" (Brodley, 1986)
II. COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THEORY
The work entitled: "An introduction to Cognitive Therapy & Cognitive Behavioral Approaches" states that: "The central insight of cognitive therapy as originally formulated over three decades ago is that thoughts mediate between stimuli, such as external events, and emotions." (Counselling Resource, nd) it is suggested within this theory that "psychological distress is caused by distorted thoughts about stimuli giving rise to distressed emotions." (Counselling Resource, nd) in part, the task of cognitive therapy is "to understand how the three main components of emotions, behaviors and thoughts interrelate, and how they may be influence by external stimuli - including events which may have occurred in the client's life." (Counselling Resource, nd) Cognitive behavioral therapy is characterized by the therapist being highly aware of the role that the behavior of the client plays in the client's life. The aim of cognitive therapy is assisting the client in gaining an understanding and awareness of distortions of thought, which are resulting in the psychological distress experienced by the client. This type of therapy is best used for individuals who are "comfortable with introspection, who readily adopt the scientific method for exploring their own psychology, and who place credence in the basic theoretical approach of cognitive therapy." (Counselling Resources, nd)
III. MICROSKILLS & EFFECTIVE TECHNIQUES
Brodley (1986) relates that person-centered therapy is "distinguishable by its form. The salient form of client-centered therapy is the emphatic understanding response process." This process is effectively accomplished through the therapist "maintaining with consistency and constancy the therapeutic attitudes in his/her experience and expressing him/herself to the client through empathic understanding responses." (Brodley, 1986) the skill of primary importance in this type of therapy is the 'attitude' of the therapist. This attitude should be genuine and not be a facade or front in treatment of the client with "unconditional positive regard and empathy." (Person-Centered Therapy, nd) in other words, the individual should be given acceptance of the individual...
This is a non-threatening climate leaving the student with the freedom to explore their own feelings without feeling guilt, shame, or that somehow something is wrong with them for the way that they feel. The teacher in this theoretical framework conveys empathy to the student, or relates to the student that the teacher in actuality understands the feelings of the student because the teacher has had these feelings at some time in life as well. Active listening is an important skill in the person-centered theory and is a type of listening "that shows careful and perceptive attention" (Person-Centered Therapy, nd) to what the student has to say. The goal of the person-centered therapy is stated to be one in which the therapist does not try, in any manner to change the mind of the client and this application would serve effectively as well in the case of the teacher-student interaction. Through the Person-Centered approach, the teacher is able to facilitate self-actualization of the student in a climate in which the student feels free to speak their mind and to explore their own feelings without recrimination or judgment on the part of the teacher.
Bibliography
Person-Centered Therapy (nd) Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders. Online available at http://www.minddisorders.com/Ob-Ps/Person-centered-therapy.html
An Introduction to Cognitive Therapy & Cognitive Behavioral Approaches (nd) Underlying Theory of Cognitive Therapy. Counselling Resource Online available at http://counsellingresource.com/types/cognitive-therapy/
Bodley, Barbara Temaner (1986) Client-Centered Therapy - What Is it? What Is it Not?. Presented at the First Annual Meeting of the Association for the Development of the Person-Centered Approach 3-7 Sept. 1986. University of Chicago: Chicago, Ill. Online available at http://world.std.com/~mbr2/whatscct.html
Person-Centered Theory & Cognitive Behavioral Theory
