Person Centered Therapy Research Paper

Abstract
As a challenge to the incumbent directive and interpretive approaches of behaviourism and psychoanalysis therapies, person-centered therapy has revolutionised the direction of counselling theory and practice. As the name implies, person-centered approach views clients as the ultimate agents for self-change. It assumes that humans are essentially positively motivated and can be trusted to make their own decisions to shape, direct and take responsibility for the way they live their lives. Since its conceptualization by Carl Rogers, person-centered therapy has yield successful treatment outcomes across the world. However, as with all therapies, there are inherent strengths and weaknesses. The obvious strength of this therapy is the
The obvious strength of this therapy is the emphasis of centrality on you, as the client. I believe that the most powerful way one can learn is through discovery. Lessons learned through self-experience are much more effective than a third party attempting to teach same lesson. Burning one’s hand after touching a boiling kettle is the fastest way to learn about that one should not touch a kettle when it is hot. A child discovering wondrous things about the world around him gives him a greater richer experience rather than it merely being told to him in front of a television. Because I believe in this concept of learning by doing, I appreciate the philosophical position of the person-centered therapy taking a non-directive role as a therapist. The assertion the clients should find their own solutions in the context of a safe and accepting environment is something I agree entirely with.

Another positive aspect is the ease in which many aspects of the theory fits well with other approaches. A therapist who begins a client-therapist relationship with some form of person-centred therapy will find the client more receptive towards other forms of therapies that may be applied to him in the future. This is exemplified by the adoption of person-centered therapy by therapists across different schools of treatment. While many may argue that use of person-centered therapy as a main form of therapy is ineffective, they see the benefit
It has been said that this lack of structure, results in a treatment approach that is too highly dependent upon the skills of the individual therapist rather than the treatment itself! (Thorne, 2002b).

Shortcomings with Staying with a Person-Centered Therapy Approach
While person-centered therapy has become a trusted treatment used by therapists worldwide, one should note that the therapy has its shortcomings for those who persist with employing it as the only tool in their counselling toolbox.
Person-centered therapy is notably unable to deal with the more severe personality or mental disorders. An example would be a client who clearly exhibits the mania and depressive episodes of bipolar disorder, in which a course of lithium treatment is clearly more