Theories of Counseling

Theories of Counseling

Introduction

Counseling on the other hand is a professional interpersonal interaction that enables the

counseling client to achieve optimum psychological functioning. Counseling as a profession has

improved over the century; it has embraced various theories in its practice. All of them concern

theoretical frames, which can help to comprehend people and their actions Purposefully, change

and develop them. Theoretical frameworks in counseling can both explain the problems clients

bring to the session and guide the choice of methods appropriate for intervention.

It is not just ‘head knowledge’ that theories are intended to provide counselors with, but rather to

changing paradigms in the social narrative of the society in advance toward defining the self,

freedom, mental health and well-being. Regarding the above-stated objectives, this essay seeks

to ascertain the knowledge of the writer in major counseling theories, their historical

background, principles, practice, and an outlook for the profession.

Historical Foundations of Counseling Theories

Some of the theoretical interventions in counseling can be traced back to the late 19 th and early

20 th centuries majoring in the evolution of counseling. The first counseling models were rooted

in the science of thought and behavior which had been pioneered by Wundt, Freud, and William

James. Besides, initial theories focused on medical and scientific approaches, and diagnosed

mental health disorders as one would diagnose any disease.

psychological manifestations.

At the same time, another movement was taking place: behaviourism, headed by John B. Watson

and later B.F.A Skinner. Behaviourism dismissed psychoanalysis reliance on human conscious

by mainly studying learning and behaviour. This approach was based on the perception that all

behavior whether beneficial or detrimental is learned and conditioned. Antecedents of behavior

modification included reinforcement, punishment, and curing of behaviors thought to be

erroneous as behaviorists thought they could condition them to be better and have better mental

health.

Over the time, development in the field of psychology followed from which was served the

growth in counseling theories. The scientific movement around the mid of the twentieth century

All of these theoretical paradigms remain relevant in modern counseling practices either in their

pure form or as components of multiple-dimensioned, theoretic syntheses.

Psychoanalytic Theory

Psychoanalytic theory is one of the earliest and most prevailing models of psychological and

counseling theories. His greatest contribution was made by its founder Sigmund Freud, by whom

the notion of human behavior governed by the unconscious was introduced. In simple terms,

psychoanalysis is mainly interested in latent conflicts, wishes and phantasies and other factors,

which are believed to underlie psychological disorders.

One of Freud's key contributions was his structural model of the psyche, which divided the mind

into three components: There are three structures in the human psyche: the id, the ego and the

the unconscious self; many years later, these repressed experiences reemerge as symptoms of a

particular disease. For instance, a man or a woman with inexplicable nervousness may have

suppressed memories of an unpleasant event of their childhood. Some them are: free association,

dream analysis, transference and through use of these techniques psychoanalytic therapy seeks to

make the repressed memories conscious so that the person can obtain change of insight about

oneself or to effect cure.

Several weak point have been noted by critics of psychoanalysis. First, it can be a rather lengthy

and expensive intervention since it might take years of therapy to get at the unconscious

conflicts. Besides, Freud paid much attention to the sexual and aggressive drives which might

have been very reductive. However some scholars disapproved on this, psychoanalysis has

maintain significant impact especially in the creation of contemporary dynamic therapies.

Despite being far less structured and time consuming than the model Freud first introduced, these

forms of therapy also involve a direct investigation into unconscious mental processes and early

psychosocial development for the express purpose of the client’s further development.

In classical conditioning, behavior is change through establishment of relationship. Freeman et al

explain that Pavlov’s experiments with dogs showed that a previously irrelevant stimulus (in this

case a bell) was made to elicit automatic behavior (like drooling) by learning to associate it with

food. This form of learning by association formed the basis of behavioral therapies such as

systematic desensitization, a technique which involves exposing the victim to the object of fear,

while in a relaxed state until the phobic stimulus no longer elicits that reaction from the person.

Operant conditioning centers of the effects that behavior has on it. It’s Crucial to learn from

Skinner that behaviour could be modified through reinforcement and punishment positive or

negative. For instance in behavioral therapy a client is made to be a target of reinforcement,

meaning he or she is awarded for positive behavior like socializing and punished for negative

behaviors like avoiding everyone. It is mostly used in treating illnesses such as; obsessive-

compulsive disorder, substance use disorders, and autism spectrum disorders.

