Person-centered Therapy - Core Concepts

Core Concepts

Rogers (1957; 1959) stated that there are six necessary and sufficient conditions required for therapeutic change:

1. Therapist-Client Psychological Contact: a relationship between client and therapist must exist, and it must be a relationship in which each person's perception of the other is important.
2. Client in-congruence, or Vulnerability: that in-congruence exists between the client's experience and awareness. Furthermore, the client is vulnerable or anxious which motivates them to stay in the relationship.
3. Therapist Congruence, or Genuineness: the therapist is congruent within the therapeutic relationship. The therapist is deeply involved him or herself - they are not "acting" - and they can draw on their own experiences (self-disclosure) to facilitate the relationship.
4. Therapist Unconditional Positive Regard (UPR): the therapist accepts the client unconditionally, without judgment, disapproval or approval. This facilitates increased self-regard in the client, as they can begin to become aware of experiences in which their view of self-worth was distorted by others.
5. Therapist Empathic understanding: the therapist experiences an empathic understanding of the client's internal frame of reference. Accurate empathy on the part of the therapist helps the client believe the therapist's unconditional love for them.
6. Client Perception: that the client perceives, to at least a minimal degree, the therapist's UPR and empathic understanding.