Historical evolution of counseling theories from ancient to modern times

Evolution of Counseling and Theory

Counseling theories and theoretical orientations have evolved over time in a number of different ways as the science of human development has deepened its own understanding of human nature. Kyziridis (2005) traces the historical evolution of multicultural treatments of mental disorders from ancient Greece to ancient India and China, showing how various approaches involved using everything from herbal remedies to music, prayer, and relaxation. Counseling in ancient cultures did not take quite the same form that it does today but it did, more or less, involve the same aims: the restoration of the patient's well-being via intervention on the part of the counselor or physician. In terms of dealing with the human psyche, treatments traditionally took into consideration what Plato called "the soul" -- "if the head and body are to be well, you must begin by curing the soul" (Plato, 2002). As Jones (2015), the psychological approach of the 19th and 20th centuries were about coming to terms with and redefining to a large degree "the soul."

Modern Approaches

Corsini and Wedding (2014) also note "that the construct unconscious plays a salient role…in the psychotherapies that emerged in the 19th century" (p. 2). This redefinition of what Plato and the ancients termed "the soul" was the extension of rationalist thought that had evolved out of the Enlightenment and naturalistic sciences that pervaded Europe after the fall of the Middle Ages and its attendant faith. A new route to man's psyche was plotted by various men of science who constructed a new terminology that could be used to explain in a new way what had previously been understood as the soul, in which reason, passion and will were at their best when ordered hierarchically, according to ancients like Aristotle. With Freud, the evolution of counseling and theoretical orientations took a turn more towards the latent passion and set out on a course of discovery in this respect.

Mesmer in the 19th century attempted to use hypnosis as a form of treatment by tapping into the unconscious mind via hypnotherapy and bypassing the conscious mind which, he believed, acted as a kind of gatekeeper to the secret inner desires and needs of the unconscious mind. This belief and orientation took a turn towards psychotherapy and psychology-philosophers, represented by poets that Schiller and Goethe and Schopenhauer and Carus. These pioneers in turn paved the way for Nietzsche and Freud (Corsini, Wedding, 2014). They also opened the door for clinical psychological therapy orientations. Benedikt, for example, developed a method of "purging 'pathogenic secrets'" from the psyche (Corsini, Wedding, 2014, p. 5).

Biological and Humanistic Orientations

In the 20th century, the study of biology also became important in the evolution of counseling theories and theoretical orientations, as a deeper and fuller understanding of the physical brain allowed physicians to identify developmental anomalies. Treatments, however, ranged from the experimental to the cruel, such as electroshock therapy and lobotomy, both of which have remained controversial, but when first introduced to the world were regarded with some esteem.

On the other hand, there was also an evolution towards a more humanistic approach to psychotherapy as can be seen in the work of Carl Rogers. As Rogers (1951, p. 495) argued, "The best vantage point for understanding behavior is from the internal frame of reference of the individual." Indeed, Rogers developed a "person-centered approach," which allowed for the patient to investigate himself with the help of the therapist in a humanistic manner. Rogers published Client-Centered Therapy in 1951, which set forth his principles by analyzing the client in varying contextual situations. "Congruence" and "Incongruence" were two terms that helped identify the client-patient's situation. A patient who was in a state of congruence had no difficulty fulfilling the need for "positive regard" -- his or her life could be lived with little disturbance. Incongruence, however, resulted in patients trying to satisfy their need for "positive regard" by living inauthentically -- or falsely. By trying to satisfy certain societal conditions, the authenticity of the individual is subjugated and the true nature of the person is not established.