Despite its inherent theoretical advantages, one of the strongest suits of CBT is evidence-based

practice. Research repeatedly indicates that CBT has vast applicability when used to treat

psychological disorders such as depression, anxiety disorders; PTSD, eating disorders among

others. Their structured and short term in nature also makes them affordable to many clients in

the market. Also, CBT is flexible, wherein therapists can combine elements from other models of

therapy according to the client’s need (e.g., mindfulness, and acceptance-based therapies).

Humanistic Theories

Humanistic theories of counseling emerged in the Mid – 20th century as a reaction to

mechanistic, disease oriented counseling models proposed by psychoanalysis and behavioural

school of counseling. A post-worldview, humanistic psychology is derived from existential

philosophy and is focused on the actualization of individual’s purpose, choice and human

PCT is one of those branches and was developed by Carl Rogers, one of the key pioneers of

humanistic psychology. At the base of Rogers’ model are assumptions that clients have an

inherent capacity for growth, but this can be inhibited by conditions and expectations placed

upon them. He proposed that individuals need three core conditions to thrive: empathetic

understanding, non-judgemental acceptance and genuinenity. Cooperatively this translates to the

fact that the therapist respects the client and is nonjudgmental and encourages the client to

develop a sense of safety in order to enable them to examine personal experiences and emotions.

According to Rogers, client acceptance significantly increases the likelihood of discovering

solutions to personal issues.

One of the great contributors to Humanistic psychology worked with Hierarchy of Needs where

self-actualization was introduced by Abraham Maslow. It is a hierarchy that is often illustrated

graphically as a pyramid in which physiological needs come first, safety needs, love and

belonging, esteem and lastly self actualization. Before people strive for growth needs that are

self-actualization, self actualization, aesthetics, and transcendence, they must meet basic, safety,

Despite this fucent of approaches, positive psychology has its roots in humanistic therapy,

involving well-being as opposed to illness as the major focus of intervention. Therefore, positive

psychology may be considered to be both a development and extension of humanistic

psychology that also places more stress on theory and research and more quantity-based

outcomes. Nowadays humanism is used as a part of most therapeutic orientations, for example,

Mindfulness-Based therapies and Strengths-Based counseling.

an accent on individuality and the experiencing process of the current time perspective. At the

heart of this therapeutic model is the proposition that people can only be known in terms of their

present milieu and environment. The therapy focuses on helping the clients increase the

awareness of experiences that goes on within therapy and especially in the present moment.

One of the postulates of Gestalt therapy is the notion of DRT – or Drama Reminiscent of a

unfinished Gestalt – meaning unresolved emotional situations and feelings of the past, which will

dictate the new script of the person’s feelings and behaviour. For example, a man or woman may

have anger leftover from a previous relationship and cannot easily start new feelings or trust

people. Friedman and colleagues also suggest that Gestalt therapy is used to make clients aware

of these feelings, integrate these feelings, and thus achieve emotional recovery. They are able to

come up with conflicts that have not been addressed until then and feel in general. Obviously, by

expressing their ideas and emotions in words clients can comprehend the inner turmoil they

experience.

The other concept in Gestalt therapy is the taking of responsibility by individuals. Clients are

urged to understand that they are agents who have something to do with what happens to them

and how they feel. This shift of focus from external factors or other people means people are

empowered to own up to the decisions they are making and the actions they are take. For

instance, a client who claims to be unhappy with the job he or she holds might be encouraged to

examine their decision-making system to find out why they are unhappy with the job. This focus

on responsibility empowers the clients and makes them take a decision that will be in accordance

Gestalt remains as effective approach for dealing with emotional issues and individual

development. They can be most beneficial for clients experiencing difficulties with self-

communication, mood control and interpersonal relationship issues, and in this way, it provides a

way of a positive change to clients toward a more satisfied and enriched lives.

Existential therapy is based on existential philosophy and focuses on problems which are

inherent within humans: freedom, death, loneliness, the need for meaning. Based on

philosophical attitudes of Jean-Paul Sartre, Martin Heidegger, Viktor Frankl it implies a series of

psychological problems which appear when people evade the existence and its ontological

questions.

