too private!’ and delivering a nonstop diatribe, you may regret your decision to open up.”

An abusive man is often only abusive in secret, and maintains a charismatic and positive persona in the world at large. If a woman is divulging private stories of abusive to a safe and comforting therapist, the abusive man may feel angry that he has been exposed as a bad guy. In consequence, as stated above, this can contribute to even more abuse in once the couple is once again in private. For this reason, and those stated above, it does not seem advisable or safe to conduct couples therapy in the context of an abusive relationship.

Because couples counseling is not advised for those in an abusive relationship, one may assume that individual counseling would be effective for batterers. A common assumption is that abusive men were abused as children, or have various other psychological issues, and thus they can be “cured” of their tendencies through therapy. However, Bancroft (2002) says, “If abusiveness were the product of childhood emotional injury, abusers could overcome their problem through psychotherapy. But it is virtually unheard of for an abusive man to make substantial and lasting changes of his pattern of abusiveness as a result of therapy.” Bancroft says that while batterers may gain emotional insight through therapy, they rarely change their actions of abuse.

Bancroft states that abuse in romantic relationships comes from “attitudes and values, not feelings. The roots are ownership, the trunk is entitlement, and the branches are control.” As stated above, if the roots of abuse were feelings, therapy would be highly effective in helping abusive men. However, the roots of abuse are entitlement, ownership and control- core attitudes and values-, which are much more challenging to alter than feelings. Therapy is also ineffective for batterers, as they are often slick, condescending and manipulative, taking no responsibility for their actions. It becomes nearly impossible to change one’s behavior if they do not take responsibility for their actions. In turn, individual therapy has not been shown to be helpful for batterers.

A last option for batterers is an abuser program, which is both group therapy and psychoeduction for batterers. Bancroft (2002) says that change can occur for abusers if these following elements occur: 1) consequences, 2) education, 3) confrontation and 4) accountability. Batterers programs contain both education about abuse and confrontation of a batterer’s attitudes and excuses. These groups have the potential to be incredibly helpful, however, Bancroft says, “I regret to say that a majority of abusers choose not to do the work. It isn’t that they can’t change… but that they decide they don’t wish to.” Much like with individual therapy, the batterer in a group setting also chooses not to change his behavior because he does not believe he has a problem.

Deltufo (1995) notes a similar point, stating that these programs are important yet have a poor success rate. This is because many batterers go to the groups because they are court mandated. Most batterers do not believe that they have a problem, or that there is any reason to change.
This attitude is so strong that 70% of batterers who complete treatment are violent again within a year. Another problem with batterer’s treatment is that, despite its lack of success, it is the leading reason that women return to abusers. He’s in treatment, he’s getting help, he’s trying to get better. Most abusers attend treatment until they get their women back, only to drop out once they’ve gotten what they want (Deltufo, 1995).
Like with couples and individual counseling, it seems that the batterer is so resistant to change that a man going to a batterer’s group may prove to be more dangerous to the woman in an abusive relationships.

In conclusion, individual and group therapy can be highly effective in educating, empowering and connecting women who have experienced abuse in their romantic relationships. On the other hand, although initially it may seem like a good idea, couples counseling is not advisable and can even be dangerous for couples in an abusive relationship. Individual therapy and batterer’s programs also do not often prove to be helpful for abusive men, and can sometimes produce more danger for the battered woman. In consequence, as evidence suggests, psychological healing through counseling is much more common for victims than batterers. Sadly, the evidence is quite bleak in terms of an abusive man changing his behaviors through counseling.

American Psychiatric Association (2000). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of
Mental Disorders: Forth Edition (DSM-IV-TR). Washington, DC: American
Psychiatric Association.

Bancroft, L. (2002). Why Does He Do That? Inside the Minds of Angry and Controlling
Men. New York: Berkeley Books.

Berry, D.B. (1995). Domestic Violence Sourcebook. Los Angeles, CA: RGA Publishing.

Deltufo, A. (1995). Domestic Violence for Beginners. New York: Writer and Reader
Publishing Inc.

Haugen, D.M. (2005). Domestic Violence: Opposing Viewpoints. Michigan:
Greenhaven Press.