Carl Rogers (1902 - 1987)
Carl Rogers is best
known for his views about the therapeutic relationship. These views revolutionized the course of therapy. He took the, then, radical
view that "the client knows what hurts, what directions to go, what
problems are crucial, what experiences have been buried" (Rogers, 1961, pp.
11-12). He assisted people in taking responsibility for themselves. He
believed that the experience of being understood and valued gives us the
freedom to grow, while pathology derives from attempting to earn others'
positive regard rather than following an inner compass.
Less well-known is
that Carl Rogers was also innovative as one of the first therapists to
actually systematically analyze therapy. He recorded sessions, analyzed
transcripts of these sessions, and examined factors related to the outcome
of therapy. He received the Distinguished Scientific Achievement Award for
his research from the American Psychological Association in 1956.
Look here for:
some of
Rogers' writings; and
the home page of the Association of
Humanistic Psychology.
This page was written to support my Theories of Counseling and Psychotherapy class. I
take full responsibility for any errors that are present herein.
Page by jms
URL= http://psy1.clarion.edu/jms/rogers.html
Last modified August 10, 1998.