Existential anxiety is a fundamental principle of existential therapy based on the features of life

and death, freedom, and choice. Such anxiety can be stressful; however, existential therapists

regard it as an invitation to become increasingly genuine. When people face these questions, they

get valuable insights into their personalities, beliefs and decisions that they make. This

awareness enables the clients to cherish their freedom and hence accept responsibility to their

The role of existential therapy is adjusted by such distinguished masters as Viktor Frankl and

situation may be, people can still have meaning in their lives. While giving focus on the meaning

that is given to the events that are experienced, Logotherapy introduces the clients to find

meaning and deeply rooted values in spite of the adversities.

The reorganization of Yalom’s contributions to existential therapy highlight the focus on the

therapeutic relationship as the arena in which the existential issues are articulated. According to

him, the role that therapists have to play in the lives of their clients can give the results that the

clients need and make them overcome their fears and anxiety. Yalom outlines four ultimate

concerns that every individual must grapple with: of dying, liberty, solitariness, purposelessness.

When discussing these concerns, clients are able to gain insight about the way they live their

lives and the decisions that they make.

There are no techniques for existential therapy, and there are no specific interventions for it, as

future. Existential therapy is most effective with clients in transition, clients who are in a state of

role confusion, or clients suffering from existential distress or anxiety, when purpose of

existence is a key concern. Existential therapy focuses on such issues to help clients develop and

to improve their self-Understanding.

Family systems theories changed the focus of counseling from the intrapsychic model of the

identified patient to the interactions in the family system. These theories emerged in the course

of the 20th century providing that people are extremely affected by family relations; the

psychological disorders are rooted within dysfunctional families, not the personalities.

Bowenian Family Systems Theory was developed by Murray Bowen as as a part of the family

systems approach which puts idea of a family as an emotional system into focus. For Bowen,

people cannot be conceptualized separately from their families; important aspects of a person

include the ways in which the he or she behaves and the emotional processes that are played out

in the family. Bowen’s theory has many fundamental concepts: one of the fundamental concepts

is differentiation of self which means ability to be an individual but to relate to one’s family.

own feelings and sense of self.

support they do organize dysfunctional process within the family. Bowen’s concept of the

multigenerational transmission process looks at the manner in which feelings and behaviours

become transmitted between generations in a family context hence influencing the people in the

family over time. Realising these factors, the therapists enable the clients disentangle from the

unwanted behavioural paradigms borrowed from families.

Another theorist of this type of therapy is named Salvador Minuchin who practiced structural

family therapy. This approach views family in systems context that includes organization and

boundaries of the family system. He stated that organized families are those which working

under well-defined able people hierarchies and roles. For instance, parents should be on top, and

at the same time fee to allow the child be understood when she or he feels something is wrong. In

in autonomy issues; in families with absent boundaries there is emotional detachment or

disconnection which manifests itself in isolation. Structral family therapy on the other hand seeks

to modify or correct these boundaries so that the family can be healthy in their

intercommunication.

Family systems therapy has been shown to be beneficial in both single and married persons as

well as parents and their children when the problems being experienced are highly rooted in the

family system. Therefore, by looking at a family as a whole that is as a system helps the

therapists to see specific behaviors and communications that affect a specific person. This

approach let clients understand their relational scripts and roles, free from toxic relational modes

and patterns, as well as work on constructing constructive forms of connectedness with their

the person who receives help to understand how these factors – gender roles,domination of men

Interrelated concepts of feminist therapy are multiculturalism, which asserts that woman’s

oppression occurs simultaneously in various aspects of her life and on the basis of her race, class,

sexual orientation, among other factors. Explaining what is happening in people’s lives and the

difficulties they encounter thus needs to be viewed from this intersectional perspective.

At par with the recent rise of feminist counseling, another form of counseling that has emerged

and stands as a significant multicultural crucial approach that takes cultural factors into

consideration. Some of the traditional counseling models available in western societies that

especially since they’ll be originating from collectivistic cultures where famiy and community

are dear to them. Multicultural counseling therefore highlight on the importance of the counselor

to be cultural competent that seeks the counselor to be sensitive to his/her bias and cultural

sensitivity of his/her clients.

Cultural attuned therapists accordingly use strategies which are appropriate to any given cultures

because they understand that culture plays a major determinative 角色 of mental health. For